Leave Competitors Behind: Learn from Blue Ocean Strategy

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You may have heard about Blue Ocean Strategy before, but do you know how you can actually benefit from it? Blue Ocean Strategy encourages entrepreneurs to break out of crowded markets and create their own niche.

What is Blue Ocean Strategy?

Blue Ocean Strategy is all about finding untapped market space—creating new demand in an uncontested market rather than competing head-to-head with others. In a red ocean, everyone is fighting over the same customers. In a blue ocean, you create a new market where competition is irrelevant.

This concept is especially relevant to bootstrapped founders. I often see small business owners trying to copy industry leaders, which isn’t always feasible. If you don’t have the marketing budget of Chanel, you shouldn’t be mimicking Chanel’s marketing. That’s where Blue Ocean thinking becomes crucial—it’s about embracing your uniqueness and building an audience of fans around it.

Cirque du Soleil is a brilliant example of Blue Ocean Strategy in action. When they entered the market, the traditional circus industry was struggling with declining ticket sales, rising costs, and market saturation. Instead of competing directly, Cirque du Soleil reinvented the concept.

They combined the best elements of the circus—like acrobatics—with theater, dance, and a high-end artistic experience. This created a new type of entertainment that appealed to a different audience: adults willing to pay a premium for an immersive experience. They didn’t compete on price; they offered something unique that had never been seen before.

Creating Your Own Blue Ocean Strategy

When developing your Blue Ocean Strategy, consider these four actions: Reduce, Eliminate, Create, and Raise.

• Reduce: Which factors can be reduced well below the industry standard?

• Eliminate: What factors that the industry takes for granted can be eliminated?

• Create: What factors should be introduced that the industry has never offered?

• Raise: Which factors should be raised well above the industry standard?

Here’s how Cirque du Soleil applied this strategy:

Why and How Should You Think About Blue Ocean Strategy?

Nobody likes competition, and it can make running a business more expensive due to lower margins and higher marketing costs. It’s always worth exploring how you can carve out your own memorable niche rather than competing in a crowded market.

1. Look Beyond Existing Demand: Identify groups of customers who aren’t currently being served by your industry. What are their unmet needs? How can you deliver a product or service that addresses those needs?

2. Create Something New: Combine elements from different industries or create a product that offers a new type of value. What can you offer that’s unique?

3. Don’t Compete on Price Alone: Instead of cutting prices to stay competitive, focus on adding unique value that your competitors can’t offer. Make your product so different and appealing that price becomes a secondary consideration.

4. Innovate Your Customer Experience: Cirque du Soleil didn’t just create a new show—they created an entire experience. How can you enhance your customers' experience to make your offering stand out?

Remember, the goal is to compete with creativity, not just ad spend. Here are a couple more articles I’ve written that talk about bringing a unique perspective to the market (just in case you missed them):

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