Recession -vs- Opportunity to increase market share- PART II

Posted on | April 10, 2009 | 2 Comments

This post is about OPPORTUNITY.  The opportunity we all have today is to grab more market share, because of two important business realities:

1.  Your competitors are scared and aren’t fighting for market share these days.  They are not spending money on marketing, advertising, sales, creating efficiencies or their human resources.

2.  You can establish strategic partnerships today that were not available six months ago.  Today, other players in your industry will form relationships, do joint ventures and co-develop or co-market with you.  They did not need you as bad last year, but they’ll talk to you about a deal today.

Last week, I wrote a post about OPPORTUNITY.  I suggested that you should not be listening to all the negativity about the economy and should look for opportunities.  I got a lot of positive reaction to my post, which was encouraging.

Later, I appeared on the Internet show, The Buzz, with Tony Scelzo of Rainmakers.  That video will be at the Rainmaker’s website soon.  Tony and I talked about OPPORTUNITY in a down market.  Although the media does not talk about it, more than ever, there are huge business OPPORTUNITIES today.  Also last week, I was interviewed by the Indianapolis Business Journal and was quoted as saying that more millionaires will be made over the next few years than in decades past. (The IBJ spelled my first name wrong!  It’s MATT.  Not Mike.  Amazing!) 

Why am I so confident that now is the time to be aggressive in your strategic planning?

My confidence comes from history.  After every recession or depression, there is a recovery.  And in every recovery, a few get very, very rich.  Some of these “recovery millionaires” simply see growth in their existing business operations, but many others create new opportunities through discovery, invention or innovation.  Bad times cause people to become innovative.  Good times make people lazy.  

What our federal government does not understand is that recessions weed out the weak and stimulate innovation that generates new and long-term growth.  Great ideas that benefit society are generated during hard times.  Fat, bloated and inefficient businesses die or get trim during recessions.  Recessions are painful in the short term and healthy in the long term.  Recessions are a natural cycle that is disrupted by government bailouts.

The question for you is this:  Do you see opportunities to increase the market share for your current product or service?  Or, do you see a need that you can fill in a new or more creative way than the current competition?  If so, you too could be a “recovery millionaire.”

Think about the opportunity to increase market share through this analogy.  Your business is like a small boat at low tide.  Low tide represents the current recession.  If you can find a way to buy or build a bigger boat today, while labor and materials are cheap, you’ll have a larger boat when the tide returns.  And guess what-  the tide lifts large boats at the same rate that it lifts small boats.  It takes no additional effort to lift a large boat as the tide rolls in, because the returning tide (economic recovery) does it for you.  You just have to have a bigger boat in place in time for the tide to return.  A larger boat represents more sales, more profits and easier operations.

So, what’s it going to be:  a dingy or an ocean freighter?  Are you going to seize this opportunity or match or exceed your competition’s withdrawal from the market?  Do you really want to become a “recovery millionaire?”  Or, are you satisfied with the status quo?  How truly strong is your spirit as an entrepreneur?

 Have you thought about your market positioning?  Are you taking any steps to maximize your opportunities when the economy grows stronger?  Will you be ready?  Or will you be left behind?

Let me hear your thoughts.  Send me your comments.