Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Know Your Competitors

One of the most challenging aspects of putting up a business is dealing with competitors who want to get a share of your market. But this is one of the realities in business that you have to deal with so strategizing even at the start of your operations is important to become successful in the long run. In addition, it is not only essential to understand your direct competitors because there are also indirect competitors in the market.

Basically, this means that most of the products that are available in the market have complements and substitutes. For example, if a customer wants to buy powdered milk and he could not find any powdered milk available in the grocery store, he may opt to buy the milk in liquid form instead. Similarly, this is also true for any industries because people will always find substitutes for products they cannot find. In line with this having an effective distribution channel that can reach your target customer at their locations will help you greatly in realizing your profit potential.

It would also be wise to look at the product features of your competitors, the price range, and the product quality they offer. This is because being aware of the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors and contrasting it with your own will allow you to formulate strategies that will let you compete effectively in the market. If you are weak in one area and strong in another, it would be wise to put emphasis on your strong points and not challenge your competitors on features that are your weak points. However, you should also expect that there are times when your competitors will point out your weaknesses to your target market to get a larger share, in this case, you need to be sure that your strong points is enough to compensate for the things that you lack.

In addition to your current competitors, you should also anticipate future competitors because it is possible that many of them will enter the market in a few years. Having a strong strategy and an established customer relationship will enable your business to survive these challenges. It is observed that most new companies put emphasis on their lower price range and this can either be a good thing or a bad thing for your company. For example, it can be a good thing if the product that new entrants offer has a low price but inferior quality as well because it will establish your brand as a superior product. However, if they are offering superior products at a much lesser price, then you may need to engage in a price war. Always remember though, that your strategies should depend on your particular situation and the perception of your market.

Labels: Affiliate Marketing, Business, Profit Potential

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Make the Leap to Affiliate Marketing Success by Stone Evans, The Home Biz Guy

If you are going to become a successful affiliate on the Internet, you need 3 "intangibles." These are things that must come from WITHIN you.

===> Intangible 1 <===

First, you must have a strong WHY.

Why must you make affiliate marketing work? What is driving you? What is it that you CAN'T have in your life anymore and/or what is it that you absolutely MUST HAVE now?

For me, I couldn't stand working 12+ hours a day anymore and missing the experience of my children growing up. I also absolutely HAD TO HAVE the freedom of being able to control my life and finances through a little box that I could carry with me anywhere in the world and not be tied to anyone's time pressures or demands but my own. That was my carrot and my stick. I felt a great pain deep in my gut of missing out on my children's lives and the incredible freedom that succeeding in this business would provide for me. I found my why. You MUST find yours.

===> Intangible 2 <===

You must BELIEVE that it is possible.

If you don't believe that it's POSSIBLE for you to make money with affiliate programs or make your living on the Internet, you won't. It's that simple.

For me, figuring out that it was possible was just a matter of realizing that many other people were ALREADY making great money online. If they could do it, I could too. It would just be a matter of figuring out what those people were doing and then adapting it to my situation.

There is no shortage of undeniable PROOF that people (millions of them) are making money online with affiliate programs. Just get online and do some research and you'll find countless testimonials and stories of REAL PEOPLE making real money on the Internet. Or head to your local bookstore and you'll find the same documented evidence of this fact. Truth is, it's getting easier and easier to make money online with affiliate programs.

I've always said that "affiliate marketing" is the job of the future. In the "old" days, you had to go to a potential employer, apply for the position and hope for the best. Now you can simply go to any company you want, fill out their affiliate application and start work immediately. Affiliates are the new working class. Believe me, making money with affiliate programs or making your living on the Internet is WAY MORE than possible. It is pretty much (or will be soon enough) unavoidable now. Affiliate marketing is the "job" of the future that's already here TODAY.

===> Intangible 3 <===

You must be willing to MAKE THE LEAP.

Ready, FIRE, then aim... This is the operating philosophy you MUST adopt to succeed with affiliate marketing.

That's backwards for most people who like to aim before they fire. The fact is the Internet is a moving target... The only thing constant about it is change. You need to stop analyzing the game and simply jump into it. You can't learn from the outside... You have to be IN THE RING to truly understand it.

The lesson here is that you will never really be READY to start an affiliate marketing business. You simply have to start one. This is what I call "Making the Leap."

The good news is that the cost of failure on the Internet is very small. In the "brick and mortar" world you need to evaluate things very carefully before you decide to open up a business. It's almost always necessary to invest thousands of dollars to get an offline business off the ground. However, on the Internet you can often start a successful business for less than $100. The Plug-In Profit Site is a great example of this.

You simply need get IN THE GAME... Each moment that you stay "out there," you're wasting valuable time that you could be learning and skills necessary to become a successful affiliate marketer. In fact, if you're not in the game yet, you're ALREADY behind the times. Make the leap to becoming a successful affiliate marketer today!

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