HOW TO SEPARATE YOURSELF FROM YOUR COMPETITORS
by Don Sando
What can you say about your business that is truly different?
Is there any claim in your brochure or on your website that your competitors can’t make?
Here’s a cost saving opportunity: stop printing your brochure! When you call on a prospect, ask them if they have a brochure from your competitor, from the sales person that was there just before you! When they show you the brochure, simply take out a marker, cross out the competitor’s name, and write your company’s name in its place!
Sound ridiculous? Yet, in reality, if you examine your competition’s website or brochure, does it say anything different than what your’s says? Is there anything you say that is truly a differentiator? Most of us focus on what we offer … here’s our product, here’s our service. Yet there are many other companies offering a similar product or service, aren’t there?
Do you really have a competitive advantage? Do you have a unique selling proposition, or just a selling proposition?
At Hewlett Packard, we examined qualifiers, what everyone offers to meet the customer’s needs, and differentiators, what we could offer that could be truly better, truly different. These potential differentiators can be uncovered by examining the fears & frustrations that your prospects have when seeking the product or service you offer. Do you know what they are?
If you can address these fears or eliminate these frustrations better than your competition and can statistically substantiate exactly how well you do that, you can create a true competitive advantage. Don’t say, “We offer excellent customer service”, because everyone says that and few actually do it. But say … “99% of our clients rate our service as excellent”; or “We offer a money back satisfaction guarantee”, or “We have a 95% referral rate”, or “Here’s our client list … call anyone on the list and ask about our service”. However, customer service may not be the best thing to select as your strategic differentiator … unless almost all of your competitors are horrible at it, and the customers will chose you because of it and pay more for it. But if you think enough and interview current clients & prospects, you will uncover what their fears & frustrations really are. Then figure out (1) how you can address at least one of these better than anyone else, and (2) how you can substantiate your ability to do that.
A great local example: Jerome’s Furniture. What is every other furniture store selling? Selection, value, quality, service! What is Jerome’s selling? Same day service – buy it by 5:00 pm, have it in your home that evening!
You can develop such a differentiator!
Don Sando is co-founder of Strategic Results Group LLC, a company that helps businesses separate themselves from their competition with organizations that deliver. You can contact him at www.StrategicResultsGroup.com.