Does it feel like you’re working in a crowded market? Too much competition and not enough elbow space for you to grab the ball and run with it? How can you get the attention you deserve?
The easy answer is always, “Be different. Set yourself apart from the others.”
But the million dollar question is, how do you set yourself apart from the crowd? Do you have to be outstanding to stand out?
There’s a small grocery store in Los Angeles that has been around for just over 110 years. About 10 years ago, with the business dying off, the store changed its focus, and, as they say, the rest is history.
In the mid 1990′s, the store owner, who inherited the business from his father, decided to ignore what the other supermarkets were doing and went his own way. Being different meant the the store began to (slowly) stand out.
The result of the business standing out has been outstanding. The store and its owner have been featured several times over the past few years on TV, radio and newspapers across the USA. Each story brings in more new customers. Of course, each media story leads to another story, and then another, and so on.
It’s a mom and pop business, with emphasis on the “pop”. Watch the video here. (Also on that site are videos of a cake business, a pizza store and a guy who makes kitchen knives. All of these seem to have a similar theme: the business owner is focused on a quality product and customer service. Doing what their competition is doing is a non-issue.)
Can any of this be applied to a photography business?
Tags: business practices, marketing
