In the last issue I shared the opportunity window that occurs when customer satisfaction dives. This window opens because (a) new opportunities are generated by the desire to have things different than they are, and (b) market recognition of the new opportunity is weak.

There are three primary strategies for leveraging challenges in the marketplace. This issue covers the first: Address the constraints your customers are experiencing.

For example, a colleague of mine is executive director of a Florida real estate association - her members are realtors. When the bottom fell out of the local market most lost all their income. My friend quickly realized that her customers needed money for survival and so she became an expert in job training for occupations  easily picked up by  realtors.  That not only generated revenue, but also established her organization as a source of much needed education. She built a good deal of  trust and appreciation among her members.

Then came short sales, a trend most in her industry were repulsed by. Because of the distaste, market recognition for the opportunity  to educate people was weak. She jumped on it, quickly establishing herself as an expert on how to conduct a short sale. She began educating not only her own customers, but everyone who needed to understand the process - reaching a national audience. As a result, her organization survived a downturn that killed most of her competitors.

As a result she has outlasted her competition, increased her market penetration, and established strong ties with her client base. She is in the best possible situation to ride the recovery regaining lost profit and blasting competitors new (and what's left of the old).

• What  challenges are your customers facing?
  
• What do they most need help with?
  
• How can you use the current situation to expand your assets including trust, new customers, and value creation? 
  

When you address the constraints your customers are experiencing, you stand to gain.

Next week, I cover the second of the three strategies: Transpose your core competencies to adjacent markets.

Is Bob Dylan washed up? I think not.

Read my latest on the artist in the Washington Post, my reaction to a recent critic's piece in the WSJ.

Happy Holidays

Here in the USA this is Christmas week and the spirit of good will is in the air. May the holiday season enrich you in all ways and make the world a better place for you and everyone whose path crosses yours.