Collapse of Distinction (Review and Analysis of McKain's Book)

Book Presentation

Collapse Of Distinction by Scott McKain

Summary of Collapse Of Distinction (Scott McKain)

Book Presentation

Collapse Of Distinction by Scott McKain

Book Abstract

MAIN IDEA

Can your customers tell the difference between you and your competition?

– Scott McKain

That’s a question that should keep you awake at night. Homogenization in the name of efficiency has been a theme of business for the past decade. Today, all kinds of products and services look and feel the same regardless of who provides them – and customers are revolting because of that.

Instead of standardized products, customers crave distinction. They want products that stand out for all the right reasons because they are delivered by companies which are fanatical about creating a great customer experience. And this is especially true when the economy is down. In fact, if you positively stand out, an economic downturn is the ideal time to be grabbing market share from your competitors. If you can create distinction for yourself, your products and for your company, you lift yourself above your competition and create the conditions which will allow you to charge more for your products and services.

"Over the past several years, we have seen the homogenization of practically everything. The car I drive probably looks a lot like yours, no matter the nameplate. The big store where I shop almost certainly appears and feels a lot like yours, no matter the logo on the door, no matter the community where it’s located. It looks, acts, feels the same – and it is causing a customer revolt! In a front-page article, the Wall Street Journal proclaimed, ‘The Wal-Mart era is drawing to a close’. In other words, we are at the initial stages where the ‘faster, cheaper, perfect’ generation of customers is now looking for something else –