We are no longer living in the era when few companies offered products and services, these days, with lowered barriers to starting and running many kinds of business, new competitors spring up all the time.
You can no longer really get away with offering limited choices and you can no longer easily command a monopoly over your sector. Those days seem long gone.
Yet, we must look for ways to stand out in crowded markets.
I believe that no matter how crowded the market may seem, there is always a place at the top for people who moved in because they really cared about the market and not just because they want to quickly cash in. People say passion cannot be faked and I tend to agree because I seem to realise that if you are passionate about what you do, you will naturally become better at it, eventually knocking off the market leaders and commanding your own monopoly.
Seth Godin proposes that new business owners just starting out need to ask themsleves the question: “What will I have a monopoly over?”. This question goes deep into committing you to focus and establish expertise in a defined area. There might be a dozen restaurants in town, but I could choose to decide I want to have a monopoly on fufu for example, and I focus on delivering excellent fufu everyday and there… I am standing out of the crowded market.
We have to continue to focus on our mission, work with passion and continue to daily improve what we are working on. We must continuously innovate and stay ahead of the crowded market.
If we avoid the trap of competing solely on price or offering the same thing as everyone else, we might just win.
