At a time when competition can be fierce, and the business climate is cautious, blue ocean strategy can make the difference between success and failure.

What made me think of blue ocean strategy was hearing the story that the founder of Cirque du Soleil just went into space. It reminded me of my comp exam for my MBA, because Cirque du Soleil is one of the companies used as an example of blue ocean strategy, which was one of the questions I answered for my comp.

So, what IS blue ocean strategy and why is it such a big deal?

Blue Ocean Strategy is a concept developed by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne for a business school program, which they then turned into a book and an entire website (http://www.blueoceanstrategy.com/). The concept is based on looking across industry and conventional boundaries for new ideas and new ways of doing business. It’s a way of making competition irrelevant by offering something no one else offers.

Why is it called blue ocean strategy? Well, when there is no competition in the water, it’s nice and calm and blue. Conventional strategy has many others in the water – it turns red from the fighting!

Now, I could write (another) full paper on this topic, but I’m just going to cut to the chase AND recommend the book. Here’s cutting to the chase:

Here’s what you do -

* Look across strategic groups. In other words, look up or down your industry to offer an audience being missed by either high end or KMart.

* Look across substitutes. For instance, Southwest looked at how ELSE people get from point A to point B, and instead of competing with other airlines, compete against the automobile!

* Look across complementary groups. An example is going to a Barnes & Noble and sitting around, reading a book, listening to music and drinking a latte.

* Look across functional-emotional groups. Before Starbucks, you just went for a cup of coffee!

* Look across time. What’s a trend that you can grab onto? The Green movement? Social networking? What’s NEXT?

What role does Cirque du Soleil play in all of this? Well, they looked at circuses and wondered how they could capture a different market by offering something NO one offered! It’s not a typical circus, but it’s not a typical show. It’s a blue ocean where no other sharks are swimming… yet.

What is YOUR blue ocean?

Margie