May 26, 2025

5 Simple Reasons To Not Worry About Your Competitors

5 Simple Reasons To Not Worry About Your Competitors

Don’t Worry #1. — You can’t really control them, so why be obsessed with keeping them out?

It’s a losing proposition. Focus on what you CAN influence and control — YOUR own actions not someone else’s.

What can you control? Trying to keep your existing customers from leaving you.

Do your work on that.

Don’t Worry #2. — Worrying about them takes you away from the real important stuff.

It’s a diversion away from doing the critical work of sustaining a loyal base of customers.

Invest your scarce resources in strengthening customer loyalty.

Don’t Worry #3. — While you are trying to erect barriers to keep your competitors out, your customers are leaving.

The opportunity cost of trying to keep “the bad guys” out is the revenue and profit you now enjoy from current customers.

While you’re looking out for the hordes at your front doorstep, your most precious assets are sneaking out the back door because you’ve mistreated or ignored them.

Don’t Worry #4. — The textbooks aren’t always right.

I know it’s sexy to “do battle” with your competitors; academic principles tell us to erect barriers and divert the hungry enemy away from us.

But the textbooks aren’t always right.

Focus on your customer. Observe your competitor.

Don’t Worry #5. — It’s the wrong strategy. Focus on The WHO, not The THEM.

Apply your obsession to those customer groups that have displayed the potential to deliver your growth goals. Discover what they CRAVE (841). Deliver the unique VALUE they crave.

Competitors are NOT a target market, so why allocate resources to them?
It’s the wrong strategy.

Focus on delivering value that your customers CARE (1427) about and observe what your competitors are doing.

Be customer led and competitor driven.

Cheers,
Roy
My Podcast Show Audacious Moves to A BILLION shares the specific Moves I made to achieve jaw-dropping growth in an insanely competitive internet business.

”The Audacious Unheard of Ways I Took a Startup to A BILLION IN SALES” is the latest in my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series.

• Posted 5.26.25 at 06:00 am by Roy Osing
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March 3, 2025

What is The New Growth Model For Uncertain Times?

What is The New Growth Model For Uncertain Times?

In today’s competitive landscape, businesses constantly seek sustainable growth.
Traditional growth models often fall short in the face of market unpredictability and empowered consumers.

This blog post explores a highly effective alternative, focusing on a “just about right” strategy and flawless execution, as demonstrated by our internet businesses’s journey to $1 billion in annual sales.

My BE DiFFERENT or be Dead model eschews the pursuit of a perfect, all-encompassing plan.

Instead, it prioritizes a strategic approach that’s “just about right”—sufficiently robust to guide the business while adaptable enough to navigate unforeseen challenges.

This represents approximately 20% of the overall effort. The remaining 80% is dedicated to flawless execution.

My model hinges on two core tenets: creating a unique value proposition and flawlessly delivering on that promise.

Crafting the “Just About Right” Strategy

The initial phase focuses on defining a clear and concise strategy. 

Key aspects include:

The Strategic Game Plan — This phase is about developing a Game Plan with the critical imperatives that must be achieved.

The key elements of The Strategic Game Plan are…

▪️ A 24-month Revenue Growth Goal - Define a clear and ambitious, yet achievable, top-line revenue goal within a 24-month timeframe.

▪️ Target Customer Segments - Identify a small number of key customer segments whose needs and desires your business can effectively address. Deep understanding of what they DESIRE and CRAVE is crucial.

▪️ Competitive Strategy: Develop a unique competitive approach that leverages your focus on delivering unique value that your target customers CARE to win in the Customer Segments you have chosen to serve.

Differentiation — The cornerstone is a unique “ONLY” Value Proposition that sets your business apart from the competition.
This isn’t merely about features; it’s about understanding and addressing customer cravings and desires.

Prioritization — Identify the critical few actions that will yield the maximum impact. Avoid spreading resources thinly across numerous initiatives.

Strategic Oversight — Assign a “Strategy Hawk”—an individual responsible for maintaining strategic focus, adapting the plan as needed and most importantly, ensuring that strategy execution is flawless.

This not only ensures the strategy remains relevant and effective in a dynamic environment, but also the strategy has “single finger accountability” for achieving its intended results.

Integrated Marketing and Service — Customer retention is paramount. This requires a robust marketing strategy complemented by exceptional service.
This requires a three-tiered service approach: solid core service, “rave-worthy” memorable experiences, and mind-blowing service recovery for any missteps.

Flawless Execution: Delivering on the Promise

The majority of effort is dedicated to flawless execution. This necessitates…

Line of Sight - Ensure every team member understands the overall strategy and their role in achieving it. Clear communication and transparency are vital.

Servant Leadership - Adopt a “How can I help?” leadership style, identifying and remediating the barriers to strategy execution fostering collaboration and empowerment throughout the organization.

Empowering Leadership - Develop a “fingerprint” leadership approach where each leader imprints how strategic imperatives and customer moments in the organization are to be treated.
This is a fundamental role of the leader to ensure strategy execution goes as intended and organizational dysfunction is avoided.

Internal Alignment - Prioritize internal efficiency—Cleanse The Inside—and eliminate any internal friction, barriers, “grunge”, bureaucracy and irrelevant rules and policies that could hinder flawless execution.

Talent Acquisition - Recruit individuals who genuinely care about people and deliver exceptional customer experiences.
Passion and empathy are essential.

Key Takeaways for Business Growth

The growth model we used to grow our internet business offers practical insights for businesses seeking substantial growth:

Differentiation: Stand out from the competition by offering a unique and compelling value proposition.

