Heavy offline competition moving in?

by ZaraK
33 replies
What's your opinion? A well-funded startup is looking to blanket certain markets in the US

"We're Patch.com an internet startup owned by a major global online media company looking to re-invent local online advertising, and we're seeking a web- savvy sales person to be the Local Advertising Manager of a dynamic new site devoted to news and information about suburban markets throughout the country.

In this job, you'll be working closely with local advertisers -- from mom and pops to large regional clients, as their local online advertising expert. You'll know your own platform (and others) backwards and forwards so you can present complete advertising solutions. You may even decide to host a local seminar on how to achieve the best results by advertising on the web. As the top local business executive you will attend chamber and trade functions, get involved in community groups, head up charitable efforts, and maintain a highly visible presence in the business community."


Sounds a lot like the focus for offline marketing to me. While there will always be competitors, these guys have deep pockets, are adding the "bonus" of weaving advertising into local and metro news and community information/events, and are hiring absolute battalions of salespeople ... in the Atlanta GA area they are looking at hiring a person for every suburban metro area, and that's a lot of salespeople.



Be interested to hear thoughts on how those of us in affected markets can differentiate/compete, particularly if we are in startup mode (as I am).


Affected markets: California, Connecticut, DC, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Washington state.
#competition #heavy #moving #offline #patch.com
  • Profile picture of the author MichaelHiles
    Reach Local, Yellow Pages... they're all in the game with heavy competition for local small business marketing. It's not the panacea that's been painted if you don't have a real game.
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  • Profile picture of the author Scott Voss
    Yawn.

    Don't let the fact that there is competition coming in to discourage you from what you are doing.

    The fact that these guys are coming in shows that there is a market for our services. The bottom line is there are literally millions and millions of businesses out there and there is no possible way that they can reach every single one of them.

    Even in these states, they are going to focus on the higher impact areas (primarily the major metro areas). There are lots of areas that even these big dogs are going to ignore. Just look for those lower competition areas.

    -Scott
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    • Profile picture of the author ZaraK
      Unfortunately my market IS the major metropolitan area where I am.
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  • Profile picture of the author John Durham
    Every business in that same metro area that is prosperous faces the same competition. People think to much. Action is key.

    "I will call one ten prospects while the failures are still making grand plans to call on one..."

    ~Og
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  • Profile picture of the author Chad Heffelfinger
    Even if the big name companies come in to a market there are a ton of potential clients out there and new businesses starting all the time. As was already said, there is no way they are all going to get covered by one person or one company.

    The other thing to remember is that a client may say no to this company and say yes to you, or even the other way around. It all depends on what is being offered and how it's being presented to them. We can accomplish a whole lot more with a bisiness if we don't seem like a typical salesman and we are are there truly as a consultant helping the business out.

    It shoud also be a little motivation though to get out there and get some business now before you even have to worry about it.
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  • Profile picture of the author MattyD
    If this happens in your area, it gives you a great opportunity to differentiate yourself and put yourself out as a specialist that they can talk to in person - perhaps face-to-face or over the telephone.

    Personally I'm very confident that any offline marketer has the ability to stand out from the faceless large companies and offer a fantastic service to their clients. Anyone affected by a big company moving in, use it as an opportunity to define your USP (unique selling point) in a clearer way, and show your local clients or potential clients how much better you can be for them.
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    • Profile picture of the author TE2
      Hey Zarak,

      This is not a threat or even competition to my business.

      What they are offering is "advertising" (and news). Mostly they're just another online directory like YELP and others.

      I looked at their site and they don't even list "Chicago" in Illinois. Sure, they have some of the burbs that make up the Chicago area, but no Chicago specifically.

      Back to the point... I don't see them as competition, I see the opposite. They will likely be another example that I can use to make the case for selecting my business offerings versus an online directory.

      Regards,

      John
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      • Profile picture of the author John Durham
        Originally Posted by TE2 View Post


        I don't see them as competition, I see the opposite. They will likely be another example that I can use to make the case for selecting my business offerings versus an online directory.

