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Why do the most lucrative industries quickly become the most saturated?
Because that’s where people are making money.
In no time, that lucrative industry becomes an over-populated any man’s zone where only the exceptional survive. Fortunately, in the words of Henry Ford, most (if not all) of that saturation is full of business-owning wannabe’s who provide a sub-par product.
“A market is never saturated with a good product, but it is very quickly saturated with a bad one.”
If you start with a remarkable product, it’s not the sub-par market saturation but the powerful, heavyweight winners that you need to worry most about. So here are three strategies that other companies have used to beat their most powerful competitors.
Provide extraordinary customer service
We’ve all contacted a company and dove through frustrating prompts to try and figure out which number combination will get us speaking to an actual person the fastest. Sometimes we reach a human being, while other times we don’t. And more often than not, if we do reach someone, it’s uncomfortably clear that the person hates their job and doesn’t want to help us anyway.
This experience is so prominent and frustrating that, according to a 2017 study by American Express, over 50 percent of Americans have ditched a plan or service because of terrible customer service. And as Doug Warner once famously said, “In the world of internet customer service, it’s important to remember your competitor is only one mouse click away.”
If you want to beat the competition, then provide exceptional support. Provide refunds without too much hassle, hire people who are willing to answer questions outside the script and allow your employees to solve $100 or less issues without your direct approval.
Fifty-five percent of consumers claim they would pay more for better customer service. If your competitors provide sub-par support, then this area is ripe for you to exploit.
Create problem-solving content
When I think about remarkable content, blog posts like “595 Power Words That’ll Instantly Make You a Better Writer” from SmartBlogger and “An 8-Point Checklist for Debugging Strange Technical SEO Problems” from Moz immediately come to mind.
Whether you agree or not, I’m willing to bet that certain pieces stand out for you because, at one point or another, they helped you solve a problem. And it’s not just you and I that crave genuine problem-solving content. One study found that 58 percent of internet users consistently search online when they need information.
In the words of Craig Davis, “We need to stop interrupting what people are interested in and be what people are interested in.”
Fortunately for you, many businesses haven’t figured that out yet. Sure, your competitors might have a blog, but if you create consistent content that actually solves your target market’s problems (and isn’t just trying to sell something), then who do you think they’ll come running toward once they’re ready to buy?
Build a new niche
Perhaps the most effective way to beat the competition is by avoiding the competition altogether.
Consider Midlife Divorce Recovery as an example, a business with course material on how to conquer the mental, physical and emotional challenges caused by an unexpected divorce. Do other businesses offer the same thing? Sure, like SaS for Women and DivorceMagazine.com.
In fact, the product that all three of these companies offer—education on surviving the challenges of divorce—isn’t all that different. But the way that Midlife Divorce Recovery markets its reputation is where the real genius comes in. They don’t just offer any divorce recovery course, they offer a divorce recovery course for middle-aged women.
The course material across all three businesses might be identical, but the niche within a niche that the marketers behind Midlife Divorce Recovery have carved out makes it so they don’t need to compete with the competition. Instead, they’ve differentiated themselves and created a new niche, one that didn’t even exist before they came along.
Rather than competing in a saturated market, try creating your own niche. Then you won’t have to worry about powerful competitors stunting your business’ growth and crippling your yearly revenue.
Follow the competition, then beat them once you arrive
If your business operates in a lucrative market, then you won’t be alone. In fact, the true sign of a profitable industry is that other entrepreneurs are piling in. If no one else is playing, then you’re probably in the wrong industry.
Still, while that competition is a sign of market potential, it’s also a source of incredible risk. All other businesses around you won’t passively observe as you try to cut your piece of the market’s revenue, which is why you can provide extraordinary customer service, create problem-solving content and build a new niche to either dominate powerful industry competitors or avoid them altogether.
