Secret to Small Business Success - Brand Loyalty

by Mike

One small business success secret most entrepreneurs should consider is the use of "mental shelf space"...and here's why.

The small business arena is very competitive: there are hundreds of small businesses that are crammed into this world - yet only a very few small businesses capture true loyalty to their brand.

This is because customers, suppliers, and even potential employees can only remember so many companies in a certain category.

After that, it's just one more car wash, bakery, or ice cream store.

• Experts have labeled this "mental shelf space".
  
  
• So...if you're company is not the first one, two, or three items within this "mental shelf space," then it is only part of the general mental blur.
  
  
  • And being a mental blur WILL cost a lot of money to cut through with discounts, coupons, or advertising.
    
    

This mental blur phenomena can kill a business.

So here's what you've GOT to learn how to do.

• Do whatever you can to be special AND memorable.
  
  
• Make a special attempt NOT to fall prey to being "just another" in a long line of other business.
  

In fact, the "do something special and memorable" move is small business success secret that a few of the big boys have mastered.

• Below are two companies that will show you how it's done.
  

Meet the Apple Computer Company.

This is a company that was founded in the age of large, centralized, main-frame computers, and groups of mini-computers trying to be as good as main-frames.

• Apple positioned itself as a "personal computer".
  
  
• Apple was named after a fruit.
  
  
• Its main competitor at the time was multinational computer machinery companies that dominated.
  
  
• Apple built customer loyalty to its brand with great features, "personal" computing, and a memorable brand name.
  

Now...let's think Funky Monkey ice cream.

Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Company was a premium, small batch, ice cream that competed against ice cream parlors, dairy stores, and grocery store ice creams.

• Their market niche was surrounded by larger, better established, competitors.
  
  
• The competitors were more costly AND less costly.
  
  
• Some were richer and better tasting, and some were not as rich and tasted differently.
  

Ben & Jerry's were surrounded on all sides and still managed to win the premium ice cream market.

The secret was to supply something the customer wanted, such as special varieties, AND memorable branding.

• Interestingly, the brand became just as memorable for their product as their way of doing business.
  
  
• The Ben & Jerry's brand became linked to doing good in the community.
  

Now that this small business success secret has been revealed, don't forget it.

• The "make-it-special-like-Funky-Monkey-Ice-Cream" branding move will be just the small business success secret that will put your busines on the map.