3 Tactics To Jump Over the Competition

Previously I discussed an interesting phenomenon in physics called the Brachistochrone Curve and applied it to the competitive challenges your business may have.

The strategy involves using momentum of the moment to get past your competitors. Today we look at 3 tactics to use to do just that:

1) Catch a Wave

One of my first clients as an Internet strategist was a California Assemblyman running for a US Senate seat in California circa 2010. He was a long shot but he wanted to do things completely online. We latched our message onto big items in the news using existing momentum to grab the attention of potential donors and voters.

In one effort a bill was coming before the California Assembly to outlaw “bullying.” Now, one one is in favor of bullying but the way the bill was structured it would have criminalized a Facebook post that someone found “offensive”. So much for the 1st Amendment! We created a micro-website called: “StopTheBullyBill.com.” It was an online petition and it garnered another 5000 emails and netted us tens of thousands of donations before the campaign was over.

Bottom line: Find an angle on a prescient news item and run with it to your advantage.

2) Use the Calendar as a Backstop

Urgency is one of the best ways to shoot past a competitor. Look for natural real deadlines where you can push urgent revenue goals over the finish line. This is one of the reasons why experts tell you to buy a car at the end of the month. They’re more likely to cut you a deal to hit their sales goals.

At one recent start-up I put in place a monthly cadence to drive prospects to make decisions by the end of the month. Of course, if your sales cycle is longer you don’t want the same prospects to see the same specials every month. Ask yourself the question: why would your prospect sign up for your service now? Use a natural deadline and push to it.

Bottom line: use detailed segmentation and deadlines to map out “journeys” for all of the prospects with a tone of urgency.

3) Prepare for Rain

Two farmers prayed for rain to grow their crops but only one farmer actually prepared his crops for the rain. Guess which one succeeded.

The best and most successful investment you can make is to build marketing and sales assets that you can deploy quickly. Landing pages, marketing ads, CTAs, systems, KPIs.

Bottom line: Get your crap together now and the universe will reward you for your readiness.

Remember. The fastest point between two points on an incline is not a straight line – it’s a downward curve that maximizes the laws of gravity. Your competitor could leave the gates before you but the momentum you receive from the burst of competitive tactics can get you to the finish line ahead of them.