Competition, Love Em’ or Hate Em’

Competition in business is inevitable but it’s also necessary. Still, that doesn’t mean I have to like it, right? Well I struggle with this more than I want to. On the one hand it’s a sign of good business when you’ve got competitors nipping at your heels; and even bigger kudos when you keep meeting new ones and old ones fade away. For us it’s been that way from day one. There are always the usual suspects, but we’ve consistently pulled away from them as new competitors appear on the scene. I’ve heard the statement more times than I want to, “hey, company XYZ has got this feature or that price… we’re in trouble now”. It definitely stirs some rage inside… I’m thinking, where did these guys come from all of the sudden? We’ve been doing this for years and now this company has what feature and they’re selling it at what price? It’s aggravating at best.

But then my mind goes to work. How do we beat these guys? How do we outsell them? Do we compete on price, features, value, what? I think competition drives innovation, which I’m a huge proponent of. Innovation isn’t always about products, sometimes it’s about sales process or marketing strategies. And that too can get you the edge you need to pull ahead.

So I guess I can’t get upset about competition. Competitors are the fuel that drives us to excel in the marketplace and keeps us on our toes. It also serves the customer because it forces companies to regularly re-evaluate their services, pricing and value proposition. In the end we’re in this for two things, making money and serving clients. I don’t think we can do both without healthy competition.

So take off your gloves (you know who you are) and let’s get in the ring.