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The Missing X-Factor In Most Online Businesses

Recently, savvy internet marketer, Stu McLaren, published a nice little post on his blog about the concept of "Creative Imitation". It's well worth you taking the time to read (after you're done here, of course).

The gist of the article is that creative imitation is a great place to start online, but it's not what's going to allow you to lead your marketplace.

In fact, towards the end of Stu's article, he says specifically, "Creatively imitating market leaders is a good thing in the beginning. It helps you grasp an understanding of what is working in that industry and it helps you get going. However, for long-term success you need to get beyond creative imitation and start exploring your own unique ideas. Otherwise you’ll always be a follower and you’ll never lead your industry."

I think this is well-stated, however I think it also neglects to mention an additional reason why you need to be sensitive to and very cautious with your use of "creative imitation" when building your online business.

Oddly enough, I also feel this very same 'additional reason' is what holds so many internet marketers back from ever developing a successful business online.

Really!

And, I don't know why more online marketing teachers and "gurus" don't talk about it.

Nevertheless, I will in this post.

Let me explain:

Most struggling internet marketers are NOT having a difficult time building their online business because they lack knowledge in tactics.

For example, when it comes to creating and selling an ebook, it's a pretty straight-forward process most understand.

Right? I mean, here it is...

1. Find a hungry niche that has, and spends, money on their niche.

2. Uncover what information they desparately want.

3. Put it in an ebook or some other format.

4. Create a sales letter with a killer offer.

5. Drive traffic to the site using any one of the many effective means for driving traffic to a website.

6. Enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Only... for most that simply follow this model, there is no fruit.

So, does the problem lie in the first 5 steps?

Is the issue the tactics being taught?

No.

Not at all.

It's NOT in what's being taught...

...it's in what's NOT BEING TAUGHT where the problem lies.

You see, in creating a successful online business in any niche, besides following the sound tactical steps and process most of us know, there's another crucial strategic element that needs to be addressed.

And, it needs to be addressed right up front.

What is it?

DIFFERENTIATION

In other words, what the heck makes your product different and better than everything else out there being offered to your marketplace??

>> What additional and unique benefits will customers get from you that they won't get anywhere else, with anyone else's product?

>> What's lacking in your competitors products that you've included?

>> What have you done to make sure that comparing your product to your competitors is like comparing apples to oranges?

And, it's that last question that really wreaks havoc with the idea of "creative imitation".

You see, there's nothing wrong with looking OUTSIDE of your niche and marketplace for ideas and innovation.

In fact, that's where true innovations come from - in other niches outside of yours.

However, there is a problem with looking WITHIN your niche and marketplace to "creatively imitate". And, that is... you never differentiate what you offer.

And, without differentiation the end result is that you allow your product (ebook, for example) to become a commodity.

In other words, without differentiation... and without staking your claim on a unique angle for your product, your product gets lost in the sea of sameness.

Without differentiating your product.... even you're POSITIONING of what you're product is... you end up competing in an ocean of competitors (if not now, later on for sure) all claiming and offering consumers the same thing.

Instead, what you want to do is POSITION what your product DOES and IS uniquely in your marketplace.

First, you want to make sure that your product offers unique benefits consumers can't get anywhere else. In the case of an ebook, you'd want the ebook to offer unique information that gives readers unique benefits not offered by competing ebooks. Of course, you want to make sure that those unique benefits are benefits your prospecs want and value.

Second, you want to try to position your product in a unique product category - it's own category. first heard about the concept of creating your own category to own from marketing maven, Even Pagan. With this approach, you're first in your product category and then own the #1 spot. And, as marketing pioneers, Ries and Trout, taugt in their early best-selling book, Positioning, it's better to be first in a product category than it is to be better.

In other words, it's better to create a new category from your information than it is to just be another ebook.

Marketing leader, Rich Schefren, puts it like this, "It's better to be different than it is to be better."

Often this can be done with tweaks in positioning without actually changing the content or the delivery.

For example, by calling your ebook a Digital Manual, you take your product out of the category of ebooks and put it into a new category. Now... even though it's subtle... you're no longer competing with ebooks. Why? Because you're not selling an ebook, you're selling a Digitial Manual.

Or, how about this:

How about you create one or two little videos that go along with your ebook and include links to them within the content of your ebook.

Now, you position your ebook as a Video Manual or Video Book or Video Training, whatever.

The point is... just by changing the positioning of your product to a new category not being claimed by competitors, you're able to create a new category that you now own as the first and #1 provider of.

Add to this your unique content and desirable customer benefits, and you truly have a winning combination.

Again, it's  NOT just following the tactics. It's NOT just having good content.

It's having and doing those things AND differentiating what you do so you stand out, have unqiue positioning, own your category, eliminate competitive comparisons, and dominate your niche as the only provider of what you offer!

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Here are some other posts around the Net you may find of value:

“Creative Imitation”–Good or Bad? - There’s quite an interesting discussion going on about “creative imitation”–what it is, and whether it’s good or bad. I just posted a couple of comments on Alex Mandossian’s blog (Jeff Herring’s post), and Stu McLaren’s. ...

“Creative Imitation” Boosts Your Productivity - Here are two interesting examples of creative imitation:. Example 1: In December of 2006 I took Alex’s Teleseminar Secrets Training for the first time. After Module 2 I decided to jump in and held my first teleseminar on Article ...

Business and Marketing Success - Invention Or Imitation? Part 1 ... - Invention or new ideas sound great, but in business and marketing (online or offline) it’s creative imitation that will bring you success. This is what some of the greatest thought leaders, marketers and promoters in history have done. ...

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