The Purple Ocean A few days ago I was in San Diego preparing to go on stage. If you’d seen me, (and I’m kinda glad you didn’t), you might have thought I was a bit strange. There I was with my headphones on, eyes closed, intently focused on getting into the zone. Pacing around the room to music like a crazy person. I love speaking because there's a sort pressure cooker effect that happens before I talk on stage. Somehow my neurons start firing extra fast, and all these ideas begin to percolate in my head. I become obsessed with how to get my message across clearly and in the most beneficial way for my audience. If you’d been a fly on the wall... (shhh) you might even have seen me dancing. I do whatever it takes to get those connections firing in my brain. I’m fixated with making hard to chew concepts as SIMPLE and exciting as possible... ‘Cause ‘ain't nobody loves a yawn fest.’ So, picture me, shaking my moves and freaking out about the Red Ocean versus Blue Ocean idea that Russell talks about in Expert Secrets. It’s such a great concept! The Red Ocean is a PROVEN Market. The Red Ocean is safe because you already know that people want the product. However, it's risky because tough competition means that you'll have to compete on price. So the chances of you making a whole lot of money are slim - #urrrgh! The Blue Ocean is a NEW OPPORTUNITY for your market! The Blue Ocean is where you'll find yourself if you create an offer that's prolific - Something different to what’s already out there. Sure, there's a lot less competition... BUT, you’re still taking a RISK - because your offer isn't proven. How do you know if anyone actually wants it... or what they’re willing to pay you for it??? *Fatal Flaw Alert* Then, it hit me: Here’s the Equation: Red Ocean = Product Security + Intense Competition = RISK Versus Blue Ocean = No Competition + Less Market Security = RISK ‘Holy Batman... It’s Catch 22!’ So, what do you do… How do you combine the Security of the Red Ocean with the Opportunity of the Blue Ocean? Can you minimise risk, serve more people and MAKE MORE MONEY? Is it even possible? Relax! This is where my pacing, dancing, and obsession pays off ;-) ‘Welcome to the Purple Ocean of Opportunity’ The Purple Ocean is a mixture of the Red & Blue Ocean… Think about it... You mix the best aspects of the Red and the Blue Ocean together, and you create the Purple Ocean! ‘The Purple Ocean provides the Security of the Red Ocean with the Opportunity of the Blue’ So, you might be thinking, ‘Yeah, this sounds great Stephen, but how does it work? Let me explain: Recently, when I’ve been putting together my offers, I’ve been using the Purple Ocean Concept to great effect. My students have been feeling it’s impact too. It’s sooo incredibly powerful! How to Create a Purple Ocean Offer When you create an offer, make sure that you take elements from the Red Ocean and combine them with elements from the Blue Ocean that you want to guide your customers towards. The mixture of the elements from the Red and Blue Ocean creates a Purple Ocean Offer. This provides the SECURITY and SAFETY of the Red Ocean while gently guiding your customer over to the prolific NEW OPPORTUNITY of the Blue Ocean - where you have more control and less competition. Your customers will often guide you and let you know which elements from the Red Ocean are needed to help make them feel safe and secure. Entrepreneur’s Dilemma ‘If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.’ - Henry Ford It’s fascinating to look at the significant industry shifting products, like the iPhone, because they often follow the same Purple Ocean method. Steve Jobs had a vision of what was possible. He produced an entirely revolutionary product. However, he made sure that his product fulfilled the needs of Red Ocean customers as well as the those of the more innovative early adopters. ‘You can't just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you