Liz Strauss at Successful Blog

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August 9, 2010

Be the ONLY: How to Claim Your Ground and Own It

ME Liz Strauss published this at 8:11 am

A Real Contribution

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Last week, Jeff Bezos announced plans to release a new-generation Kindle that will be even cheaper ($139) than the current generation, but will make only a few modest improvements in quality and performance. Even as analysts applauded the success of the Kindle thus far, they wondered why Bezos and his colleagues weren’t making the device much more functional, colorful, and powerful. In other words, why weren’t they taking the simple Kindle and enhancing it to go head-to-head with Apple’s iPad and other companies searching for an iPad killer?

To which Bezos offered a strategic insight about his business just as compelling as Andrea Guerra’s take on his business. “There are going to be 100 companies making LCD tablets,” he told the Wall Street Journal. “Why would we want to be [company] 101? I like building a purpose-built reading device. I think that is where we can make a real contribution.” — Bill Taylor, Do You Pass the Leadership Test, Harvard Business Review. Aug. 03, 2007

It was still the 20th Century when someone told me that I could count on these four words to always be true …

This too will change.

And since the 21st Century has arrived, those same four words have become a part of my daily reconnaissance.

Like Jeff Bezos and Bill Taylor, who wrote about him, I believe that being good at something is no longer an option. In this ever-shifting, high-noise environment, we

And this is more than 20th century specialization, it’s making a real contribution. It’s leadership focused to serve a distinct customer group with a clear solution. It’s irresistible service.

In the 20th century we had the advantage of geographic protection. People could only find sources as far as their shoes, their cars, and their catalogs would show them. Now the Internet has not only brought the world to their door, but Google is willing to sort it for them.

The Ground Rules to Claiming Your Ground

Apply what Jeff Bezos said to the massive opportunity that is today’s marketplace and it becomes obvious that our ideal customers are faced with overwhelming choices. The number of options for whatever anyone wants to purchase are outlandishly huge at every level: value, relationship, and cutting edge-luxury niches.

The leaders in the field have decided exactly which customers they are selling to and they signal their commitment to serving those customers on every level. Narrow your niche and you’ll still have a world of ideal customers, but you’ll be able to serve them.

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Every choice of text, image, offer, or even white space in the Apple Education website reflects their commitment to educators. That focus is key to becoming the first, trusted source to the ideal customers you want to serve. But before you can own that space you have to be able to name that space and claim it.

Three simple questions can help you identify a space that holds the best opportunity for your skill set and your brand. Let’s call them the Ground Rules.

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Narrow your space to your ideal customer group and your unique expertise become clearer and more defined. It’s true. Show up with the skills, expertise, integrity, and competency and deliver on what you say you do.

Once you own your ground everyone else becomes a “knockoff.” You become the barrier to entry … the ONLY. There can be only one Cirque du Soleil, only one Mac, only one SOBCon – those who follow will be facsimiles.

Look around at the winners, they claimed their ground before they owned it. Amazon claimed the world’s readers before they captured that market and now they serve readers products of every sort … including a simple Kindle that will never compete with the iPad.

What space can you claim? What unique value will you deliver to the people you want as your ideal customers?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
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Filed under Marketing, Strategy, Successful Blog | 3 Comments »


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3 Comments to “Be the ONLY: How to Claim Your Ground and Own It”

  1. August 9th, 2010 at 9:29 am
    @steveplunkett said

    why i always say “be genuine”..

    as long as i am me.. i am the only me.

    =)

    good article =)

  2. August 9th, 2010 at 10:06 am
    Heidi Thorne said

    Yes, a lot of people are questioning why Amazon does not try to compete with Apple iPad. As a dedicated Kindle user, I do understand what niche the Kindle serves: voracious readers.

    I also have an iPhone4 which I adore. But it, and the iPad, serve a different need. The content is rich, colorful, and entertaining. But they are not well suited for people who actually read — not just view — content. It is straining to read an iPhone/iPad in sunlight, or any light for an extended time. Wisely, one of Kindle’s recent television commercials features this aspect. They get their market!

    I’m glad Amazon has stuck to their knitting with the Kindle. It is also why Twitter sticks with 140 characters. Glad to see there are those who have not gone the “me too” route which leads to nowhere.

  3. August 9th, 2010 at 11:25 am
    Scott McIntyre said

    Liz, you capture it all with this: “Narrow your space to your ideal customer group and your unique expertise become clearer and more defined. It’s true. Show up with the skills, expertise, integrity, and competency and deliver on what you say you do.”

    This whole area of building trust and relationships within your own target community as THE way to stand out from the crowd totally fascinates and interests me.

    As someone at the start of this process, I see the philosophy you describe as exciting and liberating – rather than restrictive (which some might think given it’s about narrowing your business aim and focussing your target audience instead of adopting a scattergun approach.)

    Going back to your article about ‘relationship rustlers and cowboys’, the principle is the same: to be original and unique today means identifying what your own positive values are that the customer is crying out for and communicating these clearly over and over again… in words but, more importantly, through your actions.

    You’ll chime with those folk who share your business approach and they’ll seek you out. And these people are your ideal customers. It’s a win-win for both parties ;-)

    Being consistently authentic in how you delight your customers, readers etc. is the best way to be an original provider amongst copycats.

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