Once you break from ho-hum marketing,
and learn to put your deeper beliefs and values into your
promotion, a remarkable thing will happen: You will beat your competitors at every turn,
attract precisely those clients who really need and appreciate
the products or services your company provides, and have
a really good time in the process. In other words,
once you know what your clients really value, and
how you are different from your competitors, it’s incredibly
simple to promote your company’s products or services.
Think about it: If you really
know what is of value to your clients, what they want and
need, and what you can offer that your competitors do not,
it’s easy to get the business from the clients you want.
Also, this makes it a no-brainer to know exactly what to
say in your promotional messages. You’ll be conveying
the fact that you offer something of interest (and that you
do it well). Thus, you’ll connect emotionally with
those who need your services.
2. MAKE
A LIST OF WHAT YOUR COMPETITORS CLAIM. In another
column, make a list of what main verbs or nouns your
competitors are using. In the case of my company (which
does marketing), the list includes consulting, business
management, promotional design, copywriting,market research,
websites, advertising, marketing plans, and so forth.
3.
LIST WHAT YOU OFFER. In another column,
make a detailed list of what you offer.
4. FIND
WHAT IS SIMILAR. Circle the words in both columns
that are basically similar in meaning.
5. FIND
THE DIFFERENCES. Now highlight the words in
your column that are different. Remember, it doesn’t
necessarily have to be a product or service that is completely
different, but maybe the way you offer that service.
For example, my company looks into the “soul” of
a company to find out what is really meaningful to them,
and offers a truly unique process that allows them to
attract clients that are really right (and ripe!) for
them.
What does yours do? Hint: Do
NOT say “We give good service.” This is what
virtually everyone on the planet THINKS sets them apart.
It doesn’t. It’s passé, boring, and
(since it’s oversaturated in our contemporary vocabulary),
it’s completely meaningless. Go ahead – be
creative, not boring. Everyone will appreciate it, and
you’ll get more clients!
ASK
YOUR CLIENTS. Now, ask some of your
colleagues, friends or clients to tell you truthfully
what they value about you. When you fully understand
what makes your clients tick (and more importantly,
what they love – or don’t love – about
doing business with you), you can promote those qualities
to other potential markets.
For example, recently we
asked one of our web design clients
(a web optimization company, which we helped to differentiate
from hundreds of competitors) what sets us apart. This
is what they had to say:
"Working with Allison Bliss
Consulting was a wonderful experience. Allison made the
pain of developing a business plan an exciting and pain-free
process. She kept us on track and focused throughout
the project, she took the time to listen to our needs,
and she delivered well above and beyond our expectations.
Allison's suggestions for improving our business strategy
and outlook were a blessing, too. We now have a solid
business plan that specifically reflects our new company
direction and focus. Because of Allison's thorough analysis
and delivery of our business plan, we will be awarded
a grant from our local government. I recommend her services
highly."
Michael Swartz, MJS Web Solutions
http://www.mjswebsolutions.com
Add those
comments to your own column, and highlight the
phrases that are unique from your competitors (in this
case, the client felt we made the process exciting
and pain-free, and delivered well above and
beyond expectations, and created a plan that awarded
the company grant money). Your clients know exactly
how you are different, better, and more valuable to them—and,
you may learn a few things you could change to make your
offerings even more perfect!
Hire a
researcher, and you’ll get the very best
answers, the most honestly. But if you cannot afford
this, send a very short questionnaire to
clients, asking them some very specific questions about
what is of value, what is not.
At some
point, consider engaging a pro to do these “client
evaluations.” You’ll get much deeper, more
useful testimonials than those quickie survey answers
can generate; you can then use the testimonials in your
promotional materials.
Since
everyone’s time is valuable, it’s
best to reward your clients in some way for the time
it takes them to answer your questions. You could offer
movie tickets, one of your products, some of your time
for free, or whatever you think THEY would appreciate.
6. INVESTIGATION
LEADS TO RESULTS. When you do this investigation,
many wonderful surprises emerge. You might find that
your clients need other services you could offer, or
that you are undervaluing your services and could easily
raise your prices (this is actually a very common discovery).
Also, you might find that a simple change that packages
the pricing of your services or systematically speeds
up your estimating would make everyone much happier & close
more business. Or, you might learn that even though you
believe you offer lightning-fast response time, your
clients don’t perceive it that way. From this information,
you can often make improvements that lead to significantly
more income.
7.
ASSEMBLE YOUR CONTENT. Now take all
those phrases and keywords you’ve highlighted
and put them on a page, add a bit of your true soul
and beliefs about your company (presumably you have
some passion; otherwise, why would you start your own
business?) to build emotion, and then list your services
or product descriptions. If you’re not an experienced
writer, hire one to help you. Need advice or a referral?
Call us. Or ask your competitors. I do.
8. CREATE THE
BUZZ Now, consider the last company you heard about
that totally gripped you. You wanted to tell all your
friends about it, because it had such an intriguing
affect on you, right? In marketing, it’s all
about creating that “buzz” — you
want to evoke that reaction in your audience (or target
market) through your marketing materials, your print
ads, TV commercials, presentations, networking, and
of course … by doing great work, which offers lots of
value! So, take this information and get it out to
the world … in any and every way you can.