        Regards,

        John

        Thats called stickin and movin while others are shuckin and jive'n
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      • Profile picture of the author Amber Jalink
        Originally Posted by TE2 View Post

        Hey Zarak,

        <snip>What they are offering is "advertising" (and news). Mostly they're just another online directory like YELP and others.
        <snip>
        Back to the point... I don't see them as competition, I see the opposite. They will likely be another example that I can use to make the case for selecting my business offerings versus an online directory.

        Regards,

        John
        John - do you think there's anything wrong with doing an online directory for offline businesses? Or is it just the way it's presented?

        (I saw this discussion on another forum this morning and was curious about your answer)

        Amber
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        • Profile picture of the author TE2
          Originally Posted by dimeco View Post

          John - do you think there's anything wrong with doing an online directory for offline businesses? Or is it just the way it's presented?

          (I saw this discussion on another forum this morning and was curious about your answer)

          Amber
          Hi Amber,

          A directory is fine if it is industry specific AND local only.

          examples:
          • <insert city name or county name> Lawyers
          • San Diego Roofing
          • Kalamazoo Plumbers
          • Calumet County Lawyers
          Great source of recurring income!

          Caveat - please note that the industry you select for the directory has to be worth creating a directory for. I'm not going after dog groomers, BBQ restaurants, etc... I prefer to target the rich niches - those with big average sales dollars and high profit margins.

          Regards,

          John
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          • Profile picture of the author Amber Jalink
            Originally Posted by TE2 View Post

            Hi Amber,

            A directory is fine if it is industry specific AND local only.

            examples:
            • <insert city name or county name> Lawyers
            • San Diego Roofing
            • Kalamazoo Plumbers
            • Calumet County Lawyers
            Great source of recurring income!

            Caveat - please note that the industry you select for the directory has to be worth creating a directory for. I'm not going after dog groomers, BBQ restaurants, etc... I prefer to target the rich niches - those with big average sales dollars and high profit margins.

            Regards,

            John
            Yep, that's what I was thinking, but your remark threw me a little.

            I surfed around that patch.com this morning (from the other discussion)... it's kind of trying to be like a combination of newspaper with some slight social networking/directory from what I saw when I visited it.

            Amber
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            • Profile picture of the author netkid
              First thing I would do is play "mystery customer" and contact them and find out all what they offer.

              Then I would weave a USP that plain outdoes what they do. I do this whatever market and whatever business I happen to be in.

              My main offline business is special event production. I've researched my competition and the "big dogs" of my industry that infiltrated my city and state and I know all their weaknesses and capitalize on it when I contact my prospects. For example, these companies in "show business" are often hard sell type of people because how they see the competition. I am laid back and more informative and show the fun I have in my business. I make my clients feel at ease. My competition makes them feel pressured to sign the contract. I made more sales with "non-pressure" tactics than my competition. That alone, makes me more attractive to the corporate clients I work with.

              Naw, I wouldn't worry about the competition. I would worry that I am not getting myself out there more to compare how better I am to the offline competition!
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    • Profile picture of the author Bayo
      Originally Posted by MattyD View Post

      If this happens in your area, it gives you a great opportunity to differentiate yourself and put yourself out as a specialist that they can talk to in person - perhaps face-to-face or over the telephone.
      That's the best response I've seen so far (with due respect to all others).

      The challenge unfortunately for many in this business of ours is not focusing on being an Expert and also not focusing on being a Specialist (they're 2 different things by the way)

      Expert - You know what the problem is

      Specialist - Can fix the problem (Doer)

      Example: I know your local business website isn't optimized in any way at all, I know that your website copy is poor, I know that you're not gaining market share because you're not keeping in constant contact with your customers, clients or patients e.t.c.

      You 'get it' as an Offline Consultant.

      You can be one and the same but it makes better financial sense to outsource the doing to specialists, e.g. web designer, graphic designer, copywriter e.t.c while you focus on finding and explaining the problems and offering profitable solutions

      BAYO
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  • Profile picture of the author Charles Harper
    Easy separation. Be the one in your market to do live Ustreams and Blog Talk Radio and outflank them.
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  • Profile picture of the author MWGrubb58
    When the big boys try to come in to an area it means there is money to be made. Like it has been said here, go after the low hanging fruit.

