Every business doing great in any part of the world understood this simple secret. I called it a secret because I did not know about; until lately. These companies have some secrets to their growth!
Do you want to have a business like MTN, Shoprite, CocaCola and Gala? Then this post is going to help you. These were the same secrets used by Amazon, Ebay and Alibaba to become world class business.
Personally, I have formed an habit of reading at least one book a week, and the book I just concluded this week was mind blowing – GBOA. I had this book on my tab for some days now; but fortunately it was the book I chose to read for the week. The Title of the book is: “The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing” by Al Ries and Jack Trout; indeed it was an eye opener!
Before, reading this book; I have always wondered what is the link between these successful entrepreneurs. Honestly can wait to share what I found out with you.
Quickly, let me mention some notable business in Nigeria as at of today, and you will see the trend in them all.
- MTN
- GALA
- CocaCola
- NaijaBet
- Shoprite
The list is endless. However, I shall be talking on the above companies to buttress my points. It is true that some of this companies are not owned by Nigerians but whoever brought them into Nigeria understood these rules.
There are two basic rules that has kept these companies booming and also gave them an edge over their competitors.
- The Law of Leadership
- The Law of Category
What is the law of Leadership?
This law state that you must be the first in your category. It claims that this will help you to be the first in the mind of your customers. If you have a small market share and you are you have to do a battle with larger, better-financed competitors, then your marketing strategy was probably faulty. You just violated the first rule of Marketing.
It’s better to be first than it is to be better. It’s much easier to get into the mind first than to try to convince someone you have a better product than the one that got there first.
For example:
- What is the first eCommerce site in China? Most of us used to importation and exportation will get it right. Alibab!
- What is the name of the second eCommerce in China? I bet you some Chines won’t know the answer except Google.
The above example just explain the power of the law of leadership.
Maybe we should try another example in Nigeria.
- What is the FIRST Sport Bet in Nigeria? I don’t do sport bet but I know it; NaijaBet!
- What is the name of the SECOND Sport Bet in Nigeria? Even Akin Alabi, won’t know it! Do you?
That is also another example to narrate the power of Leadership. Here is another example!
- What is the FIRST Noodles in NIGERIA? Indomie! Right?
- What is the SECOND Noodles in Nigeria? … Maybe you should search Google. I bet Google won’t know it! lol
Yet another example?
How many of us will want to buy SuperBit and still call the sell; GALA, GALA, GALA…
- What is the FIRST Modern Supermarket in Nigeria? Shoprite!
- What is the SECOND Modern Supermarket in Nigeria? … I don’r know!
So, what happens if you can’t be the first in your categories! Then create your own category. It is better to be First in your Category than being Second in another category.
It does not matter whether you are the founder of the business or not but if you are the first to bring it into your country; you are inn for BIG business.
Olx was not a Nigeria business but some body brought it into Nigeria. So also was sport betting. It was never a Nigeria business but Akin Alabi brought it into the country. MTN was a Nigeria company but someone brought it into Nigeria. I hope you get the Idea?
I hope you find this piece helpful. Be the first in your category if not create yours. It is that simple!
As much as I love this write up I have to say some of these companies started when Nigerians didn’t really fancy entrepreneurship. Now we have a lot of small and medium scale businesses. For someone like me hoping to have a soap;yoghurt;cream and deodorant company and probably add other things I must say it’s going to be hard competing with big names like Pz, house of chi and the likes. Unless of course one is planning on going to another state where these companies are sparsely populated (and where the market is small ) or other countries which probably have their big names also
@Adeleye, just as we have learn in this post. The best thing for you is to go an create your own market. Leave areas that have access to your competitors. What am saying is this; you can make your money on any of the above products if you go to some areas in Lagos or any part of the state occupied by average people. I hope you know what I mean by that?
For example, if you make a body cream and take it to people in Ikoyi; they probably will not buy it except is if for a specific health issue that needed urgent attention. This people have money to buy just any cream. So, they won’t trust you; most importantly, that you are just coming up.
That is why to start from people who will need your product; that is why you need to do your market research properly before making any serious commitment. Try samples products and see people’s response.
Lastly, I do like to tell you that you should never be intimidated or discourage by those BUG brands. It is always good to start small!
However, want to thank you for making this post interactive.