How Do I Compete Against Bigger Companies?

Bigger companies, you ask? This is a fairly simple task. It actually doesn't take a genius to figure it out, either.


To answer this question, you would have to start by asking yourself who you are competing against. If you are competing against a giant competitor (We will use my favorite business, Nuttin But Leather, in this instance) you will need to realize that your business is a lot smaller, and does not have the personnel that a mighty corporation would have.



Nuttin But Leather has 4 employees. The big guys have thousands. How do we go to war with them? What do we have that they don't? What we have is stealth. Stealth is an amazing advantage over big-time companies. How do we have stealth? That's easy, they don't know we exist. We can take them down with simple (relatively small) blows on a regular basis. How do we do this? Well, that's the tricky part.



We know more about our company, the product, and we have the drive to beat a monster. Your best bet as an online company is to firgure out Search Engine Optimization, or SEO. SEO is a the biggest trick up anyone's sleeve. When someone looks for Leather Laptop Briefcases, on a search engine, we want to be the first one you see. Now, you can blow your money on expensive pay-per-click campaigns (pay-per-click, is paying the search engine to put your name first on a series of keywords), or you can do this naturally, let the search engines pick you as thier number one.



Now, I won't explain SEO to you, number one is because I don't have two years to explain it, number two is that I am still learning it myself. Once you have optimized your site, and made it number one, you have brought the Giant to it's knees. You have to remember, they are going to try to come back, making this a daily battle.



Second Part: I own a bar, I'm not competing against giant corporations, I'm competing against the guy down the street. (I'm using my local watering hole as an example here.)



This is my favorite, it's my bread and butter.



What does your business have that is better than his? The thought behind this is simple. You KNOW your business is better than his, right? You need to highlight two things...

1.) Your strengths.

2.) Their weaknesses.

Your strongpoints need to be what makes a customer visit you in the first place. What can you sell your potential customer on? Is it (in this instance) specials (i.e. "ladies night" "dollar longnecks")? Is it a better experience than what would be had than your competitors? This is for you to figure out. Nobody can do that for you, either.

I use my bar, simply because the owner (a personal friend of mine,), asked for my help once. He already knew he had better deals than his competitors, he just didn't know how to exploit them.

My advice? Simply step on their toes. I designed a business card that offered a free drink at his bar. He sent a guy into those bars, as they were running, and handed them out to the customers. His revenue grew by 7% the following day (and it is growing still).

That is a true story, but you have to keep in mind, they can (and most likely will) look for revenge. You need to stay directly on your toes at all times.

Competition is half the fun, the other half is gloating after you beat them...

The Cowbell Theory

Most all of us are familiar with Saturday Night Live's version of VH1's "Behind The Music" featuring "The Blue Oyster Cult." For those who are not, here's what happened...

SNL did a skit about how Blue Oyster Cult recorded the song "Don't Fear The Reaper." With Christopher Walkken playing the producer, who insisted they add "more cowbell" to the song. Ultimately, the rest of the band decided that they omit the cowbell altogether.

This skit is a staple of SNL's artillery of funny skits. SNL now markets T-Shirts with Will Ferrell' picture on the front featuring the text "MORE COWBELL" at the bottom.

People will now know the theory behind this skit. It is a metaphor for branding your company.

Take your business, for example. Everybody would love their business to be a titled name like Kleenex, or Jello. These are titles for a company who produces tissues and gelatin desserts, though they are known by name. In this theory, the song "Don't Fear The Reaper" is your business.

YOU want to be the train that takes your business to that "phenom" status, thus making you the producer.

How do you get your product to this level? The answer is easy: your marketing/advertising campaigns. This can be tricky, but if done right, you will be a name that people use around the house. This is the cowbell.

The band (BOC), is the people you put this out to. Making your name known to people on a regular basis is the most important part. These people don't want to hear it, but YOU need to make people remember you. Case in point; Geico Insurance. My Dad is a TV watcher, he loves game shows. He also hates that little gecko with the Australian accent. The best part about that gecko? When he sees a gecko, he thinks of those guys. It may make him cringe, but he knows them, nonetheless.

Beating the cowbell for a company is somewhat hard if you don't have the money that major corporations do. This is your ultimate question. Where do we go now?

The internet. Most people don't realize that optimizing a website for your company, building links, and giving content (among others) is the key to having a successful business.

