Wow! I am really tardy with this blog post!  Where does the time go? Christmas came and went and here we are at the end of February!  And the weather is unseasonably warm here in Southern Ontario.  I’m loving it!

Well, for the last several months I have been working on the marketing for my business.  This included a new website (see previous blog), learning about value pricing and how to implement it, and creating new marketing material.  One of the new pieces of material is a brochure explaining what a GOOD bookkeeper is, the difference between an accountant and a bookkeeper and how a good bookkeeper can help with the financial well being of a small business.  I’m really quite proud of it as it should help me with implementing the value pricing mentioned above.  I have also discovered how to advertise on Facebook.  Fun!

This process has had me researching websites, Facebook pages and other information on competitors and non-competitors alike.  Particularly with competitors, I have reviewed their marketing material to find out what others are doing and what design elements I do and don’t like. In perusing a particular competitor’s website and Facebook page (call it creeping, if you must; I’m sure they have creeped mine), I noticed something.  There were distinct elements of both pages which appeared to resemble my new material ( I had checked previously; I did not, in fact, copy them).  In fact, even some of the wording was directly copied! Naturally, I was appalled. However, this is not the first time that my business has been copied and I was appalled then too.

But, then I remember that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.  I have put a lot of work into marketing my business and getting it to where it is.  Come to think of it, I’m worthy of imitation.  If the competition thinks I am good enough to copy, that can’t be a bad thing, can it?!  Bring on the competition!  We are ready for it!