What to say about the COMPETITION

I love competition... well not really... except that a good competitor makes you that much better. I think we would all agree that life would be much easier if we were the only one in a business offering a particular product - but then life would be boring.

With that said, what do you say about your competitors? Do you diss them? Do you tell everyone why they don't measure up to you? Or, do you tell people that Competitor X is a great company with a great product?

How you talk about your competitors is a direct reflection on you. AND, your competitor may be your prospect's favorite vendor - maybe even their best friend.

When I am working on scripts for my staff - which by the way if you don't know I am a big believer is scripting as many conversations as you can in your business - I always write around the fact to never dog a competitor.

"XYZ is a great company. Many of my clients use to do business with them. What we offer is different - I know it might look the same - but our clients tell us it is much different. Tell me this, if I was to start telling you all the great things about Mail Print what would be the one thing that might make you think about making a change?"

This is a great way to learn the weaknesses of your competitors AND to not come off looking like a classless jerk.

So... what do you say about your competitors... what can you learn from them... AND what do you respect about their business, product or service? Figure out what they are doing well and what they are doing poorly and make the needed changes in your business and your sales pitch.