Page 137 - Paulisms: Gold Nuggets for Small Business

indeed come into the residential market, but we were well underway in several other sales channels. They were coming into a market that would cost a huge amount of money to penetrate in view of its maturity.
You cannot be arrogant and complacent about competition, but also remember that it is a big cost for them to take business away from you and most don’t have the budget or long-term stomach to last once they realise how tough it is. This is particularly true where a product or service is in a very mature market.
On the other hand, there was one particular product I introduced against a worldwide market leader who had 75% of the world market. In this case, I wanted to be a happy second in the market. I just couldn’t crack making it viable and to even make any money out of it. The generic market leader was too entrenched in the market. The cost to get market share was just too high, although I did take a commercial approach to the opportunity.
Supply arrangements often come with performance criteria or minimum purchase volumes. Competition could be seen as your supplier pulling the rug. I always said that your protection on any agreement or distribution is your performance. Your performance is your protection. That flows right down through the sales channels and model. Protect yourself from competition by your performance.