In my part of the country, we have a convenience store/gas station called Quick Trip.  We also have a competing chain named Circle K.  It used to be that Circle K was the dominant player followed distantly by 7-11.  When Quick Trip burst on the scene, people didn’t know what to make of this upstart company. 

The new player was doing things differently.  They kept the new stores clean-Oh my gosh, what a concept!  They had each associate working the registers acknowledge each customer when they entered the store.  They hired clean cut men and women to serve the clientele.  They made sure each associate was skilled at the register to ensure a fast pace at checkout.

The most astonishing thing is that this is not just at one isolated store.  It is at every store.   This is quite a departure from what we in Phoenix were used to.  The formerly dominant Circle K has many stores that are dingy and cluttered.   The associates are not eager to please the patrons and are usually under staffed.  This of course causes atttitude problems and those are usually directed at the clientelle.  7-11 is almost an after thought in the Phoenix market.  It is in it’s death throes.

What does this little tale have to do with internet marketing?  Everything!  If you want to succeed in business, you have to get down to basics, make a plan,  and execute that plan on a daily basis.  Now, extrapolate that to your internet marketing.  Are you blogging on a regular basis with fresh (i.e original) content?  Are you utilizing Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, and the other social networking sites to spread the word of your glorious enterprise?  It boils down to having a game plan and executing the plan regularly.

I truly feel that each of us can succeed if we do what needs to be done and look at our internet presence as an extension (which it is) of our primary business.  We may have been a major player in our time, but the economy or other competitors are eroding our client base.  Do we want to be Circle K or do we adopt the ways of Quick Trip and earn back our market share.  You and I both know the answer.

It’s Simple When You Think About It.