Roy's Blog: July 2023
July 31, 2023
What is The Storm and why is it deadly for marketers?
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What is The Storm and why is it deadly for marketers?
The Sea: rogue waves - heaving tumultuous water - howling winds - black menacing clouds - deafening thunder - crackling lightning - violent and frightening.
Competition: burgeoning - hungry - desperate.
The environment: random - unpredictable - uncertain - anxious - chaotic - hysterical – angry.
Customers: fickle – demanding - intelligent – powerful - vocal, who speak their truth about how organizations serve them - socially connected - environmentally concerned - socially responsible - technology-savvy - opinionated - price conscious - value-driven.
Welcome to The Storm; the landscape facing entrepreneurs and business people today.
What’s the path to succeed and survive The Storm?
There is no simple answer, but there are some navigation buoys to observe in the maelstrom:
✔️ Stay close to your customers. Open yourself to them. “Attach” yourself to them as they experience a fast moving and uncertain world.
Move with them. Respond to how they deal with their reality. It’s like riding a bucking bronco. Hang on. Go with the forces that drive you.
✔️ Pick a course of action based on the best information you have available to you at the time. ‘Head West’.
✔️ Move from that course FAST, when things change.
Stay focused. Be nimble.
The Storm dictates that customer-obsessed MARKETING is vital to the success and survival of any business these days.
If you can’t market in The Storm you’re either dead or soon will be.
The Storm dictates that traditional marketing practices, on their way to irrelevance, must change.
It’s over. The old marketing pedagogy that guided marketers is done.
The Tipping Point signaling its demise is in the rear view mirror.
Not enough marketers are waking up to The Storm.
And the business schools aren’t doing students any favors in terms of preparing them for it.
They are not actively facilitating the move away from the old marketing ways to the marketing tools that will give organizations a shot at weathering The Storm.
Business students don’t learn Storm Marketing competencies so how can they contribute to business survival when they get out in the real world?
Much marketing these days is BORING in my view.
It’s lazy. It’s forgettable. It’s unimaginative. It’s unremarkable. It’s deadly in The Storm.
Today it seems to be all about pushing products and services with a features and benefits bent.
It’s all about price.
It’s “communications to the masses” approach invades one’s privacy; it’s obtrusive.
It’s about copying what others are doing; infatuation with Best in Class and Best of Breed.
And there is confusion.
▪️Some talk about marketing but what they really mean is sales.
▪️Some talk about marketing but what they really mean is advertising and communications.
▪️Some talk about marketing but what they really mean is brand management.
Hell, even same-old marketing is misunderstood.
What a challenge to start a conversation about morphing to Storm Marketing.
Cheers,
Roy
My 50+ Podcast Shows that will change your life.
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series
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- Posted 7.31.23 at 05:28 am by Roy Osing
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July 24, 2023
4 absolutely critical moves an entrepreneur must make to stay alive
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4 absolutely critical moves an entrepreneur must make to stay alive.
The life of an entrepreneur isn’t an easy one.
More than a few fail.
But there is a formula that worked for me along my journey to take an early stage internet company to A BILLION IN ANNUAL SALES that will at least improve the chances of staying in the game.
#1. Plan…simply to execute. — You need a plan. Not new advice. Everyone pronounces it.
But what’s different from me is that your plan has to be simple and it has to be developed around the notion that if you can’t execute it, it’s nothing more than a paper intellectual exercise.
I created The Strategic Game Plan—SGP—as my way of building an effective strategy quickly, inexpensively and with the focus on execution rather than on its textbook prowess.
Answer 3 simple questions and you have your plan.
HOW BIG do you want to be?
WHO do you intend to SERVE?
HOW will you COMPETE and WIN?
In literally 48 hours we can build your strategy that you can begin executing in hour 49.
#2. Differentiate. — If you’re not different, you’re dead (or soon will be).
It’s not about your idea and the cool technology behind it.
Because it really doesn’t matter if your new found genius isn’t unique among all the other products and services out there being pushed by your competitors.
It’s not about what YOU think of your newness.
If your golden nugget isn’t different from what others are peddling in the market, STOP!
Successful entrepreneurs are the ONLY ones who do what they do in a way people (their target customers) CARE about.
Create your ONLY Statement and watch your competitors fall by the wayside and your bank account flourish.
#3. Focus. Focus. Focus. — You can’t be chasing possibilities because there are an infinite number of them.
Stay with your new idea. Make it the ONLY one of its kind—ask me for help. I’m there for you—and take it to market seamlessly.
If you get sucked into chasing YUMMY , you’ll do nothing but waste your precious resources of time and money with nothing to show for it.
Be successful with your original idea (or discard it in favor of something unique) and consider YUMMY opportunities only after your original idea has won.
#4. Create, don’t copy. — Please don’t use Google or any other search engine to determine the future of your new idea.
Copying others won’t help you. Copying isn’t strategic; it won’t help you meet the challenge of being the ONLY one who does what you do.
All copying does is increase the herd of sameness by one if you choose to emulate what someone else is doing.
And don’t think following Best Practices is being innovative. It’s not. It’s raw copying with the hope that somehow what apparently worked for someone else will miraculously work for you and give you the competitive advantage you need to win.
It won’t.
There’s no substitute for putting the hard work in creating something that others CARE about.
It’s hard work.
It’s painful work.
But it’s the ONLY work that will get you where you need to go as an entrepreneur.
4 simple truths that helped me build a business to an unbelievable level.
They will work for you if you let them.
Cheers,
Roy
My 50+ Podcast Shows that will change your life.
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series
‘Audacious’ is my latest…
- Posted 7.24.23 at 06:05 am by Roy Osing
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July 17, 2023
What are the top 3 challenges in business today?
