Like the professional golfer who has a teaching coach to take a quarter stroke off her game or the All-Pro wide receiver that stretches the football across the goal line, the marketing superstar also competes for inches. Superstars work to build sales volume; to build profitable market share; to build profits, and to orchestrate thoughtful change to continuously improve the products and service. They do this in big and little ways, and they do it every day.

The marketplace is competitive. Customers want more for less. Nothing is static. Everything is changing. When the consumer goes into the store and picks the competitor’s product over yours, that sale is lost forever. The marketing superstars fight for every sale.

Inches win horse races. Inches win marathons. Inches win market share.

There are countless ways to compete for inches:

• Make one additional sale call a week.
• Interview one more customer.
• Get the media to add a free commercial.
• Open the store earlier.
• Return every call.

• Ask for a commitment on every sales call.

• Get product placement in one more store.
• Get product placement on one more shelf.

• Send new product releases to five new magazines.
• Train one more distributor salesperson to sell for you on Tuesdays or       Wednesdays or any day of the week.
• Ask somebody in your organization to tell you what they are doing, will do, or did today to get a customer.
• Don’t waste time.
• Never let up.
• Start all over again every morning.

Don’t let victory be an inch away.