Don’t Fear the Competition
by Paul Travis, Interim Marketing Executive
Most businesses shudder to hear their customers mention a competitor’s name. From a marketing perspective, it is good to keep tabs on them and see whether “the bar” is being set by us or them!
Lately I’ve come upon a couple of choice examples of companies that go against the grain of fearing the competition. That is, they boldly acknowledge to their customers who the competitors are, so it is clear that they know consumers have choices.
www.SurveyMonkey.com is a web-based survey system that challenges customers to compare, and even gives them a comprehensive list of businesses to check out (34 in all!)
www.Progressive.com is an automobile insurance company that has been “bending the rules” for some time now. You may have seen their TV advertisements to this effect; this snapshot is from a moving marquis on their home page.
In this case, they demonstrate competitive pricing — but not all ways! What becomes clear is that customers are not always seeking the bargain basement. They just want to know that they are being treated fairly (more to the point, that they aren’t being gouged).
I find it refreshing, and believe these companies of very different size have created differentiation in the customers’ eyes with their approach. Now while this may not be the silver bullet for every business, is there anything your organization can learn from inviting the competition into the conversation?
Paul Travis is an interim marketing executive at OneAccord. Mr. Travis is based out of Seattle with 25 years of experience in high technology, marketing, and consulting. He can be reached at Paul.Travis(at)oneaccordpartners.com and at 206-910-2222.