    Cheers,

    Millard
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  • Profile picture of the author tryinhere
    People who spend to much time focusing on what others are doing are spending less time focusing on what they should be doing.
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  • Profile picture of the author I.M.Retired
    Patch is going to have to compete with the 'Shop City' consortium that is quietly working behind the scenes establishing a global network and buying up as many city names as they can find.

    http://shopcity.com

    Emerging after 10 years of development in several pilot project communities, ShopCity.com delivers an entirely new dynamic in favor of the community and local business.

    ShopCity provides all the tools independent businesses need to connect with customers and succeed online - in a single, simple-to-use system.
    These guys have a pretty classy set-up. A business directory, classified ads, local events and social networking site all wrapped up in one.

    Here are just a few of their sites as an example:

    ShopMiami.com - Shop Locally in Miami, Florida, United States

    ShopDetroit.com - Shop Locally in Detroit, Michigan, United States

    And in Canada: (And there are lots more...)

    ShopEdmonton.com - Shop Locally in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

    Personally, I like the look of the sites and the ease of use. It will be interesting to see if and how they move forward with this concept. They don't have all the big city names they need to have blanket coverage, but they certainly are working on it.

    Edited to add this one for you, George: http://www.shopatlanta.com/
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  • Profile picture of the author George Curtis
    In every single case thus far...where a big company has come into one of our markets...it has been to our advantage.

    Large companies are typically terrible at SEO and web design (landing pages, sites, etc.). They are in such a hurry that they use cookie-cutter approaches that pretty much suck for the average client. (Ever seen an AdZoo or Yodle landing page?)

    I like them coming in...sort of stirs up the pot and gets clients aware that they have needs and gets them spending that money...so that when they eventually contact us...they are ALREADY spending money...then there is not much of a sale to be made...just a transfer of resources to another provider who specializes in the customer - not the mass market!
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    THE BEST WORD-PRESS POPUP PLUGIN EVER RELEASED! - "MOW POP"

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  • Profile picture of the author Scott Voss
    George,
    Thats right... Yodle!! Thanks for the memory bump.

    I remember them coming in and I started to worry about their radio ads popping up.

    But, I was able to even use that company name as a sort of foot in the door. I would start talking about the radio ads and go into how we could provide better placement.

    It wasn't a slam dunk, but it was an ice breaker and it never back fired.

    That is one of the benefits of being a smaller company, you can react much quicker to your marketplace than the big guys.

    Duck and weave brothers and sisters!!

    -Scott
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    • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
      The big companies will suck in a few to do display advertising.

      Then the advertisers will start questioning the merit of it all.

      Be ready to move in with the pitch...

      ..."Have YOU Started Questioning The Value of Online Adverising?"

      Travel industry websites have dumped display advertising online in a BIG
      way in the first quarter of this year.

      Its called evolution.

      Just these offlineers are a step behind.

      Just tell the newbies that the smart ones have tried it and dumped it.

      As Jay Abraham would call it "pre-emptive selling"

      All the best,
      Ewen
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  • Profile picture of the author matrixman
    Big guys moving in is actually a great sign that this market is very lucrative! In fact if the big guys weren't moving in it would make me concerned that this was not a good industry to be involved with.

    Plus big companies are easy to beat - they move slowly and do not react quickly to the marketplace and hence the needs of the customers. As a result it is easy for the small offline marketing guy to run circles around the big guys. Do not let them intimidate you! Just do what they do better and offer something different and you will be fine.

    As far as having more competition, this kind of competition is nothing. I personally come from a very highly competitive industry - merchant accounts and credit card processing. Talk about competition, oh my! However, we still did extremely well over the last 10 years and beat most of our competitors. Sadly though that industry has turned into a commodity which made it less interesting to me (although the money was terrific).

    The offline marketing niche has far less competition than merchant accounts and the money is much greater as far as commission go. I would say offline marketing is still in it's infancy and is where credit card processing was 20 years ago. One thing I would suggest to everyone in this niche though is try to focus on selling things that have a residual component to them - that is what makes the credit card processing so lucrative.

