| |
| |
|
Strategic Planning Information |
|
|
|
How Copying the HBO Schedule Can Boost Your Business
I'm not talking about posting the HBO schedule on your website or sending a Xeroxed copy around to all your customers. When HBO came onto the scene they were innovative, fresh, and willing to do things other people were not. Before HBO ("Home Box Office") came out in 1985, about the only to way to see a movie was to go to the theater, pray that one of the major networks would be showing one you wanted to see, or watch one you already had. With cable television technology blooming, and American access to the cable networks growing, this new, edgy cable movie company became an instant success. What about the HBO schedule made them different? They realized that people were willing to pay for television if it carried what they were interested in, and HBO gave them exactly what they wanted. The fact that no one at that time was offering commercial-free movies on cable did not deter them from doing it and doing it well. Because of their proven track record as successful innovators, we can look to HBO for successful business principles that can help our own home business grow and succeed. If you are considering starting a home business but have not done so yet, carefully consider the principles in this article before you make your next move. To succeed in business you have to do at least one of three things: 1) Offer consumers something that no one else has to offer A Unique Product We have already discussed the fact that HBO wrote the book on paid subscription movie channels. What does your home business offer? Is it different from what other people are selling? If not, keep reading the article. If you do have something unique to offer, how well are you currently accentuating the differences your product has from other similar products? If your baseball hat design is revolutionary, tell me why - or I might just assume it's a baseball hat like all the rest. Many businesses are formed after an expert on a given product or from a service industry takes what she knows and builds on that. They improve the quality of what is already being offered and build a successful business around that. The HBO schedule has constantly added new movies, original programming, and sports events in order to maintain their stance as the highest quality subscription cable channel available. If your business is built around an improvement on another product, don't get comfortable! Invest some time and money into constantly improving your product or process to make sure your competitors don't catch up with you. Finally, selling a product for less than the price at which your competitor is offering it does not have to mean you have to cut into your profit margin. The key to succeeding in price wars is to minimize your costs, thereby maximizing your profits. Online banks are able to offer substantially higher interest rates on saving accounts and CDs because they do not have to employ as large a staff as does a traditional bank. They cut overhead costs and pass the savings on to us, the consumers. Look closely at the way you buy and move the products you sell. Is there somewhere you could save? Is there something you could downsize or shift in order to streamline your business and lower your overhead costs? Sometimes a website with a thoroughly written FAQ page can save you from having to answer hours of customers' questions over the phone. Are all your eggs in one basket? A successful business usually tries to build their business model around a blend of two or all of these options. You may have a superior product and do OK selling it at a much higher price than your competitors, but you will truly excel if you are able to cut costs and expand your profit margin. Do the research and figure out what the best price/quality levels are for your business. The HBO schedule has evolved over the years as the tastes and desires of their consumers have changed. Constantly evaluate who your target audience is and adjust your business plan to compensate for any changes. Nick Smith is a client account specialist with 10x Marketing - More Visitors. More Buyers. More Revenue. To find out more about the HBO schedule, visit I-Satellite.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Six Sigma Method and Design of Experiments Six Sigma is becoming a proven approach for businesses and organizations to improve their performance. The spectrum of companies actively engaging in Six Sigma today is wide from industrials like Celanese, Caterpillar, GE, Honeywell, and 3M to service/retail organizations like Starwood Hotels, Sears, and Home Depot. Business Problem Solving Is there really anything as a problem? Does chaos or challenge mean you have a problem? I am under the belief that such things as other call problems are indeed the life-blood of opportunity and the louder it knocks the greater the gain. Embrace chaos. Top Ten Reasons To Create A One Page Business Plan There is a story, about a business owner who wasn't doing very well. She had no business plan, but had heard, quite a bit, how creating one would help. Online Promotion: 10 Ways To Use Focus Groups To Ignite Your Profits A focus group is a group of employees or current customers that discuss and brainstorm new ways to improve different parts of your business.Below are