Beating the Competition Is a Piece of Cake

Small businesses have fantastic opportunities when it comes to outmaneuvering the big box stores. A perfect example of this is on television. If you have ever seen "The Cake Boss" on TLC, you know exactly what I'm talking about.

"The Cake Boss" is a show about Carlo's City Hall Bake Shop and Cafe, a family-owned bakery in Hoboken, New Jersey. A full-service bakery, Carlo's is known for its amazing cakes. Producing these extraordinary cakes has provided Carlo's a way to compete with the large supermarkets that have bakeries on the premises.

Not too long ago, we witnessed the demise of the neighborhood bakery. Few knew how to compete with the supermarkets' bakeries. Many resorted to lowering their prices, thinking that this would entice people to buy from them. What they didn't realize was that people weren't necessarily looking for lower prices; they were opting for convenience. Since they had to be in the supermarkets anyway, why not simply pick up a cake (albeit an average one) while there. Makes sense, doesn't it?

Okay, if convenience was the reason people bought the supermarket cakes, you may be wondering how the neighborhood bakeries could have competed. It's not that difficult, when you break it down.

The reason people opted for convenience was because there was no perceived difference in the products. Sure the cakes the local bakeries made may have tasted a little better, but there wasn't enough difference for it to matter to most people. So with no perceived greater value, convenience won out. But, when people like Buddy Valastro (the Cake Boss himself) create a greater value in their products -- one their competitors cannot or will not copy -- it provides them with a huge competitive advantage and consequently greater profits.

I ask once again, what do you or can you offer that provides a greater value to your most profitable clients? It's not as difficult to answer as you might think. In fact, it just might be a piece of cake.