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So You Think You’re Different?
Written by: John JantschArticle Overview: Being different, or more accurately, having a point of differentiation that matters to a market, is one of the most critical marketing strategies for the small business.
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So You Think You’re Different?
Being different, or more accurately, having a point of differentiation that matters to a market, is one of the most critical marketing strategies for the small business.
Intentionally finding and centrally communicating that point of difference is what sets the truly successful business apart from the businesses relegated to compete on price.
See, the market must have difference, a point of reference with which to compare competing businesses - that’s how decision are made. So if you don’t give them something that makes you uniquely suited to serve their needs, they will fall back to the only measurement of difference you do have - price. And, as I’ve said often - price is a terrible place to compete because there will always be someone willing to go out of business faster than you.
But what makes you different? That’s the question small business owners have a tough time with because, at the end of the day, people are a little uncomfortable really being different. So, they hang their hat of things like “solution driven blah blah” and “superior customer service” and “unique set of fill in the blank” that everyone in their industry is saying.
Don’t believe me? I dare you to take the “Sameness Test.” Go to the website of your top five competitors and copy and paste the first paragraph you find there onto a blank page. Now add the first paragraph from your site. Then black out any reference to company names and pass this document around your office and see if anyone in the office can pick your site out or identify any competitor. It’s my experience that this will probably make you laugh and cry at the same time.
Use this Sameness Test as motivation to step out and really identify some way for you to create, perfect, and communicate, in the simplest terms possible, how your business really is unique.
Don’t know where to look? Ask you customers, research your industry around the world, look for opportunities presented by your competition. You don’t always have to be the first one to create a revolutionary innovation in your industry to be different. Sometimes it’s enough to package your services differently, approach a niche market differently, price your products differently, add services to products, add products to services, create outrageous guarantees, or add some truly remarkable habit to your sales and marketing process.
Just know this, it’s OK to be different, in fact, it’s the only way you can grow.
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Article Tags: blank page, company names, competitor, copy and paste, differentiation, marketing strategies, measurement, motivation, paragraph, point of reference, sameness, small business owners, successful business, superior customer service
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About the Author: John Jantsch RSS for John's articles - Visit John's website  Click here to visit John's website   Could you work without a staff Do You Suffer from Occasional Contentapation Small Business Using Video Why would someone come to work for you Build Your Boats Before You Need Them |
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- As a franchise owner the things that I look for in a prospective franchise is:
1- A proven track record. Too many franchises try and branch out long before they have perfected their product, don't become a guinea pig for them to figure out what works and what doesnt.
2- Support. A good franchise should have great communication with it's franchisee's and be available to meet it's franchisees needs. Youre only contact with them shouldn't be when you have a problem. Good franchises involves it's franchisees in building it's business.
3- A Great System. McDonald's doesn't exactly make a good hamburger but they have an excellent system of conducting business. The real value in a franchise is the system, not necessarily the product.
There are many other factors in deciding on a franchise but many of those are personal to you and your situation. The best thing to do is to conduct as much research as possible and speak with every current franchisee you can and get a feel for the franchise.
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