I always get a bit nervous when I start
talking about the less testable theories
of marketing. I call this "touchy-feely"
marketing. I'm a real "show me" kind of
person, and I will rarely make a statement
about marketing without having tested a
theory on real products I'm selling myself.

This is one exception. It would be quite
difficult to test some of the ideas I'm about
to put forth here. Nonetheless, it's an
important concept that will change the way
you think about your web promotion efforts.

For years it has been believed that for a
product to succeed it must "position"
itself properly in the mind of the consumer.
Ries and Trout (the best known spokesmen of
this theory) make a powerful case.
They claim that the overall mass of
information with which a consumer is
bombarded every day makes it hard for him
to remember any information at all.

However, the way our brain categorizes and
stores information helps to determine
which of these bits of information are
remembered. The Law of Primacy,
for example, states that it is easier to
remember the first of any list.

For example, can you name the following?

1. Your first kiss
2. The first President of the United States
3. Your first day in your current house
4. Your first day at your last job

Now, try to name your second kiss,
the second President, the second day...
Do you follow? It's obviously much easier
to remember the first.
It almost goes without saying.

According to Ries and Trout, this phenomenon
accounts for the success of many of today's
continued successes. Coca-Cola, Levi-Straus,
IBM.... These companies have a primary
position in the minds of the consumer
because they got there first.

Now, there is more to it than that
(there are a great many other psychological
factors that affect the position of a
product in one's mind - see 1,001 Killer
Internet Marketing Tactics for more details),

but you get the general idea.

This concept has been a decisive one in
shaping the ad campaigns of the last 20 years.
The only problem is, the whole field of
marketing and advertising itself has been
turned on its head by the Internet.
The rules have changed.

We have had the great privilege of witnessing
a "paradigm shift".

A paradigm shift occurs when a new invention
or discovery completely changes the way we
look at the world. The Internet has not
only caused a paradigm shift itself,
but it is the catalyst of other paradigm shifts
by increasing the rate at which we exchange
information. So, we have to be willing to let
go of certain beliefs when this occurs.

The million dollar question is, is Positioning
one of these concepts which we will have to
discard? My answer is a resounding "no",
but there is a new concept that will greatly
affect the importance positioning will play
in determining who buys.

The position of a product in one's mind will
always have a great impact on whether or
not one chooses to purchase that product,
but, I propose that on the Internet,
there is one single factor that is of even
greater importance: Timing

This states that the marketer must deliver
the Right Message to the Right Consumer at
the Right Time.

These days, when your average net consumer wants
something, he wants it fast. For example, some
time ago I was looking for a web host for one
of our web sites
(to protect those involved I won't mention
any names). For various reasons, we had to
move and we had to move fast. I really didn't
want to have to spend a lot of time talking to
prospective companies. I just wanted to get
the site up and running on a new server so we
didn't lose traffic.

An acquaintance linked me up with a company
that reportedly could get the job done quickly
and do it well. There were even a few things
that bothered me about this company from the
start, but I was assured all would be well.

I hate to admit it, but I'm just plain lazy.
We decided to go with this particular company
because of the Timing of the whole deal.
At that time, this was more important than a
company name. There were a number of big name
companies that had a better Position in my mind,
but that just didn't matter.

The decision was a mistake, for sure - one I
will always regret - but, it is the decision
I made at the time. This inferior company got
my business because of timing.

Now, if one of the big name companies had
been there at the right time, there is almost
no doubt in my mind that they would have
received my business. But they weren't.
So, in this case, Timing was more important
than Positioning. If you spend a few moments
thinking about this, you'll surely find a
few examples in your past experience where
this theory has held true.

Now, here are a few ways that you can
apply this principle to your online business:

1. Offer Speedy (If Not Instant) Fulfillment

Have you ever had to make a decision between
two similar products - one that could get
it to you right away and another that would
take a few days? Personally, I've chosen
products of lower quality based on their
delivery times. (OK, now you know. I'm lazy
and impatient. But, you'd better love me.
I *am* Joe Six-Pack.)

2. Find the Right Consumers in the right place

There are places online where people ripe
for your product are hanging out right now.
Seek those places out and get your message
there one way or another.
An obvious example would be someone searching
for your type of product on a search engine.

Or, perhaps you sell saddle-soap and there is
a forum or newsgroup all about horse saddles.
Maybe you offer rare books and you find
someone that owns a newsletter dedicated to rare
book finding. These are the places where you
want to get your message seen.

3. Create the Right Time
Sometimes you get the Right Message to the Right
Consumer, but at the wrong time. Maybe the
consumer just isn't ready to buy right now.
That's no problem. Create a sense of urgency by
explaining what would happen if the consumer
didn't purchase your product today.
What would they stand to lose?
Do this and it will become clearer to them
that the right time is now.
 
 

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