Slice...


"The crust on this one is just right," said Beth, "The sauce is a
little flat."

"Yeah, I think I like the other sauce better," I replied.

The topic: Pizza. The place: Addison Illinois' 5th annual Slice of
Addison Pizza Competition a few days ago.

For $1 a slice attendees can sample various kinds of pizza from
nearly every pizzeria in town.

"I think the pizza gets better every year," Beth said.

"I just know I try more slices every year," I replied.

Competition is a good thing. It benefits everyone: customer and
marketer alike.

Benefits to the customer are obvious. But how does it benefit the
marketer?

There's several ways, but the main one is that it grows the whole pie
so everyone can get a bigger slice.

For example, look at bottled water. Did you remember seeing bottled
water when you were a kid? I don't. Yet, from 1990 to 2000, U.S.
bottled water sales tripled to 5.7 billion gallons. In 2005, the
total hit 7.5 billion gallons for a total of more than $10 billion
dollars in sales, according to Beverage Marketing Corporation. That's
26.1 gallons per person per year or more than any other beverage but
carbonated soft drinks. And H2O sales keep growing. The competition
is actually fueling more sales by promoting the market segment.

So the next time you find yourself complaining about the competition,
maybe you'd be better off sitting down and writing them a thank you
note. After all, competition is inevitable, so look at the bright
side, they are helping you grow the pie. All you need to do is
sharpen your marketing skills so you slice off a little wider slice.
(Or call me and we can equip you with the tools you need to grow
your market share.)

Back at the pizza competition, John's Pizza swept the juried awards
and Nardi's Tower of Pizza won the people's choice again. But
everyone won in the long run. Think about the hundreds of pizzas
that friendly competition sells for everyone!


- Phil Sasso