My wonderful Bride purchased a nice bottle of Whiskey for my recent birthday. Whistle Pig “Boss Hog” is a fine sipping whiskey. The Vermont company is making a seed to bottle strategic maneuver that will move the distillery from Canada to the Vermont farm where this label originates (see Real Men Drink Whiskey for more). While sipping and reading up on some competitive claims and product marketing fights between various craft whiskey makers I pondered my own competitive practices. I decided to jot down a few rules that I try to follow when engaged in a product marketing fight. So here they are;
1. Do no harm It becomes too easy to identify a product or service by name when you clearly outperform them in value. If you are a market or brand leader you elevate the competition to your level every time you mention them. This is awesome for your competition, all the PR, advertisement, and mind share you provide comes at no cost or effort for them. Do no harm – don’t become your competitors best marketing partner.
2. Tell the truth Ok, I’m an engineer who typically markets b2b technology. We have performance specs and scientific methods of test and measurement. You have to be accurate and truthful. I recognize that there are products and services that sell on emotion vs need. Ask yourself – are you truthful in your own marketing? Are you honest in your competitive analysis?
3. Communicate with your enemy Don’t be afraid to meet with your competitor. Ask them how they defend claims they make on their product. Challenge them on how they position against your product. Dialog is good. Don’t be afraid and don’t give away any good secrets.
4. Know yourself before you start a fight So you find yourself with a competitor who makes false claims, is not willing to communicate with you, is taking market share away from you and needs to be answered. Is your company willing to back a public attack on a competitor? Will the market see you as a villain or hero? Will a customer come to your corner?
5. Deliver value, be agile and seek coopertition (yes I made this word up). Customers will always gravitate to a well established value proposition. Focus on that value more than the competition. In today’s tech market companies go from competition to partnering to marriage in a single product lifecycle. A competitor may be a partnering opportunity. Entire market shifts happen in the time it takes to formulate a competitive attack. Be ready to move when an opportunity or an obstacle appears. The answer may not always be what you initially think. Also see: Kevin Daum’s Annihilate your competition 6 rules of battle.
Rob Carroll
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