Amazon and Whole Foods

It seems like Amazon is in the news on a daily basis lately.  Their purchase of Whole Foods is shaking the entire grocery industry.  How can an already slim-margin industry respond FASTER and less expensively to customer needs and preferences (think organic) whenever and wherever they need it? Amazon thinks it has the answer.  And they just might.

Offer Value

My Mom wants me to get her Prime membership so that she can receive discounts at Whole Foods.  And, she is quite excited that the tea she purchases was on a great sale.  Although she wants to pick her own produce and get her meats split up the way she prefers, she wouldn’t be opposed to having deliveries of staples if it was convenient and inexpensive.  How do you convert an entirely new segment of people?  Offer value.

Stay Ahead of Your Competition

Instead of running to keep up with your customers and competitors on a daily basis, what can you do to GET AHEAD of them?  For example, I received a call from a potential client recently who found me in an online search for VMI (vendor managed inventory) expertise.  This CEO realized that instead of responding to his top customer’s request for consignment inventory as a way to win a significant new contract, perhaps he should expand his thinking to a strategic VMI partnership to create more of a win-win.

Are you thinking beyond your immediate obstacle or idea?  After 13+ years of consulting, I can guarantee that my most successful clients are always thinking…..

 

© Lisa Anderson