Lamborghini vs. Yugo

Go check out Mr. Vlad. He makes an excellent point.

There are very few truths in the universe.

But one of them is (and I quote Mr. Vlad):

You can be the best. or You can be the cheapest.

Whichistosay . . . You haven't got many options when it comes to marketing.

You can say "I'm awesome," but you better be able to back that up.

or you can say "Hey, I'm cheaper."

In which case, you should seriously consider mastering the technique of flipping the fry basket without getting droplets of burning grease on your arms.

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There might be a recession on in the US of A. We won't know for several months. But KPEnterprises just raised our rates. We're higher than the competition. We're higher than the norm. And Intel just laid off a boatload of employees who will become "consultants" in the next few months.

But guess what? The first person that calls us this year doesn't even ask the price. They just want to schedule work.

"You understand we're $200/hr."

"Okay."

Not a pause. Not a second thought. They're not buying some commodity that can be bought by the lowest bidder.

They didn't go on the internet and click-click-click until they found the cheapest Schmoe around.

In fact, they called only KPEnterprises and didn't get an outside bid. Why? They needed the best for the job they had in mind.

It is what it is. It costs what it costs. "We need zero tolerance for failure."

Cool.

So you can't call Cousin Larrys' Pretty Good Computer Consulting and Janitorial Service.

You dont' have any choice. 100% uptime means KPEnterprises. It doesn't matter what it costs.

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Step back and look at your clients. There are really two types.

1) Gotta have the best. Period.

2) Gotta have the cheapest.

Some shop at Nordstrom's. Some shop at Costco.

Here's the difference in how you differentiate your company:

-- If you want to "be" the Nordstrom of the SMB community, you have to work on being spectacular and providing an experience the client can look forward to.

-- If you want to compete with the Costcos of the SMB community, you need to focus on providing "just enough" service at a cheaper price.

When you go to work on Monday, what do you want to focus on? Do you want to work on being the best or work on being the cheapest?

One of these leads to long-term success.

The other leads to grease splatters on your arms.