When on-boarding new clients, I apply two frameworks – 3C’s (Customer, Company, Competition) and The Reasoning. The 3C’s helps me gain a better understanding of how clients see themselves, the competition, and their target audience. The Reasoning, my framework, ensures clients are delivering relevant messages at the right place and at the right time. I pretty much have these frameworks down. So, imagine my surprise last week when I was watching Oprah and Mike Tyson gave me a new way of looking at the 3rd C -- competition. Okay, let me stop there for a second. For those that don’t know, I’m on paternity leave i.e. I find myself watching my fair share of daytime TV. Back to business lessons from Iron Mike.
Tyson told Oprah he would watch videos of his opponents and ask his trainer– “How do I beat him?” Think about that for a second… “How do I beat him?” If you’re a new entrant or a brand with limited market share, this is the single most important question you must answer. The Reason -- It’s a liberating question because it helps you think outside the box. This might be a leap, but I think this question forces you to look at the value chain for your industry i.e. how and why does your industry deliver value to your customer. Once you look at all those pieces of the value chain separately, you begin seeing how your brand can beat its competition. In other words, you can differentiate your brand from the competition.
Want to be competitive in your industry, answer the following questions:
- Who is your competitor? And, how will you beat him?
- How will you apply The Reasoning to communicate your value proposition... btw, I can help you with this one
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