Feb
3
Imitation is supposed to be the most sincere form of flattery.
Sitting in HotelSphere towers, looking at the behaviour of the businesses I can see, it's clear that there's a lot of imitation going on.
Times are hard. When times are hard different people respond in different ways. As such, we should be seeing lots of different ways of responding to the challenges 2010 will bring.
Today, I want to talk about just one of them...
Copying what other businesses are doing.
Is it a good idea? Well probably not.
When times are tough and business conditions difficult, having a skill like marketing is possibly the only thing that can save you. Following the crowd, joining the herd, running with the pack - all euphamisms for doing what you think everybody else is doing. You become a copycat. You want to be just like them.
But what's the point? What are you trying to achieve?
If you're trying to survive, simply being the same as everyone else isn't going to help.
The current vogue is to cut back on spending. Everybody is thinking "cash out" when you really need to be thinking "cash in". Let me explain.
"Cash out" thinking means, "cut advertising", "cut payroll", "slash costs".
"Cash in" thinking means, "find customers", "keep customers", "what do customers want to buy?" and "how can we provide that?"
I'm all for businesses being efficient, but there comes a time when there is simply not enough income to do any cost cutting with. You run in ever decreasing circles until you fatally run out of cash. It's not nice.
"Cash in" means you have a shot at survival. "Cash in" thinking means you need to think about how to make your business appeal to customers - and you need to do stuff.
The stuff you need to do is not necessarily what your competitors are doing. You do NOT want to be just like them. How are your prospective customers going to tell you apart?
Here are some example of lethal copycat tactics I've witnessed in the past week:
- Dramatic discounting (50% and then some) on food. Are you mad??
- Dramatic discounting (70% plus) on rooms. You are mad!
- Cancelling all advertising and promotion. At a time when you need customers to know about you, you've decided to become a mute hermit? You'll go mad...
Just because the business next door is doing it, doesn't mean to say it'll do you any good. What suits their business model could well be fatal to yours. So what should you be looking at doing?
Be different. Be innovative. Be zany if you like, but you MUST stand out and you MUST be constantly reaching out to people to tell them where you are and what you can do for them.
It's simple stuff and there are so many ways of spreading the word. You've just got to dare to be different.
Don't be just like them. They're doing nothing...
Sitting in HotelSphere towers, looking at the behaviour of the businesses I can see, it's clear that there's a lot of imitation going on.
Times are hard. When times are hard different people respond in different ways. As such, we should be seeing lots of different ways of responding to the challenges 2010 will bring.
Today, I want to talk about just one of them...
Copying what other businesses are doing.
Is it a good idea? Well probably not.
When times are tough and business conditions difficult, having a skill like marketing is possibly the only thing that can save you. Following the crowd, joining the herd, running with the pack - all euphamisms for doing what you think everybody else is doing. You become a copycat. You want to be just like them.
But what's the point? What are you trying to achieve?
If you're trying to survive, simply being the same as everyone else isn't going to help.
The current vogue is to cut back on spending. Everybody is thinking "cash out" when you really need to be thinking "cash in". Let me explain.
"Cash out" thinking means, "cut advertising", "cut payroll", "slash costs".
"Cash in" thinking means, "find customers", "keep customers", "what do customers want to buy?" and "how can we provide that?"
I'm all for businesses being efficient, but there comes a time when there is simply not enough income to do any cost cutting with. You run in ever decreasing circles until you fatally run out of cash. It's not nice.
"Cash in" means you have a shot at survival. "Cash in" thinking means you need to think about how to make your business appeal to customers - and you need to do stuff.
The stuff you need to do is not necessarily what your competitors are doing. You do NOT want to be just like them. How are your prospective customers going to tell you apart?
Here are some example of lethal copycat tactics I've witnessed in the past week:
- Dramatic discounting (50% and then some) on food. Are you mad??
- Dramatic discounting (70% plus) on rooms. You are mad!
- Cancelling all advertising and promotion. At a time when you need customers to know about you, you've decided to become a mute hermit? You'll go mad...
Just because the business next door is doing it, doesn't mean to say it'll do you any good. What suits their business model could well be fatal to yours. So what should you be looking at doing?
Be different. Be innovative. Be zany if you like, but you MUST stand out and you MUST be constantly reaching out to people to tell them where you are and what you can do for them.
It's simple stuff and there are so many ways of spreading the word. You've just got to dare to be different.
Don't be just like them. They're doing nothing...
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