Hopefully the title has done its job, and you’ve clicked on this wondering what the magic word is.
Good customer service?! Yes!
Good products?! Yes!
A good sales team?! YES!
All of those things are good. All of those things take vision. But the real way to crush the competition is not having vision. After all, didn’t the competition also take a risk because of a vision they had? Aren’t they your competition because they too had a dream?
The difference between good and great are the logistics that take vision and bring it to fruition. The answer, then, to crushing the competition is STRATEGY.
What is your marketing strategy, your sales strategy, your customer service strategy, or your social media strategy?
In talking to many FEC and bowling center operators at IAAPA, I found they don’t currently have these strategies in place. Do you? And if your competition has these strategies in place, how do you think they will fair? They’ll certainly have a leg up come 2012!
Don’t let your beautiful creation of a vision be crushed by the weight of reality! Spend a few hours in 2011 PLANNING your vision; make a step-by-step process on how to turn your vision into vitality.
For example, many centers I spoke with don’t have a marketing strategy. When I asked, “Why not,” I was told because they don’t have a marketing department. Okay – now we’re getting somewhere. “Do you have a sales department or team,” I asked. “Of course,” was always the reply. Well, if marketing drives sales and you have a sales department, why not ask them why they think people buy from you? {Insert looks of “Ah-HA!” here}
Your sales team should know why people buy from you. YOU should know why people buy from you. What makes you unique? What makes you special? Is it the experience or the price (I bet for most of you it’s the experience!) that sets you apart?
You and your sales team are a very good start to answer these questions (which are inevitably the key to building your strategy), but would you like to know a GREAT – possibly THE GREATEST – resource for these questions?
How about your consumers?
It used to be that we had to send out surveys (that people never completed) or ask every, single customer how their experience was as they were leaving (which got to be painstaking). But with the advent of social media you have a direct line to your most loyal customers. Why not ask them what sets you apart?
I know some of you are gasping in your chairs reading this…”Oh my GOSH – Brooke’s gone mad!” I encourage you to really think about this strategy though. More than likely, as I stated earlier, you’re selling an EXPERIENCE to your customers, right? More than likely, if someone is your fan on Facebook or your follower on Twitter they’ve HAD that great experience, right? Wouldn’t it make all the sense in the world to ASK those people about it?
Whenever I have this talk with people the “fear factor” inevitably emerges. “What if they say something negative?” Well, what if they do?
Can you immediately reach out to this person, in a public forum, apologize and ask to fix it? Yes. Can you give this person a direct line to contact you, in a public setting, so you can find out more information? Yes. Can you find out something about your employees, your products, or your service that you may not have known? Yes.
What if it’s an easy fix? Can you then go back to that public forum, thank your community for their insight and advice, and inform them that you LISTENED and FIXED the problem? YES! How many of your competitors are using that strategy? Not many…
I’m getting off my soapbox now…
My point is this: There are resources beyond measure in front of you right now (by way of social media), and using those resources can vastly improve your strategy…which will improve your vision…which will ultimately improve your bottom line and crush the competition. The strategy should not be B2B or B2C, but P2P (people-to-people or peer-to-peer).
Ask questions. Come up with a strategy, tactics or a plan of attack – and do it before the New Year! Your competitors are already doing this, and if they aren’t? Well, now YOU have the leg up.
Need a strategy? Let’s talk! Comment below or reach out to me on the TrainerTainment Fan Page for some tips on a step-by-step strategy for your vision!
