01. Leadership – it’s better to be first than it is to be better.
02. The category – if you can’t be first in the category – set up a new category.
03. The mind – it’s better to be first in the mind than the marketplace.
04. Perception – people don’t care about your product, they care what it does for them.
05. Focus – own a word in a prospect’s mind.
06. Exclusivity – companies cannot own the same word in a prospect’s mind.
07. The ladder – your strategy depends on which run you sit on the ladder.
08. Duality – every market eventually becomes a two-horse race.
09. The Opposite – if shooting for second place, your strategy is determined by the leader – don’t try to be better, be different.
10. Divisions – over time a category will divide and become two or more categories.
11. Perspective – marketing effects take place over an extended period of time.
12. Line extensions – when you try to be all things to all people, you inevitably wind up in trouble.
13. Sacrifice – you have to give up something in order to get something.
14. Attributes – for every attribute there is an opposite, effective attribute.
15. Candor – when you admit a negative, the prospect will give you a positive.
16. Singularity – in each situation, only one move will give you the result.
17. Unpredictability – you can’t predict the future.
18. Success – can lead to arrogance which leads to failure.
19. Failure – to be expected and accepted.
20. Hype – situation is often the opposite of the way it appears in the press.
21. Acceleration – successful programs aren’t built on fads. They’re built on trends.
22. Resources – without adequate funding, an idea won’t get off the ground.