Something that seems to be showing up time and again is that companies simply don’t know how to sell. They have very little idea of what to say and at what time. Maybe this is due to them being too near the issue, doing what they have already done or simply not having the required skill sets internally. It is however a very common theme. During the last year as I have impacted various different markets I have found that most companies all seem to say the same. All fluff and no substance. We’re professional, we work to budget and on time, our clients think were great. As an example read this from a recruitment company (I have deleted the name of the company to avoid embarrassment).
XXX is the difference
XXX is different. We provide Permanent, Interim & Contract recruitment solutions across a wide range of sectors. But we do it in a way that’s friendly, proactive, honest and – above all – passionate. We do what we say, and we do it well. That’s our difference.
So you do your job then? How is that different? As you can see big statements that say……. nothing.
So how can you stand out from the crowd? How can you say what you do is different from all of your competitors. In effect show why you and the added value that you bring?
I call it soft sell, hard facts.
The worst thing any company or individual can get involved in is a cost war. Therefore the buyer needs to know why they are buying you and what you give that others don’t. Makes sense? If your services and your competitors look the same and you sell the same to the buyer they are the same. Therefore they will look at who is the cheaper, play you off against each other and buy the cheapest.
However IF you can show that you bring something that no-one else offers (let’s call it X) then they are buying that. X then has a different price to the others as they don’t have X to sell.
A few years ago if you had landed on our website the message you would have read was ‘we are a design company’. This meant that any observer was buying design. When we realigned our message and showed that we are a business impact company who work from a business consultancy process, through to marketing strategy and then design whatever is required, design is a part of what we do.
Equally the service we provide impacts a company. Therefore our case studies, testimonials (proof) are all based around the sales and impact we created NOT our funky design work.
How many design companies can do offer this and more to the point how many have already done it and have their messaging set up to prove that they can provide this as a service?
Does everyone want this service? No. Some simply want design. But we aren’t trying to attract everyone, were just trying to attract companies that do want this and have the money to pay for it. We are also simply trying to show that we are different to all the rest and therefore our pricing is unquestionable as we aren’t selling you design services.
Most companies have a difference or an added value that they bring, they just haven’t thought about structuring it.
So the process is simple.
- Look at why you? What is it that makes you better/different from all the rest?
- Provide proof that you do this and it has had results.
- Get testimonials from clients that back up this story and not just the usual ‘they are really nice people and I like working with them’ testimonials.
- Place the information in the right contact points of your marketing process so it is seen.
- Create your 30 second elevator pitch around this so that when asked what you do you can come out with a statement that is interesting.
In our case we are a business impact company or we double company’s turnover. Both true, both provable, both far more attractive than ‘we are a design and marketing company’. Both lead to questions about how we do it, both lead to a sales message way more powerful than we design websites and marketing campaigns.