Be sure to beat the cowbell as hard as possible, and also make sure to keep beating it. Anheuser Busch doesn't need to advertise in America, though they do, simply keeping their name out there for future customers to know where to go when they drink!

Thus, explaining "The Cowbell Theory."

My Credentials

I was asked about my credentials today. I don't mind, because I would ask the same thing if I was in a position where I needed an advertising consultant.

My name is Jimmy, I am twenty-seven years old, and I am a senior advertising consultant. I have helped thousands of people work ads to fit their business, and attract attention. On average, I write advertisements for fifteen clients a day.

I am also the marketing director for two different companies. The first one is an online leather goods store Nuttin' But Leather. The second one is an outdoor supply company, which has just launched on Thursday, and is already moving up the ladder as a Game Hoist market dominator Reifel Outdoors.

I have spoken to thousands of people who, like most business owners, thought they didn't need help with their advertising. Once I talked them into letting me grab the reins, I have helped almost every single one of them become number one in their local area, and a lot of times number one on the internet.

I live for advertising. When I watch television, a lot of times I wait, specifically for the commercials. Strange? No. I know the ins and outs of selling people things, and I am good.

I don't want people to think I am arrogant, because I am far from it. As a matter of fact, I am pretty humble when it comes to my job. I always listen to people's advice. I don't always take it, but I always listen.

I pride myself on being friendly to customers, because they are the ones who pay my bills. I can respect that, simply because I know that they are giving me their hard earned money to get a return. That's simply what I am here for.

People often take advertising as a full-contact game. It usually is, though if you are good enough, you will succeed.

Reifel Outdoors had their big launch on Thursday. It was a celebrated event for the owner and his family. I was proud to be a part of this fantastic ordeal, and I cannot wait until the owner of the place decides that he is finished working for his boss. In other words, how nice would it be to be able to fire YOUR boss, and be your own boss? Sounds good, huh?

Nuttin' But Leather is now number one and two on Yahoo's search engine. They are creeping up on Google, as well. When this owner looked up, and saw that he is now making the company pay it's own bills, and is getting closer every day to packing up his desk, I was proud to be a part of his team, as well.

I love helping small business owners, I appreciate that aspect of my job.

When was the last time you felt good about your business? Was it recently? You think you could do better? Why not have a guy help your business succeed? I am only a few clicks away!

Making Friends/Customers For Life.

A good way to make friends out of customers is to take them out doing something THEY like doing. A lot of times, you don't even have to talk business.

Take for example, my latest client, Mike, of Reifel Outdoors. Mike is obviously interested in hunting and fishing. So, I decided to take him out on a fishing trip. It was about 7 a.m. when I picked him up, and we were on our way. By the time we were packing up our tackle boxes, he was a customer for life.

I didn't go with the salesman's approach to getting his business, I simply went fishing and became his friend. We enjoyed the talk that men have when fishing, and eventually he asked me about my business. It didn't take much longer than that, I was the marketing coordinator for him.

When taking a customer out, the best way to get your sale is to let them come to you. In other words, if you let them ask what you're doing, you aren't being pushy.

This way of talking is my favorite way to attract customers. The best part is, I now have a friend in Reifel Outdoors, and in Mike forever. Even if I lose the contract, I still have a friend!

The Beginning... You Ready?

Are you wanting to win customers in this economy? I'm sure you are. I know I always like to have more customers. I wanted to share a few things to make a professional, instead of breaking one.

If you are face-to-face with a prospective client, you want to look good for the role. A sharp dressed salesperson is the first step into winning a customer. First impressions are everything. With that, you want to have a professional briefcase. Leather briefcases are always a fan favorite. I included the site where I shop, because they are the most professional briefcases that I have found.

Your smile, and attitude are important. Your biggest attribute should be your handshake. A firm, welcoming handshake is the best. Be sure to look the person in the eye when you shake hands.

Being audible is big, and so is smiling a lot. Remember, your attitude is the reason for winning a sale at about 90% of the time. Think about this; you don't like a the guy in the drive thru who is rude, right? Well, you are serving the burgers on this one.

Also, stay up on your current events, customers always enjoy a good conversation that isn't just a sales pitch. This could be deciding factor for your sale. Plus, it never hurts to make an extra friend.

One more thing in learning to get customers in your pocket is knowing your product, and sharing every bit of info that your potential customer might need to know.

Next week: How To Win Customers Online....

(Phonepro52 is a marketing professional, and is credited with helping many companies increase their sales numbers on a regular basis.)