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What are the top 3 challenges in business today?
The truth is that virtually all organizations have access to the same products, the same technology, the same recruiting tools, the same strategic planning algorithms, the same CRM platforms and the same EVERYTHING.
So, the main challenges business faces today aren’t about these things.
These things represent the means to your end, not your end themselves.
You may NEED a specific technology to deliver your customer solutions, but they represent the HOW you acquire and retain them.
They don’t define that strategy behind why customers decide to do business with you and not your competitors.
It is in this area the true challenges present themselves for most businesses.
In my experience, these are the top 3 mountains most organizations must climb if they are to achieve audacious results.
#1. DIFFERENTIATE! — Answer the question “Why should someone do business with ME as opposed to my competitors?”.
If you can’t answer the question “How are you different?”, you’re DONE.
#2. DIFFERENTIATE! — STOP! copying best practices and looking for unique one-of-a-kind approaches to separate your business from others.
Put the textbook down and try to create methods and solutions that work for you and establish YOU as the benchmark for others to copy.
#3. DIFFERENTIATE! — Cast off the narcissism. It’s not about YOU.
Differentiation is not about what you think of your business, the value you provide and what separates your business from the crowd around you.
It’s what OTHERS think of your business.
“We provide the best customer service.” is undifferentiation in full bloom along with other statements that use CLAPTRAP words and expressions like ‘better’, #1, ‘market leader’, ‘the first’, ‘premium’, ‘great tasting’, ‘most reliable’ and ‘lowest cost’.
If you’re not the ONLY one that does what you do, you’re DONE.
Businesses today do a mediocre job of separating themselves from the crowd.
If you can’t differentiate you will die…
Cheers,
Roy
My 50+ Podcast Shows that will change your life.
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series
‘Audacious’ is my latest…
- Posted 7.17.23 at 05:14 am by Roy Osing
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July 10, 2023
From Startup to a Billion Dollars in Sales: My Audacious and Unheard of Ways
My thanks to Stephen Halasnik fro The Entrepreneur MBA Podcast for hosting me on his show and allowing me to unpack my latest book.
These are the great notes he made from our session.
Building a billion-dollar business is the dream of most entrepreneurs. However, it requires vision, perseverance, and strategic decision-making. While it may seem daunting, numerous success stories prove entrepreneurs can build great companies that stand out from the pack and have billions in revenue. You can create a thriving business with the right mindset and approach.
This article explores essential strategies and principles that can guide aspiring entrepreneurs on their path to building a billion-dollar company.
5 Tips for Building a Billion-Dollar Business
Building a thriving company with excellent performance entails going the extra mile and doing what is unheard of. You must spend most of your time working on your business, not in your business, if you want to reach your business goals. Below are the key strategies to consider while wanting to build a billion-dollar business:
#1. Strategic Planning — Strategic planning is crucial in building a billion-dollar business by identifying the right market segments, developing innovative products or services, entering new markets, and staying ahead of the curve. Strategic planning is setting long-term goals and determining the best method to achieve them.
You must analyze the market to identify opportunities and threats, define a clear vision and mission, and outline strategies to gain a competitive advantage. Effective strategic planning enables you to make informed decisions, allocate resources efficiently, and adapt to changing market conditions.
#2. Differentiation — You should strive to create a unique selling proposition (USP) that sets your business apart from competitors. In other words, you should aim to offer something distinctive and valuable that customers cannot easily find elsewhere.
You can achieve this through various means, including innovative product design, superior quality, exceptional customer service, or a unique business model.
By differentiating your company, you can attract a loyal customer base, command higher prices, and establish a strong market position. Successful differentiation requires understanding customer needs, conducting market research, and continually innovating to stay ahead of competitors.Building a business
#3. Hire the Right Employees — The composition of your teammates goes a long way in affecting your bottom line. Hire passionate, dedicated people who genuinely care about the company and its customers.
Genuine employees are not merely motivated by a pay-check but by a deep sense of purpose and a desire to make a positive impact. Hiring team members whose vision aligns with your business is crucial because they bring enthusiasm, creativity, and a customer-centric mindset to the company.
They provide exceptional customer experiences, foster a positive company culture, and contribute to the overall success and growth of the company. A workforce of passionate individuals can also attract other talented individuals and create a positive reputation in the industry.
#4. Create a Unique Customer Experience — Creating a unique customer experience involves delivering exceptional service and exceeding customers’ expectations at every touchpoint. And this includes interactions before, during, and after the purchase.
Billion-dollar businesses understand the importance of building strong customer relationships and strive to provide personalized, seamless, and memorable experiences.
You can achieve this through various means, such as offering personalized recommendations, providing fast and efficient support, leveraging technology to streamline processes, and continuously improving the customer journey.
When you create a unique customer experience, your business can foster customer loyalty, generate positive word-of-mouth, and differentiate itself from competitors.
#5. Be Unique — You must strive to stand out from the crowd by offering something distinct and not easily replicable. Your uniqueness can stem from various aspects of the business, including its products, services, brand identity, culture, or business model. Billion-dollar businesses strive to bring innovation and originality to their industry, challenging traditional norms and delivering new value propositions.
By being unique, your company can attract attention, create a strong brand identity, capture market share, and achieve long-term success. However, it requires a deep understanding of the market, consumer preferences, and a willingness to take calculated risks to disrupt the status quo.
There you have it. Tune in and listen to the full show and learn about other practical and proven ways you can grow your business to unimaginable heights.
Cheers,
Roy
My 55+ Podcast Shows that will change your business and your life.
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series
‘Audacious’ is my latest…
- Posted 7.10.23 at 06:26 am by Roy Osing
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