If you have been in business for some time, the chances are that you get so engrossed in the day-to-day operation and spend so much time effectively putting out fires rather than being fully focused, that you are really not seeing the bigger picture. Truth be told you should always be trying to view this bigger picture and spend time developing your organization, rather than being caught up in its daily operation. This does not mean that you should not pay attention to the service of your existing and highly valued clientele, but it does mean that you need to effect time management and become a master at that art before you do anything else.
Certainly, to be truly successful in your business, you must methodically set yourself apart from your competitors. Unless you are very lucky indeed, you will have competitors in your niche and a lot of what they do will drive your business decisions and strategies. But it doesn’t have to be this way and you need to really focus on differentiators. While you may be able to come up with an out and out brainwave, something that will truly catapult your organization ahead of the others, the likelihood is that you will develop a series of subtle, but important differentiators to help edge you forward relentlessly.
Get inside the mind of your existing clients. You must always solicit feedback and understand that whenever you have a conversation, be it on the phone or via e-mail, this is always valuable feedback as well. Hang on each word and focus on really getting to know where your clients are going. The chances are that you will reveal needs that may not be immediately apparent, but will likely help them succeed at what they do. Through this process of attentive listening and discovery, aim to give special value back to your clients by suggesting tailored options and solutions.
While you get inside the mind of your clients, also get inside the mind of your biggest competitors. Dissect their value propositions and assess their strengths and weaknesses. Find some gaps in their offerings and again, these may be relatively small, but important.
Using your market intelligence, start to move your position to one where you can be clearly seen as distinct from your competitors. Remember to focus on the benefits to the clients and don’t labor on about all the technical features of your service or product.
Be really creative and come up with some loss leader concepts, but be careful. Your aim is to suggest an option that others, your prospects, see as highly valuable, but does not require you to give away the farm. If you can truly stand behind your product, offer lengthy or unlimited warranties and understand that only a small proportion of potential clients out there would ever take advantage of your position.
Communicate effectively and be fair in all you do. Over deliver, over deliver, over deliver.
Adam Toren
