The ‘X’ Factor
The ‘X’ Factor
Not sure if that it is registered tradename? In any case we are seeing more and more examples of customers who are being very successful in spite of the economic conditions and competitive situation. Seth Godin wrote in his book ‘The Purple Cow’ that simply being good is not sufficient any more, you have to be truly outstanding to be noteworthy and success should follow. This book is an interesting, reiteration of things we probably already know but maybe chose to forget in favour of more pressing issues.
As an example, there is a UK drives company who make ‘Purple’ variable speed Testdrives which are aesthetically pleasing and easy to use, their success has been considerable over a relatively short period of time. We all know lots of other similar anecdotes and stories which give us the same message; sales gimmicks do not work, but a thoughtful appraisal of your chosen market and subsequent positioning of your product or service does.
Take variable transformers (Variacs) as an example, several years ago, a UK distributor stated to sell these on a wide scale. Their units were relatively inexpensive imports, but they do the job for most people. Rather than stay and directly compete, REO decided to concentrate solely on using our REOVAR range of variable transformers within a new range of high quality AC and DC power supplies. These are used by companies who are serious about their testing requirements, from a reliability, operational and safety point of view and our margin and turnover is this sector has increased as a result.
We have a long way to go in order that all of our products and ranges have the mysterious purple factor, but the tradition of the company is built upon quality products for technically demanding applications and this has helped us achieve 85 years of business – will it be good enough for another 85 years?