When you started your business, you dreamed that your customers would love your products and services. They would be excited. You would earn money doing what you like.
Then reality set in. You spend a lot of time on your business. You got less profit. Now you compete with every Tom, Dick and Harry to sell your product or service. The future is not certain.
Today, you have a second chance to change the image of your business. A new beginning! In this article, you’ll focus on the second of five critical issues that influence the way customers come to your business. Last issue we focused on your target population. This time, you can complete an exercise to clarify your marketing message.
The need to be different
The only way to be successful in our new economy is to be different, unique and special to your market. When you separate yourself from your competitors, you can go back to the original dreams you had about owning your business. Over 3,000 impressions bombard your customer every day, asking them to buy. How are you going to differentiate yourself from the 2999 impressions he or she ignores every day?
stake out a position
Complete this exercise to create a position for your business and clarify your marketing message. Start by answering the following questions:
- What are the three biggest problems your customer wants to solve when they visit your business?
- What are three gaps or complaints customers have about your industry?
- What positions do your competitors take when addressing customer problems?
- What three things could you do that are different from what others are doing in your industry?
You create a marketing position by refocusing a part of your target market. It could be a place where no competitor goes. It could be a place where others are now, but you can do it differently or better. Here are some other ways to build your position.
- Can you add or subtract anything from your industry standards?
- Can you make it bigger or smaller?
- Can you customize?
- Can you make it last longer?
- Can it be combined with something else?
- Can you make it more portable for your customers?
For example, your industry standard offers a one-year warranty on a product. You could offer 18-month warranty. You could be known as “the business with the best guarantee”.
From the process above, identify at least two potential positions you can take in your target market that will make you unique, different, or special to your customers.
test your position
Now he wants to put his potential “positions” to the test. Ask the following three questions for each potential position.
- Is this position really unique to your client?
- Is the position valuable to your client?
- Is the position easily communicated to your client?
If you can’t honestly answer “Yes”, “Yes”, “Yes” with each of your potential positions, you should re-examine the positions you are considering. If the position is not unique, not important to the customer, and cannot be communicated to the customer, it will never be a powerful marketing message. Continue this exercise until you find a position that passes the three question test.
Write your marketing message
Now write your marketing message in 60 words or less. Your marketing message will be 2-3 sentences, 20-30 words per sentence. It should indicate how different you are. You need to state the benefits to your customer: what’s in it for them? It must have the power to get attention, to create a reaction from the customer.
Keep writing until it makes sense to you. Then repeat it with your friends to get more information. This message will now become the foundation of your marketing efforts.
Conclution
You have a second chance to realize your original dream. You have more experience now than when you started. Use your experience to complete this exercise. You will produce a marketing message that is clear and powerful because it says exactly how you stand out from your competitors and why a customer should buy your product or service.
For a special report showing how the five critical pieces work together to get more customers for your business, email [email protected]. I will send you a copy of the report. Or click on http://www.innovativesellingskillsforsmallbusiness.com.
Copyright Al Hanzal, 2004. All rights reserved.