(2) By turning your competitors into “co-opitors.”

What heck is a “co-opitor?” It is a competitor that you turn into a partner or a cooperator. Are there businesses or individuals with whom you could partner, with idea of referring business to each other?

For example, a wellness coach could partner with a weight watchers clinic or a health club or a massage therapist. All of these practitioners are selling improved health and well being, but they can also be positioned as complementary services.

Or, let’s say you are a web site designer and you decide to focus primarily on working with small businesses (a market niche). You could create a partnership with another web site designer who has decided to focus on large corporations.

If you both agree to only take on business that fits your identified niche, and to refer business outside your niche to partner, you both win.

You can partner with other businesses in your exact business in this manner, by identifying niches, by geographic area served, or by size or type of clients served.

And you can partner with businesses in different categories that fill a similar customer need by agreeing to work together to help each other get customers.

There is not a business out there that cannot effectively use one of these two strategies to significantly reduce their competition. So figure out which strategy fits your business best, and make it a priority to eliminate your competition this year.

(c) Copyright 2005 Debbie LaChusa, 10stepmarketing

6. Where do they get information regarding your product/service?

7. What is most important to them?

8. What are they most afraid of?

9. What is their emotional connection to your product/service?

10. How will they rationalize purchasing your product/service?

How’d you do? If you can’t answer these questions, odds are your marketing message isn’t connecting with your prospects. And if your message is not connecting with them, you won’t be very successful in selling them on your product or service.

Take time to get to know your customers and prospects. Learn all you can about them. Use this quiz as a guide. When you do you’ll be able to speak directly to their needs and concerns with your marketing, they will respond. And your business will thrive.

© Copyright 2005 Debbie LaChusa, 10stepmarketing