|
|
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PROFESSIONALS' SECRETS REVEALED
You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are included. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PROFESSIONALS' SECRETS REVEALED The...
How to finance your dream car?
Have you thought about getting a better car? Ever thought of driving your own sports car? Want to purchase the latest car model? Why wait when you can do so now! Most people do not realise that they have capital locked up in their property which...
Identifying, Creating and Using Your USP
What's your USP? Don't know, or worse still, you've never heard of it. USP is an acronym for Unique Selling Proposition. It's vital for every business to identify its inherent USP or if it can't identify it, to create it. If yours is a firm that...
Small Business Q&A: Entrepreneurs Just Get Better With Age
Q: I'm thinking about starting a business after I retire next month. I'll be 65. Am I too old to start a business? -- Milton A. A: Milton, congratulations on your pending retirement. I find it admirable that after many years of hard work you are...
Spam and Scams Go Hand in Hand
We all know there's been alot of chaos lately about new anti-Spam laws and honest business owners like you and me don't want to have our businesses and ezines shut down due to false complaints. Yet we also know that true Spammers and Scammers...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
How To Hit The Competition Without Losing The Customer
Get over it! If you run any type of business, you're going to have competitors.
Even if your product or service is a unique one, soon you'll have copycat products start surfacing. Competition is therefore just a fact of business life and one of the 'virtues' of living in a capitalistic society.
Now that you are over it, let's examine some ways in which you can hit your competition without marginalizing your prospects. Your choices are about the same as a politician's with regard to beating his or her opponent.
So you can:
1. Drag your competitor's name through the mud.
You can try and discourage your prospect from dealing with your competition by slandering their name and claiming their products to be inferior. Only problem is that in the majority such cases this has the opposite effect and brings more attention to your rival in business. What happens is that people who knew nothing about your competitor now go to investigate for themselves the validity of your claims.
I'm sure you've seen this phenomenon where unknown books are banned, only to make unto the bestsellers list.
This approach can also backfire since you'll appear as a jealous and vindictive business owner. Your arguments will appear more driven by feelings rather than hard facts. This is therefore not the best approach to take.
2. Making a recommendation with a major reservation.
This strategy is a little more ethical than the first but not anymore rewarding. In this case you make a recommendation such as: "You are welcome to buy your widgets from the XYZ company if your construction is needed only for a few months, because that's how long they last." Here you are really giving a compliment and then undoing everything you said before. This may be a neat psychological tactic but your business still appears in a negative light.
3. Invite an apple-for-apple comparison.
When you invite your prospect to compare your product side by side with that of your competition, you are showing confidence in your product without putting your competition down. So you can say: "I invite you to compare our vacuum cleaner to any leading brand and see the results for yourself. We are sure that you'll be pleased by the results that you get from our latest model."
The interesting thing about this approach is that most people wouldn't bother to do the field test. Simply because you were not afraid to acknowledge your competitor's product will instill the confidence in your prospect to get your product. It will be assumed that you already did the comparison and know the results otherwise you wouldn't make such a claim. Even if someone did make the comparison then you have a new testimonial to add to your file.
There are several ways in which you can invite this comparison without making a statement as I did above. You can use a table that juxtaposes the features of your product against your competitor's. Such tables can simplify the process of carrying out
a test and 'help' the prospect towards choosing your product.
Another effective way is to quote credible sources such as Consumer Report magazine. Such organizations are not supported by advertisers and so their results carry real weight with the consumer. There are other such third-party organization that are considered neutral and their conclusions credible.
Outside of such organization you can point to reviews done by users of your products where the reviews are not used as an affiliate advertising tool. You are looking to erase all bias in these comparisons.
You may also be wondering how to address the case where your product is obviously inferior to that of your competitor's. In such a situation, you simply admit your faults openly. There are times when extra features can be a useless luxury. For some people, a car is just a convenience to take them from point A to point B. They may not need the luxuries of a Porsche or have the money to pay for such an expensive vehicle.
So let's say you were selling an autoresponder script that is definitely not as feature-rich as another script. You can state: "If you are looking for high-end script capable of emailing to a million-strong list and having all the fancy features that you'll never even bother to use, then this script is NOT for you. However, if you are looking for a small but rugged program that will deliver your emails, without all the bells and whistles (and accompanying high price) then the Maxemailer is for you."
Right away you see that you are showing the customer that your script will do the main thing that a product like yours should do, without having to invest a large amount of money in its purchase. You are admitting that your script is lacking in many features, but in the end these components may not be necessary to get the job done.
In addition, by admitting to your products 'weak side' you build instant credibility with the customer. Many marketers think that they have to hype their products in order to get sales. But many marketing tests have shown that if you admit to the disadvantages of using your product, sales increase!
Here is how I hit the competition on my copywriting service website:
"In fact, I insist that you make a side-by-side comparison of my copywriting results with that of any other copywriter. Then after doing a 'split test' (i.e. run my copy against theirs) you can judge for yourself the selling power of my copy."
