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Chapter 6
Principle
Of Elimination
"The negative, painful and unhealthy,
I’ll pay you to get rid of them for me;
If you take them away
To you big money I’ll pay,
Helping me eliminate the negatives is the key."
- Your Customer
Goal: What negative or inconvenience can I eliminate from my product or
service to make it better for my target market?
In today’s cautious, label reading, comparison shopping age,
people are not only interested in what’s in a product, but
what’s not in it.
Thousands of products owe their
success to the principle of elimination. This year some of
the hottest ideas for increased sales is to stress what’s not
in the product.
The catchwords used to sell products are Free, Salt Free, Sugar Free,
Fat Free, Caffeine Free, Cholesterol Free, and more.
Anytime you see a
product that claims to do something without including a negative,
you’re seeing the principle of elimination at work.
One of the key ways to reduce cost is by using the principle of
elimination. For instance, many businesses are using this principle by
sub-contracting much of their task.
Many industries have been created on the principle of elimination. If
you’ll look close, every thriving business includes this
principle. Fast food removes our need to cook, videos remove boredom,
and P.C’s remove routine work from our lives.
Name one successful business - and I’ll show you what
negative it helps to eliminate.
In this chapter, we’ll discuss ways to use the principle of
elimination in places your competitors may be ignoring. If you have a
service, your focus should be to remove service problems for your
customers.
Think of how Henry Ford eliminated the problem of buying a car for the
masses. How Thomas Edison eliminated darkness in our homes. Think of
the untold riches that’s come from these two men alone -
it’s staggering to think about.
If you spent any money today, you probably spent it with someone who
helped you to eliminate a problem, danger or irritation.
You pay
insurance to help eliminate financial risk. You pay to eat out to eliminate having to cook or clean
up. You pay your light bill to eliminate being in the dark. The list is
endless.
The principle of elimination is weaved into almost everything we spend
our money on.
You can use this principle to find a niche your competitors have
neglected. Thinking of (brainstorm) ways you can eliminate customer
problems can be like money in the bank to you.
Take the simple niche ideas like the paper clip, the post-it
pad, or the manila folder. Those are low-tech, mundane products, yet
they’re products you’d be irritated to be without
if you work in the average office.
Yes, their small products
but they help eliminate big irritations for millions of people,
don’t you agree?
You’ll find as your customers needs change, their problems
change too. This could guarantee you a steady stream of customers.
That’s why it’s important to keep in touch with
their problems, concerns and complaints. You do this by asking in person or through surveys and questionnaires.
Don’t always assume you can guess what they need. You could be missing a vital shift in your customers needs and changing buying habits..
Your target customers may have what I call hidden needs. These are
needs your customers never knew they had, until you tell them.
For
example, whoever thought having a TV without a remote would be an
inconvenience 30 years ago, until some advertiser showed us.
Who knew
heating leftovers in an oven would be a waste of time-until someone
showed us the microwave.
I am willing to bet most people in days gone by never dreamed a horse
and buggy had disadvantages until someone showed them the automobile.
So, never assume your customers are satisfied, or if they are now -
never assume they’ll stay that way.
Now start brainstorming ideas to apply the principle of elimination to your business, product or service.
Next: Niche Principle 7
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