I chuckled out loud when I read the Dilbert cartoon strip at the breakfast table this morning. We know the pointy-haired boss is a manager of some sort of technology company, but he could have been speaking directly to the portable sanitation industry.
The boss gathered his crew at the conference table and announced:
“Our new strategy is to lower our prices to increase sales,’’ he explains.
“So our strategy is to start a price war and drive our profit margin to zero?’’ Dilbert asks.
“It made sense at the executive retreat,’’ the boss responds.
See the whole strip at cartoonist Scott Adams’ site:
I often hear from PROs who are dealing with a cutthroat competitor who lowers the price for restroom service seemingly below profitability in an effort to gain market share. But the stories always leave me wondering what business owner wants to accumulate more customers when the practice doesn’t build the company’s bottom line. It’s not a sustainable practice.
Are you competing with someone like Dilbert’s clueless boss? Have you found a way to counter the irrational behavior of a low-ball operator? Share your thoughts here.
If you have a response to this blog, feel free to contact me at editor@promonthly.com.
