Do you ever feel like your competitor is really doing a great job, like they’re totally kicking your butt in some areas? Does it make you feel, well … less?
That revelation can really suck. I mean, it’s much easier to look at all the ways they fall short of doing things as well as you do, obviously. But when they really nail it, sometimes an unflattering light shines on our shortcomings. That’s not fun to look at.
In this situation, I believe there area two different ways you can look at your performance:
- Throw in the towel, or
- Figure out what needs to be done to match or compete with them … do it better.
You can’t fail as long as you are always willing to get back in the ring. But you can’t compete unless you climb in.
Listen, you won’t learn how to beat your competition by merely getting frustrated at their results. You need to find out what they’re doing and figure out how to build a better offer, product, or even process that make those results tangible for you, too.
Yeah, the whole build-a-better-mousetrap thing.
But did you notice that I mentioned making your process better? Many times, that’s all it might take. Chances are, you don’t have to discount your products or services. Chances are, you don’t have to resign yourself to being even busier than you already are. Chances are, you don’t have to work any harder to achieve the same (or better) results.
Those who have reached successful pinnacles in their careers as business owners usually have a system devised not only for immediate feedback, but also designed for future improvements.
Don’t just kick the tires when it comes to thinking about changing your strategies. Start implementing those simple daily tasks and systems to increase your profits. Those small increases add up, and when you bring a strong, customer-oriented approach to all you offer, you’ll see improvements in everything from social networking responses to brand recognition and sales.
You can do it better, just decide what it actually is.
Is ‘it’:
- Following up on the sale with a survey or quick phone call?
- Collecting comprehensive contact data, like email addresses?
- Shooting before and after shots to share online with others?
- Tweeting or posting your helpful ideas on social media sites?
- Adding a professional photograph to your media outlets?
- Asking for reviews? And then sharing those reviews online?
- Developing a maintenance package for additional long-term sales?
- Sharing your review and social media locations on your invoices and business cards?
- Developing how-to videos?
- Team up with another local vendor to offer coupons or specials to your best customers?
- Post to your blog more frequently?
- Improve your directory listings online?
- Take a class to improve or augment your skills?
Whatever your ‘it’ is, figure out how to implement that small improvement right away. What can you do better? Have you started doing something new this summer? Tell us about it in the comments below!
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