How Little Guys Can Find Their Briar Patch And Win At Marketing.

Briar Pach Marketing“Every small business has to figure out how to market with limited funds and limited time,” said Rob. “The problem is they get all wound around an axle trying to do branding and pushin’ to beat the odds on social media and they wind up just getting tired and feelin’ like Enterprise level operations are gwan to whup on ‘em.”

“Hold it’” I said. I’ll bet not everyone here knows the Brer Rabbit stories, Bubba. That is what you’re talking about, not the Nebula in the Star Trek show, right?”

Rob replied, “I’m talkin’ rabbits not rockets. You see, Brer Rabbit was a ‘Little Guy.’ He used his wits to beat Brer Fox time after time. That is the secret no matter what kind of business you have. Sure there are times when massive amounts of money poured on an opportunity are going to get the Foxes share but a little ingenuity can go a long way to making your business successful.”

Kathy said, “I see where you’re going with this. You want folks to look at the Briar patch as their happy hunting grounds. It’s like telling a cold caller not to go into that high rise looking for business.”

“I’m not familiar with the stories,” Chris said.

“The stories are about a very clever rabbit. I responded. He continuously turned the tables on just about all the other critters in the woods. Even though he was little, his ingenuity kept him alive and well-fed through adventure after adventure. Once when captured by Brer Fox he pleaded not to be eaten saying, ‘Please don’t fling me in that briar patch’ each time the Fox suggested how he might be cooked. The fox flung him. Brer Rabbit laughed and scampered to safety through the home of his youth.”

“Nice summary for a Yankee,” said Rob. “The key thing here is that there are differences between Little Guys and Enterprises. In my view here’s what you can take advantage of:

  1. You don’t make committee decisions. You don’t have to check a bunch of schedules and wait until everyone is available. You can have a meeting in a heartbeat and make a decision before the Foxes, Bears and other big critters can find the conference room.
  2. On the other hand you can use the same sort of scheduling and contact management software to keep track of your team as well as your customers, prospects and suspects. And because you’re operatin’ in your briar patch you know those folks a lot better than someone who is not used to thorny interactions.
  3. You can easily monitor your marketing campaigns in real time and adapt the analytics developed for internet usage by your out-of-the-briar-patch competitors. In simple terms, use your ingenuity and your ability to move quickly to win on your terms. Remember, you need far fewer sales than the enterprises to have a successful business.”

Gail took a sip of iced tea, stirred it and said, “So what you’re saying is that the Little Guys really have an advantage. The combination of ingenuity, decision speed and desire, no, essential need, to know how things are going moment to moment provides an edge, an edge that is the key to winning.”

“Couldn’ta said it better myself,” said Rob.

Do you agree? What other Brer Rabbit differences would you add? Let us know with your comments.


 

Jerry and the whole menagerie will be back next week. See you in the Briar Patch.

Jerry Fletcher builds trust-based marketing strategies for Little Guys. Small businesses introducing themselves, new products or new services that are taking their business up a notch. Learn more at: www.JerryFletcher.com

Jerry is an international professional speaker and consultant. Learn more at www.NetworkingNinja.com