Emotional Selling: Focus on building relationships based on understanding and addressing customer desires.

While everyone else is competing in the price sensitive, commodity-like NEEDS space, make the move to deliver what people CRAVE. THIS space has few competitors in any industry and is relatively price insensitive. Cool ‘eh?

Short-Term Focus: Managing short-term results is crucial for long-term success. Consistent, incremental progress builds momentum and confidence.

By adopting this approach—focusing on a “just about right” strategy and unwavering commitment to flawless execution—businesses can navigate the complexities and uncertainties of today’s markets and achieve remarkable , sustainable growth.

Cheers,
Roy
My Podcast Show Audacious Moves to A BILLION shares the specific Moves I made to achieve jaw-dropping growth in an insanely competitive internet business.

”The Audacious Unheard of Ways I Took a Startup to A BILLION IN SALES” is the latest in my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series.

• Posted 3.3.25 at 06:00 am by Roy Osing
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January 20, 2025

Are You A Remarkable Leader? Take The Truth Quiz!

Are You A Remarkable Leader? Take The Truth Quiz!

Every leader knows the pressure of growing their business and consistently performing at the highest level.

In today’s highly competitive markets, with ever-changing customer needs, how do you ensure your business strategy sets your organization apart from your hungry competitors and delivers the growth expected?

The answer might surprise you. Often, simple practical tools can provide powerful insights.

Throughout my 40+ years as a leader, I’ve developed practical methods that enabled us to grow an internet startup to A BILLION IN SALES, and have demonstrably helped many other businesses rise above the crowd.

Curious how you stack up?

Take my free quiz to assess how well your organization practices the “Audacious Unheard-of Ways” that were instrumental in creating an unbelievable growth machine that I had the good fortune to lead.

Are you making The Audacious Moves I made in Leadership, Business Planning, Marketing, Sales, Customer Service and in your Career?

Where is your organization on the “BE DiFFERENT or be dead” scale?

This quiz will help you answer that critical question.

By gauging your organization’s capabilities in each crucial category, you’ll gain valuable insights on how to separate yourself from the competition, thrive in the marketplace and build a rewarding career.

Ready to take the quiz and discover your path to unbelievable success?

Click here!

Cheers,
Roy
My Podcast Show My Podcast Show Audacious Moves to A BILLION shares the specific Moves I made to achieve jaw-dropping growth in an insanely competitive internet business.

”The Audacious Unheard of Ways I Took a Startup to A BILLION IN SALES” is the latest in my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series.

• Posted 1.20.25 at 06:00 am by Roy Osing
• Permalink

January 13, 2025

Why Cost-Plus Pricing is Disastrous For Good Business

Why Cost-Plus Pricing is Disastrous For Good Business

It’s common to hear complaints that a product isn’t meeting profitability targets due to high costs.
However, this often stems from a fundamental misunderstanding of pricing strategies rather than actual cost issues.

A shift in perspective is crucial: instead of adhering to the traditional cost-plus pricing model, consider embracing the “BE DiFFERENT” approach to pricing.

The Traditional Cost-Plus Equation

Traditionally, businesses set prices based on the formula: Price = Cost + Margin.
This means that a price is determined by adding a desired profit margin to the production or supply cost of the product or service.

While simple and straightforward, this method doesn’t account for market realities.
It assumes sales volume will meet company expectations, potentially leading to disappointing sales and reduced profits when the market finds the price unacceptable.

The Be Different Equation

Conversely, the “BE DiFFERENT” approach reworks this equation to Cost = Price - Margin.
Here, the price is dictated by what the market is willing to pay.

The challenge is determining whether your costs can meet this market-driven price while achieving the desired margin.

In this scenario, both price and margin are constants, and cost becomes the variable to control.

Why Traditional Pricing Falls Short

The essential difference between the two pricing models lies in flexibility and market responsiveness.

The traditional model can often set prices that the market won’t bear if costs or expected margins are too high, leading to lower sales and profit margins.

In contrast, the BE DiFFERENT approach requires businesses to adapt their costs to meet market-driven prices and margin goals.

Maintaining margin targets is crucial. They should reflect the financial backbone of the business and not be sacrificed because of inefficiencies or misjudged market price potential.

With the BE DiFFERENT approach, businesses focus on supplying products efficiently, driven by market prices.

The Case for Market-Driven Cost Management

For example, if the market is willing to pay $10 for your product and your goal is a 30% gross margin, your maximum viable cost per unit should be $7.

If you can produce the item for less, your margins increase.

Critically, by allowing the market to set the price, businesses ensure they only invest resources in products capable of supporting those market prices.

If production or supply costs can’t meet market expectations, offering the product isn’t viable.

Incentives for Cost Efficiency

Cost-plus pricing can inadvertently promote inefficiency, as it incorporates costs without strict controls, potentially driving them higher.

In contrast, price-minus-margin strategies necessitate resource efficiency.

By prioritizing market-driven prices and expected margins, businesses pressure themselves to streamline operations and optimize costs.

Ultimately, adopting a market-driven approach requires a shift from focusing on cost and margin as mere financial measures to seeing them as strategic levers for resource allocation and efficiency.

Embracing this mindset helps businesses remain competitive and agile, ensuring they deliver value-driven products that meet both market demand and financial expectations.

Cheers,
Roy
My Podcast Show My Podcast Show Audacious Moves to A BILLION shares the specific Moves I made to achieve jaw-dropping growth in an insanely competitive internet business.

”The Audacious Unheard of Ways I Took a Startup to A BILLION IN SALES” is the latest in my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series.

• Posted 1.13.25 at 06:00 am by Roy Osing
• Permalink