We’re in the middle of the NFL playoffs, so the timing seems appropriate to talk about the importance of offense. Not football offense, of course, but business. And like a playoff, your business is playing for the right to play again next week. Win or go home. Succeed or go out of business.
Proactivity
When we say it’s important to stay on offense, what we’re really talking about is remaining proactive and not resting on your laurels. Even the most talented sports teams would be wise to always find ways of getting better, of staying ahead of the curve. This imperative makes sense for businesses too. And to quote a common observation in the NFL, “it’s a copycat league.” Copycats are everywhere, in every aspect of life including business. People will naturally look to what works and attempt to replicate that success. To do the opposite would be silly.
Whether you’re trying to reverse a trend of declining customer satisfaction or double-down on your already-stellar customer experience, your business should always strive to get better. Your competition is doing the same thing; indeed, even if you have a healthy lead on your peers, there are many who want to catch up and pass you. And if they don’t, they’ll be replaced by someone who is hungry and savvy enough to do so.
Research
To stay on offense, you have to keep moving the ball forward. That is, you should continue to push the envelope on what makes for a great customer experience. Now, we don’t mean you should tax your resources so far that it’s detrimental to your business; what we mean is that you have to understand what your competitors are doing and counter them accordingly.
To figure this out, you need data about your competitors. And you need data about yourself. Not from your own perspective, because you are not your target audience. You need feedback from your customers, the people whom you’re trying to satisfy. One of the very best ways of accomplishing this is through competitive mystery shopping, which is the process of using the same mystery shoppers to evaluate both your business and a competitor of your choice, comparing and contrasting what each does well or needs improvement on.
The Prize
In football, you try to score points. In business, you try to earn money. But there’s more to this than today’s sales: the real prize is customer loyalty. By doing the research to understand your own strengths and weakness, and to understand your competitors’, you will be able to not only secure today’s returns, but tomorrow’s as well.
When you offer a great customer experience, one that’s unparalleled, your customers will return again and again. And just as importantly, they will tell their friends and family too. Recurrent sales are how keep winning.
There’s No Better Time
Today is tomorrow’s yesterday. Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today. Tomorrow is not promised. Carpe diem. —There are a lot of sayings about the importance of acting now, rather than procrastinating. Let us put it another way: every day passes is one day closer. Closer to what? To your competitors catching you.
Want to stay (or get) ahead? Contact us now and let’s not let opportunity pass us by. Let’s make sure your business stays on offense, ready to face and overcome any challenge—or challenger. Together, we’ll earn the right to play again next week. And every week after that.
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