Who Should You Be Competing With?

Do you ever feel like everything is a competition? Even your subscription box business. 

There are sports, of course. I love sports. As a mom of two teenagers who play sports, I spend a lot of time watching games. But sports have changed. Kids start competing at high levels a lot sooner than ever before. 

Then there’s TV. Just think about the number of competition shows there are to choose from. Cooking competitions, singing competitions, dancing competitions, decorating competitions, surviving living on an island and eating bugs competitions. It never ends. 

And don’t forget social media. How many followers do you have? Did your latest reel go viral? Are your posts getting as many comments, likes, DMs as other people’s? 

Competition can be fun. The joy on my daughter’s face after a tough win on the soccer field reminds me of that. 

When you’re competing, you’re trying to be better than someone else. Which means you’re constantly comparing yourself to someone else. 

This is not what I want for you as a subscription box owner.

Competition against and comparing yourself to others will not help you move your business forward. It will not help you start, launch, and grow a successful subscription box. 

Why? 

Because the only person you should be competing with is yourself. 

What happens when you compare yourself to others?    

Every one of us is at a different place in our subscription box journey. Your journey is just that - yours. It’s not the same as mine or any of the people you follow online. It’s not the same as the other subscription box owners inside Launch Your Box. It’s yours. 

Let’s look at a brand new subscription box owner for a moment. She has completed my free 6 in 60 Workshop, getting to know her ideal customer and curating six months’ worth of boxes. She is working on her website and signing up for an email CRM. She’s working hard on audience building and is starting to see some engagement. 

I am so proud of this person! She is working her way through the steps she needs to take to start a subscription box business. If you are just getting started, don’t miss this blog post! 

In the middle of all she’s doing to get her own subscription box ready to launch in a couple of months, this person starts looking around at other subscription box owners. Owners who are MUCH further along in their journeys. Owners who have several hundred or even several thousand subscribers. Owners who have high 6 or even 7-figure subscription box businesses. 

She looks at these subscription box owners’ websites and Instagram feeds and sees they already have all the things working perfectly. All the things she’s still figuring out. They have thousands of followers. And she’s still trying to get her first few hundred. See this blog post for tips on gaining your first 1000 Facebook followers.

Suddenly, our new subscription box owner who was so excited about the possibility of her business feels small and like there’s no way she’ll ever get to the level of these other sub box owners. 

There’s another subscription box owner who’s a little further along in her journey. She followed all the steps and did all the work to set herself up for a successful launch. Her goal was to have 100 subscribers by the end of her launch and she almost got there. She ended up with 87 subscribers and has plans to use some of the unsold boxes to generate excitement and FOMO in her audience. She’s feeling great about what she’s accomplished. Until…

She sees a Facebook post from a subscription box owner who launched the same time she did. That owner had a bigger goal - and she smashed it. That owner is scrambling to find more product for the extra boxes she didn’t think she’d need. 

Suddenly, a launch where she “almost” met her goal doesn’t feel so great anymore. It starts feeling less like something to celebrate and more like a failure. 

Comparing yourself to others steals your joy. It makes you feel less than. It can stop your growth. 

See, both the subscription box owners I told you about are doing all the right things. They are moving forward - one step at a time - and they are growing their subscription box business. THEIR businesses. 

So am I saying you shouldn’t look at what other subscription box owners are doing? 

Not at all. We’re a community. Inside Launch Your Box, my members talk to each other all day every day. They ask and answer questions, share resources and help each other with all the things. 

So yes, look at other subscription box owners who are further along and see what they’re doing. But instead of comparing yourself to them, I want you to be inspired by them.

Inspiration is not the same as comparison.         

Inside Launch Your Box, we have members at all stages, from some who are just starting to think about a subscription box to others who have thousands of monthly subscribers. 

They all learn from and are inspired by each other. 

Last week, a long-time LYB member who has multiple thriving subscriptions wrote a post in the group. She shared with everyone what happened with her business in 2021. The growth she experienced. And wow, did she experience growth! 

She also talked about all the hard work that went into that growth. Because success like she’s experiencing doesn’t “just happen.” She had goals and plans and put those plans into action. She worked her plan consistently, and it paid off. 

The point of this member’s post was not to ask the group to celebrate with her. Although, they absolutely did. No, her point was to encourage and inspire. To cheer on those just getting started or those who were hitting bumps in the road along the way. She wanted them to see what is possible, but also to see what it takes to make that possibility a reality. 

I LOVE my Launch Your Box members. I spend time inside the group answering questions and providing trainings. But it’s these moments, when my members are so generous with each other - when they show up for each other - these moments are my favorites. 

As you continue on your subscription box journey, look to others for inspiration and encouragement. But please, don’t compare your subscription box business to anyone else’s. It’s yours. Your journey is yours. And the only person you should compete with is yourself!