For an online business, your competitors are just one click away. Challenge your website visitors to shop around and compare. Most will not.
They'll buy from you instead!
About the Author
Ray L. Edwards is a published author, copywriter and internet marketing consultant. He has made tens of thousands of dollars for his copywriting clients. Being an online market himself,he understands what it takes to sell online and welcomes your inquiry about his master copywriting service. http://www.webcopy-writing.com
|
|
|
|
|
Finance - Leases-Leasing Ezine Articles |
EzineArticles.com allows ezine or email list publishers to upload or download free expert content that can be used within email newsletters or websites. |
ezinearticles.com |
  |
Finance: Leases Leasing Articles from EzineArticles.com |
http://ezinearticles.com/?cat=Finance:Leases-Leasing Free Content For Your Ezine or Website http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/ Why use your ... |
ezinearticles.com |
  |
Leases Leasing - Money & Finance Articles |
Leases Leasing - Money & Finance Articles. Money & Finance | Accounting & Payroll | Bankruptcy | Business & Loans | Credit Tips | Currency-Trading ... |
www.article99.com |
  |
Finance » Leases Leasing » Absolute Article Directory |
Absolute Article Directory: Finance, Leases Leasing. |
www.absolutearticle.com |
  |
- Leases-Leasing |
By David Springer | On January 29, 2006 | In Leases-Leasing | Rated. Short on cash, but need equipment? Consider leasing what you need. ... |
www.articlebar.com |
  |
Leases Leasing |
You are here: Article Directory arrow Article Directory arrow Finance arrow Leases Leasing ... Leases Leasing. Articles ... |
www.rumorist.com |
  |
Long Term Car Rental Italy Auto Rentals Leases Leasing Rome Milan ... |
Long Term Car Rental Italy Auto Rentals Leases Leasing Rome Milan Florence One Way Paris London Frankfurt Madrid Lisbon. |
www.ideamerge.com |
  |
europe car rental leases leasing one way rentals long term renault ... |
pictured is the Renault Laguna Estate, With Renault tax-free, short-term auto leasing you get the exact, brand-new vehicle you reserve, plus unlimited miles ... |
www.ideamerge.com |
  |
Private Fleet - Finance, Insurance, novated leases, leasing, CHP ... |
New Car Broker Australia. Private Fleet sales discounts on your new car purchase, no haggle, no hassle saving $1000s off all new and used cars for private ... |
www.privatefleet.com.au |
  |
Projector Leases, Leasing Companies for LCD, DLP, LCOS projectors |
Projector leasing programs and services. Choose a company. |
www.projectorcentral.com |
  |
Category: leases-leasing |
Category... leases-leasing. Results 1 - 3 of 3. Search took 0.01 seconds. Page 1 of 1. Buy or Lease: Which Automobile Transaction is Better? ... |
www.articler.com |
  |
John Dellagnese & Associates: offices, officespace, lease, leases ... |
It takes two companies to bring you the premier Corporate Property Development group in Northeast Ohio: the talents of John Dellagnese and Associates ... |
www.dellagnese.com |
  |
John Dellagnese & Associates: offices, officespace, lease, leases ... |
Welcome to our Tenant Login Page. * Forgot your password or haven't received one yet? Email us tinah@dellagnese.com or call 330-668-4000 and we will reply ... |
www.dellagnese.com |
  |
The-Arts-Magazine.com - Leases-Leasing |
Home arrow Article Links arrow Finance arrow Leases-Leasing. Main Menu ... Mosets Tree. Leases-Leasing. Listings. There are 0 listings in this category. |
www.the-arts-magazine.com |
  |
OmegaMotors.com - Your Money - Leases - Leasing Overview |
Blue Book retail & trade-in value reports on used vehicles. Kelley features prices on used cars, trucks, street and dirt bikes, ATVs, scooters, ... |
www.omegamotors.com |
  |
Entertainment Guide - Leases-Leasing |
Sunday, 03 December 2006, Home arrow Article Resources arrow Finance arrow Leases-Leasing ... Mosets Tree. Leases-Leasing ... |
www.entertainment-resource-directory.com |
  |
- Leases-Leasing |
Mosets Tree. Leases-Leasing. Listings. There are 0 listings in this category. spacer.png, 0 kB. spacer.png, 0 kB. download joomla modules download joomla ... |
www.healthcare-resource-guide.com |
  |
FINANCEDEPARTMENT.COM- Finance, Mortgages, Leases, Leasing ... |
Finance, Mortgages, Leases, Leasing, Brokerage Houses, Mortgage Lending. |
www.financedepartment.com |
  |
vehicle leases leasing guide and facts |
vehicle leases leasing guide and facts. Under the federal Consumer Leasing Act, you, the consumer, have a right to information about the costs and terms of ... |
www.shopperfavorites.com |
  |
- Leases-Leasing |
spacer.png, 0 kB. spacer.png, 0 kB. Home arrow Article Resources arrow Finance arrow Leases-Leasing. Mosets Tree. Leases-Leasing ... |
www.cars-directory-guide.com |
  |
|