Social Networking Tips

If you have ever done any planning with your business, you will have certainly addressed this question:  Do I have competition?  What is interesting when you really think about it….is you don’t.  I can remember doing a SWOT Analysis with my business.  We identified our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.  When we got to the threats, my concern wasn’t other companies doing what we do.  My concern was having key players leave the company or being able to handle extreme growth.

It seems everyday, I hear people ask me, “What should I do about my competition in Social Network sites?” or “Won’t my competitors be able to see exactly who my clients are?” and “I don’t want to expose what I am doing in Social Networking because my competitors might figure it out and take it”.   So brace yourself…..I am still learning what this word they call “tact” means.  I hope that is how you spell it.

Get over it!! If this is your biggest concern than you have built your entire business based on fear and on the idea that there is not enough to go around.  When I hear this….it tells me this person needs to pull off their blinders and see how much business is out there.  If you feel this is true….then guess what?  It is.  What you believe is conceived.  Don’t you wonder how businesses right now are growing…..and yet the media has us to believe we are in a recession.

There is no such thing as competition.  It is something humans created.  I firmly believe really brilliant marketing people created it.  Let’s face it, would Pepsi and Coke be as big as they are without the constant debate.  All the other cola companies really got the shaft on that.  Maybe Pepsi and Coke own each other’s stock?  Oh and let me really press some buttons…..how about the whole PC versus Mac issue.  Less than 10% of computer users have a MAC.  Is that really a threat to Microsoft?  No! But does it every make great marketing.

For the last 9 years, I have been in the noisy industry there is.  Web Development.  Try this….go to google and search for Financial Planners and notice the number of results it generates.  Then try realtors.  Then try web developer.  UH! NOISY!  Somehow with ALL this competition, I was able to make a really decent business and do some pretty awesome things.

The truth is this, your supposed competition has their own worries…..they are thinking about how to increase their business, improve their customer service, manage their existing clients, get more exposure, drive more traffic, cut costs, etc.  I DO hope that my supposed competition is looking at what I am doing.  While they are doing that, I am already creating the next strategy and focusing on how to leverage what I am already doing.  Good luck if they can figure that out.

One of my mentors, Joel Bauer, said something really profound.  “The only competition you have is YOU!”  That is the only person to compete against.  Imagine if you focused on how YOU were going to improve your communication with clients, shorten your sales cycle, save time, find out what new service/product your clients were really wanting, etc.   The possibilities would be endless.

While I am on it….stop trying to be like everyone else…..it only makes you an imposter.  When I think about how everyone is trying to be different like everyone else…..when in reality they are just being someone else….it cracks me up.  Ever see the movie Matrix? Remember the guys in the brown suits?  That is what most business owners are….they are just a copy of another business.  How do you stand out when everyone looks and sounds like everyone else.

Here are 3 simple tips to help you:

1.  Start looking for what is “missing” in your industry.  Ask your prospects, clients and referral sources what they feel is missing.  The answers will be amazing.  Then figure out how to serve that need.  The fact that you are asking will make you stand out.

2.  Stop speaking like all the other copycat experts like you.  People’s brains go into autopilot the minute you explain what you do.  I am a doctor, lawyer, representative of a network marketing company, coach, consultant, blah, blah, blah.  Explain what you do in terms of solving a problem.  “I maximize the time people spend in their business and with their family”.  All you want people to do is ask “Wow! How do you do that?”  or better “Imagine if you were the only company would think of when they thought about your services….what would that do for you?”

3.  Make a point of distinguishing yourself as an expert.  A unique expert.  Start looking for what is “NOT” being said.  Imagine if I gave you a 2 inch block of wood.  How would you describe it?  Think about it for a few seconds and hold that answer in your head right now.  Here is how I would describe “An incredible tool you can carry in your pocket that will effortlessly lift an elephant 2 inches off the ground”.  Stop being the boring wooden block.  Who wants that?  I want to be able to effortlessly life an elephant off the ground. The way most people describe what they do would put my 1 year old to sleep right after a nap.  Get out of your own rut.

Go back to being a kid again and let your imagination run wild.  In fact, start doing things differently and you will be surprised just how much you will discover.  A great exercise is to get some construction paper, pens, stickers, crayons, etc and start making things that you feel describe what you do.  Pretend you had to do a presentation for pre-schoolers on what you do and how you help people.  What would keep their attention?   In reality, we are all just a bunch of 4, 5 and 6 year olds running around in adult bodies.  We are begging for people to educate us in a way that is fun and entertaining.

Please share with me what you do so I can share it with my 6 year old.  She will be the test as to whether or not you pass the test.  SMILE  Seriously, I would love to hear how you are breaking out of the competition mentality.  How are you standing out as an edutainer (thank you Disney for that great word!)

 

You are invited to an online class for FREE (a $97 value) on how to build Strategies so you can leverage Social Networking to grow your business.

www.FreeSocialNetworkingTraining.com

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Tags: business planning, competition, exposure, marketing, sales cycle, Social Networking, Social Networking Articles, Strategy, traffic

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 17th, 2009 at 4:16 pm and is filed under Social Networking Articles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.