Can You Break the Tie?

Joe Calloway calls them Tiebreakers.

Say I am looking for a plumber. I leave message for two of them, and only one of them calls me back. It's sad, but it is a tiebreaker. Right there I've made my decision, or at least narrowed it down.

Now say that I call a third plumber, and he (or his office) answers right away. EVEN BETTER. He immediately goes to the top of the short list. If it's something I need done quickly, and he can come out right away, EVEN BETTER AGAIN.

Recap: Plumber #2 did something just a little bit better than Plumber #1, he called me back. shouldn't be a big deal, but it seems that's the way it is.

Plumber #3 did something just a little bit better than #1 or #2, he answered the phone. And then to top it off he could come out right away. All other things being equal, it would be an easy choice.

What are you doing to break the tie? Comment here please!

How to Conquer Marketing & Make A Living With Your Art

Want to make your art pay? Don't think about it,  go here and buy this book. Now.
 
--------------------------------------------------
Rob Wallis is The Marketing Outsider, a speaker, author, and consultant who helps business owners increase their profitability by improving their visibility. Contact him at The Wallis Group

Subway Breakfast: Just Not Distinctive Enough

Subway breakfast is going to fail. No, I have not had breakfast there yet, but the not-so-glowing reviews I've seen so far (pre-made egg disks?) lead me to believe they are not trying THAT hard.

There was a time when Subway was THE the sandwich shop chain: the first in my neck of the woods, anyway. It was quite the anomaly of fast food: your sandwich was made fresh, right in front of you, could have it any way you wanted (except hot), and, was pretty darn good. Not as good as the Mom & Pop's, but for the price, not bad.

Then, like so many good businesses, they felt the need to expand, to compete. The mad kind of copybranding that makes Wal-Mart start selling groceries. "hey, all of the other fast-food chains are selling breakfast! Can we do that?" well, of course you can, but can you do it well? More importantly, Can you do it better?

The thing is, maybe they are doing it better. What's interesting is that since the announcement in March, all Subway seems to be able to say, is that they serve breakfast, but they don't say much about why I should eat it. Are they just another breakfast sandwich? What's so special about it? Is there some reason I should eat at Subway rather than the place I go to now?

It's been kind of quiet after the debut. Maybe they don't tout it much because the reviews have not been all that hot. Of course, that hasn't prevented Quizno's from getting into the act, albeit only in their convenience store locations.

All in all, Subway breakfast is going to fail. They just aren't distinct enough. And that's what it takes to succeed, surrounded by competition.Agree? Disagree? Please comment!


--------------------------------------------------
Rob Wallis is The Marketing Outsider, a speaker, author, and consultant who helps business owners increase their profitability by improving their visibility and helping them stand out in the marketplace. Contact him at The Wallis Group

Welcome!

photo by ell brown

Do you welcome your customers? Do they feel welcome in your store? Or are you one of those owners who sits behind the register and waits for somebody to buy something?

The fact is, you need to greet your customers, or even your potential customers. Everyone needs to feel like you are happy that you are there, giving you a chance to sell them whatever it is that you sell.

You can even draw people into your store this way. I passed a shop in San Francisco that had a sign outside that said, "Free chocolate! come inside and watch it being made!"

Now how can you pass up that? Honestly, who would not want to go inside and at least see what it was that was being made? Then, when they get in the door, give them a sample (see LAW OF RECIPROCITY) and start asking questions.

You may have seen a sign in windows stating, "Browsers welcome, customers, more so." How about turning it around? "Customers welcome, browsers even more so?" Let them know you are willing to let them come in, look around, maybe even ask questions. After all, every customer you ever had probably started out as a looky-loo.

--------------------------------------------------
Rob Wallis is The Marketing Outsider, a speaker, author, and consultant who helps business owners increase their profitability by improving their visibility. Contact him at The Wallis Group