3 WAYS TO STAND OUT
FROM THE COMPETITION by Charlie Cook
Whether you're a computer technician, financial planner, real estate
broker, copywriter, or other service provider, you've got lots of
competition. There are plenty of other people in the same business
going after the same prospects as you. You may be wondering how you're
ever going to get more clients and take your business to the next
level.
One thing's certain; you can't expect to stand out from the crowd
using the same marketing strategy everyone else does. If you want to
transform your business, you need to first transform your marketing.
Imagine you raced cars for fun on the weekend. In accordance with
class rules your car and everyone else had 75 horsepower and skinny
tires. Furthermore, every aspect of your car and driving strategy was
highly regulated by these rules. Your acceleration and speed would be
limited. Races would be very close and it would be tough to win.
Now imagine that the class rules were suspended and you dropped a 400
horsepower engine in your car, added big road gripping tires, you
could modify it any way you wanted and there were no limitations on
how you drove and, best of all, everyone else was following the old
rules.
You'd have a big advantage. Your car would leap to the front of the
pack and stay there. You'd bring trophies home every week.
Marketing the way everyone else does will keep your business stuck in
the slow lane. Stick to a typical marketing approach and you'll get
the same results.
Want to stand out from the competition?
Stop doing what everyone else is doing and start using the strategies
that help you stand out from the competition and get more clients.
There are no marketing rules you have to stick to; it's results that
matter.
Here are three ways to distinguish yourself from the competition and
grow your business.
1. Target Your Market More Precisely It's a common marketing mistake
to think that the more types of people you appeal to, the better. The
opposite is true.
Your prospects are rarely looking for generalists. They want someone
who has the knowledge and experience to provide the solution to their
specific problem.
Be precise about the ideal clients you want to you serve. Define your
target market by industry, by size, by length of time in business, by
the problem you solve, etc. Of course, you want to make sure that your
target market is large enough for your business to be highly
profitable.
When you are clear about whom your products and services really help,
you'll attract more clients and you can charge more because of your
specialization.
2. Position Your Firm As Experts Your expertise and that of your
competitors may be the same. You've all had many years of experience
and are successful to varying degrees. So how do you stand out?
If you want your prospects to see you as an expert in your field,
don't expect them to seek you out on their own. Demonstrate your
expertise and give them a reason to contact you.
Create a free, irresistible offer that shows your prospects how well
you understand their problems and can solve them. Offer a free test
drive, a free report on a relevant business topic, or a free
consultation or estimate.
3. Build Strong Relationships With Prospects 'Out of sight, out of
mind.' Once you're out the door, off the phone, or your prospect has
left your web site, they're going to forget you. They are going to
forget you just when you want them to get to know you, trust you and
think of you when they are ready to buy.
How can you make sure you have a stronger relationship with your
prospects than your competitors do?
Stay in contact once a week or once a month. Give your prospects ideas
they can use that continue to demonstrate your expertise and present
them in a personal, engaging way. Your prospects are more likely to
buy from the person they know the best.
Take Action to See Results If you've been in business for a few years,
you may have heard these three marketing ideas. Are you using them to
grow your business? For many business people, these aren't secrets or
new ideas, but they have yet to put them into action.
Targeting, Positioning and Building Strong Relationships are three
simple things you can do that the majority of your competitors, if not
all of them, are not doing. Do these three things well and you'll add
more horsepower to your marketing and stand out from the competition.
2006 C In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved
About the Author The author, Charlie Cook, helps service
professionals, small business owners and marketing professionals
attract more clients and be more successful. Sign up to receive the
Free Marketing Strategy eBook, '7 Steps to get more clients and grow
your business' at http://www.marketingforsuccess.com"
target="_blank">http://www.marketingforsuccess.com
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