HOW TO BEAT AMAZON
By leadership author and keynote speaker Ross Shafer
Ross Shafer here and I got into this room before the audience so I could shoot today’s lesson. There will be 900 small business owners in here and I’ll be talking to them about how to beat Amazon. As some of you know, I’m a management consultant and convention keynoter who also writes books about who succeeds, who fails, and why. Well, I’ve seen a lot of small mom and pop companies rip market share out of the hands of the Big Guys. From my experience, Big Companies actually fear smaller companies. How can that be? …because Amazon is a transactional company. They can take your order and ship it. If you don’t like it they will give you a refund.
But small companies are more nimble, more personal. Small companies can give you emotional reasons to buy – Take the clothing company, Peter Manning NYC. Peter is a clothing designer who said, “I got tired of buying clothes that didn’t fit my smaller frame. The sleeves were so long I looked like a Pirate. So, I created clothing for all of us who are 5’8” and under.” If you’re 5’ 8” and have had to hem every pair of pants you own, this is a company that gets your attention, doesn’t it? Or, how about Madison Reed Hair color. Founder, Amy Erret said, “I wanted to create salon quality hair color with no ammonia, no parabens, and no gluten, at a price we can all afford…AND I named the company after my daughter (Madison Reed) to show her that strong, independent women can be successful too.” You can even text them a picture of your hair, and Madison Reed will match the color for you. Was Amy Erret worried about competing against the big guns? Not really. And she’s made a significant dent in Clairol’s hair color.
Boll and Branch Bed Sheets is another example, Boll and Branch was founded by Scott and Missy Tannen. The Tannen’s just wanted to buy luxurious bedding at a reasonable price but they couldn’t find any. So they changed the industry from their spare bedroom. They eliminated the middle-man by only selling online. Then they decided to be a world-friendly company. All of their products are 100% organic cotton, chemical free, and only manufactured in fair trade certified factories. If you’re going to buy high quality sheets anyway, wouldn’t you feel better about buying from a young couple who takes away all of the guilt.
Want more examples? I have never talked about Bras on this blog – but look up ThirdLove. Frustrated with ill-fitting undergarments, a woman named Heidi Zak invented 1/2 size bras (we have half sizes in shoes…why not bras?) She solved a problem that was begging for an answer. By now you’ve probably heard of Untuckit. Untuckit is a company founded by Chris Riccobono – a former GE Healthcare employee – who noticed how bad shirts looked untucked. So he fixed the problem – men love it – and now he has 24 mall locations. The list is long and revolutionary. Just because you’re a mom and pop business, if you have a solution-oriented story that your customers can relate to – and care about, you CAN take market share away from your competition…even Amazon.
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Ross Shafer is the author of (9) popular business books and (14) human resource training films. In a former career Ross won (6) Television Emmy awards for his work as a TV host, writer, and producer. Today, Ross is a sought after keynote speaker and consultant for Fortune 500 companies worldwide.