Poor firms ignore their competitors; average firms copy their competitors; winning firms lead their competitors.
Philip KotlerRead
The key to branding, especially for smaller firms, is to focus on a limited number of issue areas and develop superb expertise in those areas.
Interpretation
Successful branding requires specialization and deep expertise in specific areas.
Philip Kotler emphasizes that for smaller firms, the path to strong branding lies in concentrating on a few select issues where they can develop in-depth knowledge and skills. By establishing expertise in these areas, smaller firms can differentiate themselves in the marketplace, leading to a stronger brand identity and greater recognition among consumers.
In practice
A marketing workshop discussing how to build a brand for small businesses.
Poor firms ignore their competitors; average firms copy their competitors; winning firms lead their competitors.
Marketing is becoming a battle based on information than on sales power.
The art of marketing is the art of brand building. If you arenot a brand, you are a commodity. Then price is everything and the low-cost producer is the only winner.
Marketing is a race without a finishing line
Companies pay too much attention to the cost of doing something. They should worry more about the cost of not doing it.
Marketing is not the art of finding clever ways to dispose of what you make. It is the art of creating genuine customer value.
As a multisport athlete, I was always fascinated with competition and how to win. At HBS and later at the Harvard Department of Economics, I was drawn to the field of competition and strategy because it tackles perhaps the most basic question in both business management and industrial economics: What determines corporate performance?
What I do know, at least what I think I have learned from my experiences in business, is that when there is a rush for everyone to do the same thing, it becomes more difficult to do. Not easier. Harder.
If you are a new startup company, try not to arouse the interest or suspicion of your competition; especially if they are a bigger company. They can crush you while you are still in your startup phase. Lie low while still strengthening your bottom line.
Too many companies are running their business into the ground, I would argue, by being myopically short-term focused on the shareholder.
If you deprive yourself of outsourcing and your competitors do not, you're putting yourself out of business.
For ecommerce, the most important thing is trust.
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