The Blue Ocean Strategist

23Feb 2021 by Sherman Mohr

Five Days to a More Profitable Business

As-Is Strategy, Blue Ocean Articles, Strategic Planning

Five days to a more profitable business. That's our attempt at a catchy headline. We are, however, going to see that you receive some value before leaving the page. Here at the Blue Ocean Strategist, we're committed to seeing that every reader leaves with something that benefits their business in some way. Let's get started on that effort right now. In Blue Ocean Strategy terms, the key goal is value innovation. That is defined as breaking the value/cost tradeoff. That tradeoff in traditional business is when a company either raises its price and subsequently its offering's value or lowers the price and decreases the value of its offering. Think Ford Motor Company's attempt over the years to trick out a Crown Victoria with added luxury, call it a Mercury and…

17Dec 2020 by Sherman Mohr

Don’t Do Your Strategic Plan Until You Do This

As-Is Strategy, Strategic Models, Strategic Planning

Strategic planning is a must. Most business owners know it. Most small business owners and sole proprietors don't do it well. Don't do your strategic plan until you do this. What is "this"? Construction of a Blue Ocean Strategy As-Is Strategy Canvas. There is a significant argument to be made for going through the As-Is Strategy Canvas process as prescribed in Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant. This strategic planning book and its later companion Blue Ocean Shift both describe Blue Ocean Strategy case studies and in Blue Ocean Shift, some high-level details on the implementation of blue ocean strategies. W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne, the authors are worthy follows on social media by the way. John P. Kotter states in…

15Dec 2020 by Sherman Mohr

Blue Ocean Strategy for Solopreneurs: Big Picture Thinking Implementation

As-Is Strategy, Blue Ocean Articles, ERRC Grid, To-Be Strategy Canvas

Today we cover Blue Ocean for Strategy for Solopreneurs: Big Picture Thinking Implementation. In this series, we're breaking down the business bestseller Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Marketspace and Make the Competition Irrelevant. Today, in Blue Ocean Strategy for Solopreneurs: Big Picture Thinking Implementation, we wrap up our last post on big picture thinking and discuss how to use the As-Is and To-Be Strategy Canvas as well as the ERRC Grid. In review, the As-Is strategy canvas is a visual depiction of your industry and the company's state of play. It lays out the key factors of competition along a horizontal axis. It cannot be overstated how important the discoveries will be when you start to honestly assess your company's key factors of competition. Most businesses find that…

10Dec 2020 by Sherman Mohr

Blue Ocean Strategy for Solopreneurs: Focus on the Big Picture, Not the Numbers

As-Is Strategy, Blue Ocean Articles, Six Paths Framework, Strategic Planning, To-Be Strategy Canvas

You may recall, the first principle of Blue Ocean Strategy is the reconstruction of market boundaries. Without permission internally, and a process to break your industry boundaries, it will be impossible to move into blue oceans of uncontested market space. In today's post, we learn how important the second principle is in blue ocean strategy for solopreneurs. Focus on the big picture, not the numbers. The temptation when planning is to launch into a business plan or strategic plan and use templates that one finds online or using some process read about when researching a business, marketing, or strategic plan. I have been guilty of the same thing. Before I know it, I've played office and have spent a week mocking up fabulous charts, graphs, marketing and sales projections, and…

28Oct 2020 by Sherman Mohr

Blue Ocean for Solopreneurs. Reconstruct Boundaries with Path 2 of Six.

As-Is Strategy, Blue Ocean Articles, Six Paths Framework

In this post, I break down blue ocean strategy's six paths framework and cover path 2. We are diving into blue ocean for solopreneurs. Reconstruct boundaries with path 2 of 6. Today's translation of Blue Ocean Strategy deals with path 2 of the six paths framework. Path 2: Look across strategic groups within industries. In the book, it is noted that most companies seek to bolster their position within the same strategic group. It provides us the example of Mercedes, Jaguar, and BMW all pursuing customers in the luxury category. They don't spend much time reaching out to those new car buyers in the economy class. Alternatively, the blue ocean strategy success story provided is Curves, the successful women's workout facility that began franchising in 1995. They succeeded for a…

12Oct 2020 by Sherman Mohr

Blue Ocean Solopreneurs – The Series

As-Is Strategy, Blue Ocean Articles

I am spending the next few weeks writing and publishing a sequence of posts titled Blue Ocean Solopreneurs - The Series. Solopreneurs are a brave and inspiring group. They are thrown into business out of necessity. Occasionally, they launch businesses simply to supplement their W-2 incomes. Interesting economic times call for innovation and new ways of looking at things. As mentioned in a previous post, the solopreneur community is now over 41,000,000. There are thousands of resources around marketing, sales, finance, and operations for solopreneurs. There is a shortage of strong strategic planning and growth models for solopreneurs. The Blue Ocean Strategy model developed by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne has successfully led to value innovation and explosive growth of blue oceans of uncontested markets for countless businesses. It…

09Oct 2020 by Sherman Mohr

Blue Ocean Strategy for Solopreneurs

As-Is Strategy, Blue Ocean Articles

Finding strategic planning services for solopreneurs is a challenge. There is a need for Blue Ocean Strategy communities for solopreneurs. Let's be clear on a couple of definitions. Solopreneurship implies that all tasks, responsibilities, and results fall to the single business owner. [caption id="attachment_1667" align="alignnone" width="746"] From Merriam-Webster[/caption] I can't disagree with this definition but I will add to it. I've been a solopreneur for years. However, I've not worked alone. I have relationships with contractors all over the world. I have collaborators. I'm responsible for making all decisions but I don't do so in a vacuum. Savvy solopreneurs are able to generate significant…

11May 2020 by Sherman Mohr

Redefine and then solve industry problems.

As-Is Strategy, Blue Ocean Articles

There has been no better time to identify new problems for brands and companies than in recent months. With over 20 million jobs lost in the US and the globe on some measure of "stay at home" order, the rules of most marketing games have changed. I am Co-Founder of a company that built a wonderful technology allowing brands in the spirits, wine, and beer industries to associate marketing spends through our agency. Its primary function was/is to be a "Venmo for Cocktails" so to speak. The cool feature that is game changing is our ability to put drink credits into the accounts of brand ambassadors for them to share with others. Sounds cool. As of March 2020, it's largely irrelevant. Not for sure how long but it will be…