It seems like a lot of people I talk to these days just want average stuff. I guess that shouldn't surprise me since average is, by definition, the stuff most people want. Average stuff is cheaper than above-average stuff. Most people seem to prefer cheap stuff over really great stuff.
Above average stuff takes a lot more effort to create. It also takes a little more effort to market, since most people want average stuff. Every now and then I receive some kind of catalog in the mail that has lots of premium stuff in it. Above average stuff. Somehow, companies like Frontgate, Neiman-Marcus, Nordstrom, Brooks Brothers, Starbucks, Audi, and others are successful and some people hate them for it. I think they hate them because they feel they get paid way too much compared to some people's perception of the effort they put in and the quality they represent.
So how do they keep selling this premium stuff? It's because they stand for something. Because if a man wants a Brooks Brothers suit, he has to go to Brooks Brothers and pay Brooks Brothers prices to get it. Brooks Brothers would fail if they sold average suits to average people just to stay in business. But, by turning down the average stuff and insisting on standing for something on the periphery, they profit. They've been doing it since 1818! By challenging their customers to buy stuff that makes them just a wee bit nervous (and then having them discover that it's great), they profit.
This is kind of scary. It's really scary to refuse to take the easier route and say no to most of the (average) opportunities that come your way and hold out for the really remarkable opportunities. It's scary to go out of your way to make what you do actually seem unattractive to some people.
That's why it's such a great opportunity!
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