online promotion secrets to use focus groups for marketing intelligence. Top 10 Tips to Create A Business Plan! (For People Who Hate Business Plans) One of the key challenges for any business is to remain focused and invest resources for maximum pay-off. It's said that 80% of a business's activity accounts for only 20% of total profits. Vendor Relations Strategies Sample Outline One of the quintessential parts to any business is your supply chain. To insure that the supplies are there when you need them; in this new day and age of "just in time" distribution where very little sits on warehouse shelves until you order it you will need excellent vendor relations. Business Strategy Planning Made Easy Ask Yourself three simple questions that affect your strategy planning.. Do You Have A Customer Identity Crisis? The trick is to determine what uniquely identifies your best customers. Fortunately, deriving this information is not difficult, and in many cases can be obtained from innocuous questions. Microsoft Great Plains Implementation: Healthcare/Hospital example - overview for consultant Microsoft Great Plains fits multiple services market niche and healthcare is not exemption. In the case of Healthcare/Hospital there is usually healthcare patient history tracking system in place and backoffice or accounting application should be integrated on the ongoing basis with the above mentioned system plus often Hospital or association is non-profit organization and non-for-profit accounting specifics should be taken into consideration. Building a Better Brick-and-Mortar with the Billion-Dollar Web More than $117 billion passed hands from Internet shoppers to Internet vendors in 2004, according to the statistical research firm comScore. That's billion, with a B. Troubled Waters Require Capable Leaders at the Helm Canada's lean leaders need to look beyond the horizon and chart the futureIn stormy times, true leadership skills emerge, says Larry Coté, the President of Lean Advisors Inc. (www. The Accountability/Alignment Process: Three Steps to an Accountable Organization The Accountability/Alignment Process: Three Steps to an Accountable Organization Generating genuine accountability and functional alignment into your workplace cannot be left to vague ambitions and abstract statements. Well designed processes must be embedded into the heart of an organization to ensure that each employee's goals and expectations are clearly defined and that the resources to bring about specific measurable results are in place. Mobile Franchise Business Expansion Strategy If you own a mobile franchise business and wish to expand you will need to have a strategy that involves your franchisor. Additionally if you are a franchisor it is important to have some sort of policy in place in advance so that there are no hurt feelings as franchisees expand. 5 Strategies That Will Boost Your Business Productivity Today! - Part 1 Building a dynamic small business is a constantly evolving, increasingly demanding role.It is very easy to get so caught up in the day to day running of our business that we neglect to take the time to look from the outside in to see what we could do to improve our profitability!Well here are 5 Strategies that could boost your productivity overnight!They are not rocket science?and you may have even heard some of them before, but they are 5 proven principles that you can review today to help you stay on track regarding the real issues to grow your business from here. Business Plan Descriptions of Computer System Entrepreneurs often give little if any consideration to their computer system needs in their original business plans. It is a necessity to have mention of your computer system as bankers and/or investors will want to know how you will keep track of your future endeavor. Menu Driven Business Planning A menu is the foundation of any restaurant; Guests will support or avoid a restaurant for its food. Starting with a preliminary menu is a simple and basic approach to restaurant development. What is Your MSP? For many consumers and producers, MSP is an acronym for Manufacturer's Suggested Price. Today, I would like you to consider a different definition for these commonly used letters -Marketing, Sales and Profitability. Strategy Without Tactics is Futile From time to time there seems to be a flurry of studies and surveys on effective communication in the workplace. As a communication specialist, I'm always eager to read these studies, but am often disappointed with what I see. How to Snuff Out the Competition Without Leaving a Mark Does the competition drive you crazy?Are they relentless about taking your clients away?Are customer loyalties becoming a thing of the past?In our ever changing world, it seems securing business these days comes down to, who will provide the most service at the lowest possible price.To add insult to injury your previous customers have taken on a new militant attitude about obtaining your services. GOT MEME? How to Attract Your Clients and Customers Attention No "meme" isn't a typo and Got Milk, the more commonly know phrase, is actually a marketing meme. If you've opened up a magazine or watched TV in the last ten years you've seen the fun and memorable Got Milk ad campaign using celebrities with a milk mustache.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
