What business does to the mind

Many of my clients are bullish. In fact, many of them have done very well. Others are not hitting targets. While there are still a couple of months to go before we once again say “Happy New Year!”, we need to understand that competition right now is really extremely intense.

Hindsight is 20-20 vision. History is a good teacher. During my years in the manufacturing business, I thought competition was already tight. In a field of many players building, strategizing, promoting and of course competing, maintaining brand leadership was a great challenge. But if I were to compare the scenario then to what’s going on today, those years were just a walk in the park.

Competition wouldn’t be as difficult if markets are growing, if the tides are rising. “A RISING TIDE RAISES ALL BOATS!” But what happens when all boats are going down? Where do you get your business?

One popular business guru says, “The answer is obvious: from other boats. So, in many ways, you’ll have to pick up your weapons and be prepared to attack your competitors.”

Another pretty business guru says, “You have to look for bluer oceans.”

A smiling marketing guru says, “You need MRI to measure the movement of the brains, and see what triggers their minds to buy and make a purchasing decision.”

Take a look at what the business world has done. They’ve consulted admen, behaviorists, scientists, hypnotists, fortunetellers, lobbyists and psychologists, to figure out consumer behavior so as to sell more of their products. And their consultants had came up with conclusions such as this:

Customers’ perceived risks according to behavioral scientists:

1. Monetary risk. (There’s a chance that I could lose money on this.)

2. Functional risk. (Maybe it won’t work, or maybe it won’t do what it’s supposed to do.)

3. Physical risk. (It looks a little dangerous. I could get hurt.)

4. Social risk. (I wonder what my friends will think if I buy this.)

5. Psychological risk. (I might feel guilty or irresponsible if I buy this.)

Famous book author Jack Trout, in his book “Repositioning” says:

“It’s been estimated that there are a million stock keeping units (SKUs) in the United States. An average supermarket has 40,000 SKUs. Now for the stunner: an average family gets 80 to 85 percent of its needs from 150 SKUs. That means there’s a good chance that it will ignore 39,850 items in that store. There were 140 motor vehicle models available in the early 1970s. There are more today. The big difference is that what used to be national markets with local companies competing for business has become a single global market with everyone competing for everyone’s business everywhere. “

Just think about the kind of marketing onslaught on the human mind. Information overload. Non-stop intrusive commercials that hit you just when you are on your lazy chair wanting to take a rest. Most societies have become totally “over­-communicated.” The explosion in media forms and the ensuing increase in the volume of communications have dramatically affected the way people either take in or ignore the information offered to them.

MRI’s? Technological toys and gadgets to read the mind of the consumers?

Guess what? These things are not about to stop. Their kind and number will only escalate. While the mind may still be a mystery, one thing is certain: it’s under attack.

We need to learn how to quiet the mind, to keep our thoughts from drowning in mindless chatter. As for me, I am not about to allow my mind to receive mindless and senseless information. Instead, I will fill them up with godly and healthy thoughts that would help me navigate the pathways of life.

Do not conform to the patterns and lifestyles of the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Somebody once said, “Having a hole in the head doesn’t always indicate an open mind.”

(Develop your leadership skills! Francis Kong will be the lead trainer for the Dr. John Maxwell’s “Developing the Leader Within You” leadership program this August 26-27 at the EDSA Shangri-la Hotel. For further inquiries, contact Inspire Leadership Consultancy Inc. at 632-6872614 or 09178511115.)