On Game Film
Copyright Jack Mixner. 714 449 1040 www.mixnerstrategy.com
There are two ways to prepare for a major game. One calls for researching your opponent and customizing your game strategy to the weaknesses or strengths of your opponent. The other calls for continually practicing your game and using the same strategies, both defensive and offensive, no matter who the opponent is.
It is tricky to choose which one is correct. John Wooden never looked at game film nor prepared specially for an up-coming opponent in all his years at UCLA (Wooden, page 106). Bill Belichick, for the last years coach of the New England Patriots, started his coaching career locked in a small room looking at film of his up-coming opponents. He was an expert at analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of his opponents and deriving a strategy to blunt strengths and to take advantage of weaknesses (Halberstam, page 194) for every up-coming game. Wooden won ten national championships. Belichick has won three Superbowls in four years.
Which is correct for planning your sales effort, customizing your approach for each potential client, or presenting the same information to everyone? It's not always clear.
In discussions with CEOs I hear repeatedly that customized approaches force companies to slow growth plans. It appears that they also reduce profitability over time.
What about "segment-of-one" markets where approaches are customized for every potential customer? If rapid customization is part of your market place, make changes to take advantage of the needs of your individual customers. Old strategy said have one strategy for the market. Segment-of-one requires more preparation. Just make sure it is profitable, as well.
References
Halberstam, David. The Education of a Coach. Wheeler Publishing. 2005.
Wooden, John and Steve Jamison. Wooden on Leadership. McGraw-Hill. 2005