As you plan 2001, how far out are you looking? The trends that are just beginning to show up in the markets but that have not fully impacted your area may be the most important to consider. Positioning yourself to be ahead of the crowd gives you many advantages. Strategies that stretch your thinking outside the proverbial box may seem to produce limited results at first, but they’ll place you in an optimum position to leverage results to capture future business. Does your plan for 2001 just require that you focus and work harder? Or have you examined new models to let you work less, make more?

The world and our markets are becoming more uncertain and chaotic. The rate of change has accelerated. To survive, it will take an ability to be flexible and move quickly. If you are too focused on goal attainment and specific results, you lose the ability to respond in ways that take advantage of the chaos and change. So strategies always call on you to be creative and unconventional and to look for ways to produce results in the easiest, smartest and cleverest ways. Relying on past models seldom addresses the needs of today and tomorrow.

The vertical strategy is being used in the B2B world of the internet and is applicable to the real estate business. Being a generalist is a costly endeavor. Being the expert, the guru narrows the target market and decreases the need and cost of marketing. The best are offering value BEFORE it’s asked for and building a brand and loyalty as a BEFORE action, rather than an AFTER action. How vertical is your business?

The Vertical Strategy

Life is too short to perfect your weaknesses! Focusing on what you do well, what you love and the people who are best suited for you to work with results in more business and less struggle and work. How does that sound? This is the difference between having a horizontal strategy, being a generalist, and having a vertical strategy, being a specialist.

Steps To Go Vertical

· Know what you do best. Is your strength in your listening skills? In your financial savvy? In your negotiating expertise? Make a list of your top 5 skills and the rank them by which are strongest. Ask others, including your best clients, what they see as your major strengths.

· What parts of the business do you really enjoy? How can you do more of this?

· Who are your best and most loyal clients? What do the have in common? What have you provided for them that keeps their loyalty? How can you do more of this?

· Segment your databases. Develop a marketing plan for each segment, but do only 3 of these. Better to go vertically in three areas than go horizontally in many.

· Become the guru or expert. Give value BEFORE people are loyal. Expect nothing in return. If you just focus on enhancing yourself, your knowledge, your value to the client, you will find yourself attracting more business.

Less is more. Do you want to work less and make more in 2001? If so, think how the vertical strategy can apply to your business.

"To Change one's life: start immediately, do it flamboyantly, no exceptions!" William James