Over the years, we’ve had our taglines “borrowed,” products and services copied, business models imitated and a whole host of disappointing actions that could literally fill a book.

Some time ago, we released an eBook titled Showroom of the Future. We know that it wasn’t rocket science, but we were attempting to get people to think very differently about their showrooms.

The eBook pointed to different behaviors, marketing and sales approaches – concentrating on placing the emphasis on the consumer’s experience instead of the design.  After all, design is a commodity today thanks to the proliferation of places that you can get one for, well, free.

Reinvent the Wheel

We want our dealers and remodelers to drop the world of “me too,” and compete in a space where few others play; a Blue Ocean Strategy, if you will.

Since that piece debuted, it seems like tons of people and organizations have had the same idea. We can’t tell you the number of calls we’ve received where we heard “we were just about to do something similar.” Or, the all too familiar “you beat us to the punch.”

I guess it’s somewhat amazing to learn of the number of organizations, groups and business’ that had the exact same idea, and all this time they were working on it without our knowledge.  It truly is either proof of the Tipping Point, or a miracle of equal to Moses from the Mount.

Traction

Now, if all of this activity helps dealers and remodelers validate the premise; we’re totally cool with that. We’re not looking for a star on our forehead, or a pat on the back.

But we believe an acknowledgement from those that follow or “borrow” is the minimum level of integrity that should be shown. We publish an enormous amount of content for all to learn from.  Why? Because that’s the kind of people we are – we want to help you succeed, even if that means you never become a customer.

So use our content.  Share it with your staff and coworkers.  But remember the material is copyrighted.

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery but we don’t feel very flattered when “Johny” copies our homework answers.