Thinking like a competitor

In the 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing written by Al Ries and Jack Trout In 1993 the second law is the law of category 

 

If you can’t be first in a category, set up a new category you can be first in. When you introduce a new product to the market, you should ask yourself the question: What category is this new product first in? 

 

The authors recommend thinking in categories, rather than focusing on the brand, as prospects are not interested in which brand is better since they already have their idea about it. 

 

But when it comes to categories, potential customers become more open to offers. Everyone is interested in what’s new. If you are the first in a new category, promote this category. 

 

There is a lot written about how to compete with competitors, how to increase service delivery or reduce the price or position yourself differently. But what if you were able to identify their next and move then go in a completely separate direction so that they weren’t able to compete with you because you are working in the same industry but a completely different category? 

 

Dell computers, set up in 1984 was not the first computer manufacturer, apple had been set up for 8 years already since starting in 1976 and had a predicted value of 1.52 billion dollars but Dell was able to compete with apple by becoming the first computer company to sell computers over the phone. 

 

Dell was able to look at Apple as a competitor and identify where they were able to compete, they weren’t able to compete with market share alone but they were able to offer a quicker and more convenient way to order the computer.