    Bottom line - don't worry about the big guys competing with you. It's a great sign that you are in the right industry! Play smart and you will have no trouble beating them at their own game. Plus as someone else mentioned there are literally millions of businesses out there. Focus on catching those fish - there are plenty to go around.
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  • Profile picture of the author Vincenzo Oliva
    hmmm, very interesting. This was a quote from Frank Kern's farewell letter:

    After making tens of millions of dollars online, I've decided to focus on the huge opportunity available right now in helping local businesses master their online marketing.


    I plan to build a $50 million company and sell it for a cool $300 million or so in a few years.
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  • Profile picture of the author Brenden Clerget
    A lot of businesses prefer a local company that they can visit, speak with and actually talk to a certain person all the time with a central point of contact.

    Big companies like that will snag them for awhile, but once support drops off and contact times lengthen as they get busy, they will switch to a local person.

    Lawyers are on TV all day longgggg but local lawyers aren't suffering at all. Some people like the locality.

    My two cents...
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  • Profile picture of the author tgglenn
    hey guys, great info. It looks like the shop.city sites may even be a useful tool to have. They have a ready-made list of the local businesses with address and phone number. Checked a couple of them and no website. Looks like they just get them on the "map". Thanks again for the inspiration to just take action!!!
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  • Profile picture of the author sdentrepreneur
    Not concerned, I can get 10 clients to pay $2,500 per month. That's $25,000 per month minus about $3K in outsourcing. There is plenty of business to go around if you provide a quality service to your clients.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rus Sells
    The most successful people leave the competition wondering what they are doing, not the other way around.

    Ignore the fact that other companies are promoting their services, concentrate on what you offer and demonstrate who it benefits your prospect.
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    • Profile picture of the author AprilCT
      Exactly what are these big companies charging, what are they providing and what are their contracts like with prices, i.e., a yearly or two year contract price would be different? It could certainly be worthwhile to keep up to date on their programs.

      I'd love to hear more about this IF the warriors who do provide these offline services don't mind sharing.
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    • Profile picture of the author Rus Sells
      I am quoting myself because I am hurt that no one picked up on this golden nugget!

      LOOSERS!!!! :p:p:p

      Originally Posted by Rus Sells View Post

      The most successful people leave the competition wondering what they are doing, not the other way around.

      Ignore the fact that other companies are promoting their services, concentrate on what you offer and demonstrate who it benefits your prospect.
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  • Profile picture of the author JoeCool
    Originally Posted by ZaraK View Post

    What's your opinion? A well-funded startup is looking to blanket certain markets in the US
    McDonald's has blanketed every suburb and city in my country. That wouldn't stop me from opening up a fine dining restaurant right next door to them if I were in that industry.


    ~ JoeCool
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  • Profile picture of the author Fernando Veloso
    Thats why some offline techniques can be so useful to build a good relation with local business owners.

    When times like these come, they know you close and personal and (almost) nothing beats that in local business.
    Signature
    People make good money selling to the rich. But the rich got rich selling to the masses.
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    • Profile picture of the author Bronwyn and Keith
      The easiest way to "compete" with the big boys is sell on the things they DON'T provide.

      Like personal customer service, reduced (only slightly) prices because of reduced overheads, a face.... The list goes on.

      Regards

      Bronwyn and Keith
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      • Profile picture of the author rhj12345
        Originally Posted by bronke13 View Post

        The easiest way to "compete" with the big boys is sell on the things they DON'T provide.

        Like personal customer service, reduced (only slightly) prices because of reduced overheads, a face.... The list goes on.

        Regards

        Bronwyn and Keith
        You nailed it! Remember you only need about 35 customers at $499 a month to bring in over 17k per month. Makes a nice SEO/SEM business.

        Forget about competition and do your best!

        Rob
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        • Profile picture of the author TimCastleman
          Stop worrying about competition.

          There isn't any.

          Sure they do things good - but .... so do you.

          Spend a day finding their weaknesses and you'll be better off for it.

          For instance ...

          - Is their support local likes yours?
          - What type of contract, commitment, etc do the clients have to make?
          - What is their pricing structure?
          - Where can you provide value that they can't

          There is room for Wal Mart and Dillards in the same town because each meets a different need.

          Tim
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