Know-How Exchange : Strategy

A common and very succesful strategy used by top corporations is to alter their value proposition.

One way to change the value proposition is to shift it within an industry, providing better performance, or lower cost than the rest of the industry, or better yet...BOTH. When one competitor is able to position itself lower on the value map, it forces the rest of the industry to catch up. Until it does, there is a temporary competitive advantage.

Dell Computer is a good example of a company which shifted their value proposition, and offered its customers better performance without a higher price...thereby strengthing and altering their brand at the same time.

Some of the most common push-marketing techniques are TV and Radio. This is "pushing" because they are watching their favorite show or listening to their favorite music and suddenly...BAM!..an ad is placed right in front of them. Obviously TV and radio are expensive and may or may not fit your budget.

On a minimal budget, one of the best alternative push-marketing techniques is email newsletters and contest promotions. Targeting your demographic via an email newsletter annoucing your new value proposition (i.e. perhaps produce a limited supply of your "New Premier Stock" paper, which is the same as your current paper with a different name, with 25% more for free) via an email newletter our physical letter to your current and prospective customers may raise sales significantly...even enough to cover the extra cost of the 25% for free.

This is done time and time again...especially with fast-food. McDonald's will suddenly offer "Buy 2 Big Macs for $2" for only a few weeks and their Big Mac sales soar! They are still making profit off the $2 sale. Then people come back after the promo is over, accustomed to the Big Mac, and order one at regular price anyway.

I hope this helps give you some ideas!

Good Luck!!