Customers

Start by discovering what your customers want (and what they do not want) and what your competitors do not offer.

Take the survey information you have already collected (you do survey – informally as an absolute minimum – don’t you?). Make sure that you understand the people who buy from you – as well as the people you would like to buy from you. That means talking to them to gain an in sight into their future buying preferences. Your survey data is fine for understanding their past decisions, but to get that vital perspective on their future habits – you must talk to them directly and listen intently to their answers.

Creating differentiators starts with a look at your business from a new perspective – from your customer’s view-point. Even a small, simple change can significantly increase profits if it targets customer wants.

Competitors

Differentiation makes your business memorable and credible. You want a prospect to be able to quickly and clearly understand what you do and what sets you apart from your competitors.

• Who are the major competitors in your industry?

• In your industry, what are most companies in competition about?

  • The answer to this question is most likely to be found on the front page of their web-sites.

• What products / ranges of products and services does each offer?

• What are the specific strengths of each major competitor?

• Where are there gaps in their offer?

Create Differentiation – but keep it Simple

Incorporate simple features that deviate from the average characteristics of your industry.

• Focus on features that:

• Achieve what your customers want;

• Create benefits for your customers;

• Cause buyers to choose your brand over others;

• Increase the value of your product or service – make sure that your customer perceives that increased value.

The more difficult it is for your competition to copy your ideas and the cheaper they are to implement, the better.

For example, a service business in the IT industry offers unlimited on-site support to customers who purchase a maintenance contract. They know that they can fix most problems remotely. Their competitors raise supplementary invoices on the odd occasion that additional visits are required. The commercial risk, in their case, of that offer is modest. The sales differentiation is enormous.

Think outside the norm – be creative. Analyse your ideas to make sure you understand the full consequences – in numbers not in intuitive feel. If you find something that that your business can deliver really well, then that could be your lead proposition.

Some things to be wary of:

• Make sure that you explain the customer benefits of your offer effectively

• Price is a powerful and devastating weapon – aim very carefully!

This was a guest post by Paul Fileman of Results-Zone. Results-Zone bring extensive knowledge and experience gained in Blue Chip organisations to businesses like yours. They ensure that your business is fully exploiting a well thought through operating plan. They work alongside you and your team – as business results managers. They ensure that your team and your business are elevated to the results-zone. They bring you "hands-on" experience – similar to employing high quality management skills without the risk or costs in recruiting full time employees.

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