Saying you are better is not enough!

Let’s get real, as great as we are, most prospective customers choose our competitors, unless you have a 50% + market share. Why?

The answer is easy, most of our competitors are great. We might not want to hear it, but, in today’s ultra-competitive marketplace, only the best companies survive. When customers have a bad experience or buy a bad product, with the help of the internet, everyone will know about it. This shift to the digital has created a transparent market that is extremely unforgiving and therefore the companies that survive, your competitors, must be doing something right. It is also extremely easy for customers to leave with very few industries having established high exit costs for customers.

Why saying “We are Better” is not enough

Brands that claim they provide a better-quality product than their competitors are in danger of dismissing their competitors ignorantly. Do you really believe that what your competitors are offering is not a quality product? Don’t get me wrong, a quality offering remains important, but quality is assumed by consumers and if your companies value proposition is based on a consumer assumption, what will set you apart from your competitors?

Unfortunately, making competence or quality-based claims is not a competitive advantage in this market. Competence and quality are what is required to enter the market and that alone will not set you apart. But, for arguments sake, let’s say your offering really is better, what if customers do not want better? What if good enough at a reasonable price does the job?

How do we differentiate

Now that we know that making competence or quality-based claims is not a viable strategy to differentiate our product. We need to establish how we can differentiate ourselves from our competitors without ignorantly dismissing our competitors.

Know your Customers

The first way and probably a steppingstone to any other strategy to differentiate ourselves is to know our customers better than your competitors. How do we do this? Well how do you get to know anyone? You talk to them…. You ask them about their interests, their desires and their dreams. What would your customers love? What do they hate? What would make their experience with your company more memorable?  The best way to get to know your customers is to talk to them. Once you know your customer this knowledge can drive every decision you make and believe me you will reap the rewards.

Provide a comfortable customer experience

Another way to differentiate is by providing a better experience rather than providing a better product. The Customer experience refers to every interaction the customer has with your company from the first time they are introduced to your brand, until your post purchase processes. Customer experience do not have to be “flashy” or extravagant, quite often if we can provide the most comfortable interactions, we will set ourselves apart. What does it mean to provide a comfortable interaction? Comfortable interactions mean keeping your process consistent, easy, fast and simple. The easier you make it for a customer to interact with you the better.

Treat your Customers like you want to be treated by Companies

This seems so simple but somehow many of us get it wrong. Personally, you hate to be bombarded with cold calls at all hours of your day, but somehow your company does the same thing. You despise being bombarded by the same advertisement over and over or receiving a daily email from a company you can never remember signing up for, and yet somehow your marketing efforts look pretty similar.

“Yes, but it is different…” Why? Why is it different? If you dislike being treated in a certain manner by companies why would you treat your customers in the same way? The one or two new customers that you gain from these methods does not compare to the 100’s and 1000’s you chase away and who will never want to do business with you.

Do not Start with your “Why?”, start with the “Why I should Care?”

At Kanvaz we believe that the Story is important, that your story is important, but where many companies get it wrong is that they think their story is about the company. The story of a company should be centered around the most important part of their business, their customers.

Appealing to a person’s better nature is a very ideological approach to take and I believe that appealing to their self-interest is much more beneficial to them and to our Businesses. Our customers do not care about our story unless there is value in it for them. If you want to start with a why, start with a why they should do business with you what value can you provide them.

Go above and beyond for your Customers

We have all heard the saying “It is cheaper to hold onto a customer than to get a new customer.” While it is almost a cliché, it remains true. How do we make sure that we keep our Customers? Well the mistake many companies make is once they have completed a transaction the interaction stops.

We cannot stop courting our customers. If you want to keep your customer, you need to work on the relationship. While this ties into the customer experience, I wanted to emphasize the importance of not only deliver what you’re supposed to do but going above and beyond for your customers. After all, every marketing message you have put out there says you care, well it is time to prove it. Show your customers just how much. How do we show our customers we care?

Well customers want their experiences to have three attributes and if you can create a strategy to meet their expectations everyone will know you care.

First is Immediacy, “I want what I want and I want it now”. This immediacy with our fast and simple customer experience and attending to customer requests with a real urgency.

Next is Individuality, “I want it my way”. In the digital world we live in companies have been able to personalise experiences for their customers, showing them that they are not just one of many but that their business really means something to the company.

Lastly, we have Humanity. No individual wants to feel like they are just a number, and this is what it is all about. Sometimes customers will make requests that are not going to fit into your business model, and while many companies may see this as a burden or will flat out refuse, this is a great opportunity. Most people won’t ask for special requests, and when you are able to deliver what they are asking for with little added effort, why wouldn’t you? Just remember, every time you say no you are losing business to someone who says yes.

Conclusion

While it might help you sleep at night, thinking your competitors are a terrible incompetent bunch and your offering is the best thing since sliced bread, might not be the best thing for your business.

Competence and Quality are the entry requirements into any market and trying to differentiate yourselves based on the bare minimum won’t get you far. It is time to take a look at how you treat your customers and how you are going to make your business truly stand out.