The Fear of Differentiation
The Fear of Differentiation
The Opportunity Cost of Being the Same.
One way to challenge the fear of being different is to try to understand the consequences of "being the same". One differentiating decision a small business has the opportunity to make involves product/service mix - the common fear being specialization (and missing out on potential sales).
Example: If your market has a number of other "one stop shops" the decision to offer a little bit of everything to a mass market may be riskier than specializing and offering a limited product mix to a market of enthusiasts. As a small business owner or manager, you should challenge the fear of differentiating your product mix by assessing the risk of blending into the landscape and becoming "invisible" to your target market.
Subtle Differentiation.
Small business owners might believe that differentiation needs to be extreme in order to be effective - fearing brand alienation as a result of trying to act/behave way outside the norm. Understanding that subtle differentiation can be a successful way to separate your brand will help your small business face this fear.
Let's look at my small business, Intersection Consulting, as an example. My brand differentiation strategy is far from extreme and includes:
* focusing on small business.
* specializing in marketing.
* offering a casual, no-nonsense approach.
The last point of differentiation is the most important to my brand because it generates word of mouth and referrals - yet it is the most subtle because it is only visible by clients after they meet with me and engage my services. Ultimately, your brand still needs to be a natural extension of you, your personality, core values and skill set - trying to differentiate your small business brand to the point of losing authenticity is never a good strategy.
"The Edges Usually Pay Off" (Seth Godin).
Don't be afraid to have a small business that is different - Following/chasing the masses is not always the best strategy. Seth Godin puts this into perspective with a great analogy in a recent post about Danny Devito and George Clooney..."Because everyone in Hollywood is trying to be George, there are a lot more opportunities for the few Dannys willing to show up. Invest in Danny. The edges usually pay off."
The Fear of Differentiation - To learn more about this author, visit Mark Smiciklas's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
Building a unique small business brand requires some courage. Why are unique brands so scarce while middle of the road products, services, retail stores, etc dominate the business landscape? My theory is that it has something to do with an innate fear (we all have) of being different. In a branding context, this poses a problem because differentiation is one of the key elements in the development of a great brand. So how do small business owners face the fear of differentiation?
The Opportunity Cost of Being the Same.
One way to challenge the fear of being different is to try to understand the consequences of "being the same". One differentiating decision a small business has the opportunity to make involves product/service mix - the common fear being specialization (and missing out on potential sales).
Example: If your market has a number of other "one stop shops" the decision to offer a little bit of everything to a mass market may be riskier than specializing and offering a limited product mix to a market of enthusiasts. As a small business owner or manager, you should challenge the fear of differentiating your product mix by assessing the risk of blending into the landscape and becoming "invisible" to your target market.
Subtle Differentiation.
Small business owners might believe that differentiation needs to be extreme in order to be effective - fearing brand alienation as a result of trying to act/behave way outside the norm. Understanding that subtle differentiation can be a successful way to separate your brand will help your small business face this fear.
Let's look at my small business, Intersection Consulting, as an example. My brand differentiation strategy is far from extreme and includes:
* focusing on small business.
* specializing in marketing.
* offering a casual, no-nonsense approach.
The last point of differentiation is the most important to my brand because it generates word of mouth and referrals - yet it is the most subtle because it is only visible by clients after they meet with me and engage my services. Ultimately, your brand still needs to be a natural extension of you, your personality, core values and skill set - trying to differentiate your small business brand to the point of losing authenticity is never a good strategy.
"The Edges Usually Pay Off" (Seth Godin).
Don't be afraid to have a small business that is different - Following/chasing the masses is not always the best strategy. Seth Godin puts this into perspective with a great analogy in a recent post about Danny Devito and George Clooney..."Because everyone in Hollywood is trying to be George, there are a lot more opportunities for the few Dannys willing to show up. Invest in Danny. The edges usually pay off."
The Fear of Differentiation - To learn more about this author, visit Mark Smiciklas's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 | |
 |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. |
 | |
|  |
Subscribe to Mark's articles
 | |
|
|  |
 | |
|
| |
 | ||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
|
| ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
 |
 Memorandum Template 2 Law of Attraction The Art Of Networking Improve Web Site Conversions Take the Lead |
|
 | ||
 |
More PR Resources
Press Release Builder | |
 |
Top 50 Marketing Blogs
Top Marketing Blogs of 2010 | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
|
|
|
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||