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| Subject: Re: Profitably Linking Your Business, Profession & Purpose Part 6 | |
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Author: Dennis S. Vogel |
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Date Posted: 13:41:42 05/30/07 Wed In reply to: Dennis S. Vogel 's message, "Profitably Linking Your Business, Profession & Purpose Part 1" on 15:37:34 11/26/06 Sun McDonald’s Succeeded, Though It Ticked Off Its Franchisees McD’s ticked off a lot of franchisees when it sold more franchises near existing franchisees. It did that to reduce the time customers waited for food. Since McD’s doesn’t deliver food, having its restaurants close to customers was important. Some cities already had multiple McD’s restaurants. While I lived in South Lake Tahoe CA, I worked in 1 of 3 in the SLT/Stateline NV market. These were owned by the same person & located a few miles apart. When I worked for Wal-Mart in Seward NE, a small McD’s restaurant replaced a W-M snack bar. This was besides the McD’s restaurant located next to the W-M store (probably less than 100 yards/meters from the W-M store front door.) Why so close? I wasn’t privy to the plans, but I know some people won’t walk that distance, especially if they’re tired (Note- This W-M was about 15,000 square feet, so people wouldn’t have been tired from walking in a super center. But they had jobs, children & household responsibilities.) They could’ve used the McD’s drive-through, but some would just drive away after they were in their trucks or cars. In summer, temperatures were sometimes above 100 degrees with high humidity. Waiting in a hot vehicle, even with windows open, was uncomfortable & many times unhealthy. Leaving a window open with an air conditioner on didn’t help much while making & waiting for a drive-through order. Since many Seward County residents have open-bed trucks, their W-M purchases were put in their truck beds. This isn’t good in windy &/or rainy weather. In winter, temperatures still dipped to or below zero. This wasn’t favorable for drive-through orders either. So, McD’s wants every key location it can get, so people have fewer “excuses” to not buy. I’m belaboring these points to get you to realize, there are a lot of things for you to consider when planning a store &/or which merchandise to sell. Foresight & empathy are prerequisites for producing convenience. Convenience isn’t just something for you to provide, you’d better actively produce it. Convenience Is More Than Merely Important In a commodity business, convenience is vital. (I know McD’s isn’t a commodity in the minds & stomachs of every customer.) As fast as McD’s is, it doesn’t serve any food until somebody goes to buy it. When people have half-hour lunch breaks, it doesn’t matter if McD’s can serve them in 5 minutes, if the round-trip (from work to McD’s & back) plus waiting in line takes more than 30 minutes. If Wendy’s is closer & has a shorter line, McD’s will miss chances to sell food. Adding more locations was also like a retailer opening more checkout lines. It reduced the time customers waited in lines. McD’s has been the number 1 fast food restaurant chain for many years. But executives weren’t complacent. They could’ve thought, “If customers want a Big Mac, they can drive a bit further.” If you think anything like “I’m doing enough for customers already,” save yourself some effort later, put a “Going Out Of Business” sign on your front door now. Maybe you can’t open another location, but think of ways to be closer to people whom want/need what you offer. Examples: Some dry cleaners have pick-up/drop-off stations in grocery stores. When I delivered pizzas, my boss had me meet a customer at the edge of our delivery area. Maybe students will sell your products or certificates for your service for fund-raising efforts &/or to get practical credit for business courses. Sometimes, people will travel further or expend a bit more effort to get what they want. When you can’t be conveniently located for all customers, it’s vital to inspire them to want what you offer anyway. Besides a great Unique Selling Proposition & positioning/ Unique Strategic Position in a product/service category, you need a great brand so people feel what you offer is better for them than competitive offers. A Successful, But Weak Brand Branding consultant, Rob Frankel realizes Coca-Cola is a successful brand, but he says it’s not a strong or great brand. Many Coke drinkers rebelled when the formula was changed. But how many of those do you think would refuse to drink anything else, if Coca-Cola Classic wasn’t available? How many would leave a restaurant that only sells competing colas, & search for a Coke vendor? Would it be practical for them to refuse to drink any other brand of cola or any other beverage? NO! How many Coke drinkers would’ve given up on the Coke brand, if Coke Classic hadn’t been brought back to market? NOTE- A brand should set what you offer as proprietary & special. It’s hard to build a great & strong brand for a commodity. So, commodity sellers need to deal with that. McD’s does it by having many, easy-to-find locations. A big reason it’s profitable is people know what to expect from its brand. Plus, part of the brand now is closer, more convenient locations. To somebody who’s stressed at work, the comfort of knowing what they’ll have for lunch can seem vital. Deciding what else to eat or where else to go is—GOSH—another decision. This is more important to some than variety. To somebody, who’s picky about how food tastes, experimenting is such a waste of time. Those, who already know what they want & how they want it, don’t have to figure how much alternatives are worth. If you know you like & can afford a Big Mac, you may not want to figure out if a Whopper gives you more or less value for the price. This is important to travelers who don’t want to experiment. When they’re hungry & in an unfamiliar place, they don’t want to get lost. Their first choice for food may be McD’s, but they don’t want to delay their trips by hunting for familiar food or waiting in a long line. When they see a McD’s sign near a freeway off ramp, they know what they can get & its approximate price (depending on local differences & sales tax). Many will buy from a business that offers something similar to what they want. This is especially true when they already know what the business sells (without having to go in & investigate). If they’re running late & figure a nearby Burger King is a good enough alternative, Ronald McDonald will lose some sales. Picky, Picky, Picky! Some of these demands/requirements seem obsessive to others, but if you try to change people’s priorities, you’ll lose some sales while you try. You may not get them to change & go out of business. Even if you get some to change, your extra effort & expense may offset any profit you may have gotten from accommodating them. I don’t understand why some pour milk on cereal, then complain when the cereal is soggy. But if I were writing sales copy for a “crispy-in-milk” cereal, I’d subordinate my feelings & empathize with the niche I’d be trying to influence. Dennis S. Vogel thrivingbusiness@email.com If you don’t actively produce convenience, you’re helping competitors. It’s easier & less expensive to change yourself & your business, so make it easier to succeed. I’ve made it easier for you to succeed by producing free & convenient information & methods to strength your business. Help yourself to that information & those methods by using these URLs. http://www.voy.com/31049/ http://www.lakefield.net/~thrivingbusiness/ [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] |
| Subject | Author | Date |
| Sidebar 2- The Right Conditions For Profitability & General Buying Criteria | Dennis S. Vogel | 16:42:11 06/30/07 Sat |
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