I have a cool story for you today…
I firmly believe that there has never been a better time to start or grow your business… But there has never been more competition either.
Last night I saw a documentary about Cornelius Vanderbilt.
THE Vanderbilt.
The man who basically owned all the railroads in the years after the American Civil War. The same Vanderbilt that single-handedly shut down all of its competition almost overnight… with a single business move.
That is how:
In the past, Ole Vanderbilt owned the only rail bridge into New York City.
The railways were quite young at the time, but there was great opportunity in them…
And every smart investor/entrepreneur in their right mind was rushing to get a piece of the pie.
Since Vanderbilt strategically owned the gateway to one of the nation’s largest cities, he saw a revenue opportunity…
And he offered to let all of his competitors “use” his bridge for a small fee (something in the ball park of $200k, a few tens of millions of dollars in today’s money).
They laughed, cursed him and told him “forget it”… And continued on their merry way.
… Until Vanderbilt closed the entire bridge.
Yes, he directly closed the bridge and single-handedly erected a blockade around the entire city of New York…
Its competitor’s trains carrying passengers and materials were stopped and forced to turn around.
The railway owners almost immediately went bankrupt, refunding all passenger payments and supplier contracts because suddenly they couldn’t “deliver” anymore.
Desperate for what profits they had left, these failed railroad owners began selling all of their stock… Vanderbilt bought it all.
And he became the majority shareholder, what is known today as a “hostile takeover”… Suddenly, he not only owned the only bridge to New York, but ALL the railroads.
This Vanderbilt was a bad guy.
The point is this:
In business, you are forced to face the competition every day…
You, unlike Vanderbilt, cannot shut down all the railroads. You can’t “fight dirty”… And unless you have *really* deep pockets, you can’t go out and buy all the competition, either.
So how do you “earn” in today’s economy? How do you create a business that really grows when most businesses are in decline?
Being better.
And I don’t mean to be better at your particular “art”… I don’t mean to make better products (or whatever you can sell).
I mean, being better in the eyes of your client. If he sells business consulting, he is supposed to be good at what he does.
Sell writing? You’re supposed to be a good writer.
Sell wedding cakes? You are supposed to bake a good cake.
What you have to be good at is presentation…
Make it so obvious to your prospect that you are the best choice and that no other competitor will do anything for them – that’s how you win today.
Get better than your competition at this, and you win.
(Actually, there’s a scientific formula for this, it’s not just random mumbo jumbo “la la be better” I’m talking about)