MARKETING STRATEGIES TO PUT YOURSELF OUT OF BUSINESS
by Charlie Cook
Published on this site: April 25th, 2005 - See
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Want to learn how to l0se a billion dollars?
Just follow the marketing strategies used by GM, Ford and Daimler
Chrysler. Yes, some of the largest corporations in the world are
missing some basic tenants of marketing and it's worth taking a
look at what they're doing wrong so you don't make the same mistakes.
You don't want the following headline written about your company.
"GM Hits Billion Dollar pot hole" - Miami Herald "GM
shares fell to a 12 year low." - New York Times
What are some of the most glaring mistakes a handful of car companies
are making?
- Discount Pricing
GM and Ford offer f.ree loans and rebates worth thousands
of dollars to prompt people to buy their vehicles. Good
idea?
When you need to resort to bribing people to buy your products
or services, it's a sign that something is terribly wrong.
The idea is to provide value, help your prospects understand
the perceived value and charge enough to make a reasonable
pr0fit. When you start discounting your product as a means
to get people to buy it you've entered an endless downward
cycle.
The next time a prospect buys, they'll want an even larger
discount and there will always be somebody who will undercut
you on price. Eventually you'll end up like GM, losing lots,
maybe not billions, but enough to threaten the life of your
business.
- Making Products People Don't Want
According to the New York Times, "General Motors and
Ford have swerved off course for a far more basic reason:
not enough people like their cars." Whoops!
The objective is to market a product or sevice people want.
- Not Paying Attention to What People Want
If you want to make m0ney you'd pay attention to what your
prospects want? Right?
In the case of Daimler Chrysler you'd be wrong. At the Detroit
Auto Show crowds loved the two-seat 8 foot long "Smart
Car". So logically Daimler Chrysler decided not to
sell it in the United States despite booming s.ales in Europe
for years. Zap, a Santa Rosa CA firm, saw an opp0rtunity
especially with rising gas prices and went direct to the
European Daimler dealers to buy the cars. Surprise! Ten
thousand U.S. buyers put themselves on a list to order over
$55 million worth of cars in just a few months.
Avoid discount pricing, provide products and services your
prospects want and you can avoid losing a billion or instead
make 55 million. I don't know about you but if I l0se ten
thousand dollars I get upset and when I make a million in
a year I'm pretty happy.
Charlie Cook, helps service professionals, small business
owners and marketing professionals attract more clients and be more
successful. Sign up to receive the F.ree Marketing Plan eBook, '7
Steps to get more clients and grow your business' at http://www.marketingforsuccess.com
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