| Do you know the unique value you bring to | | | | out to clients via email. Find the competitors that do this |
| customers? | | | | and sign up for it. What types of information are they |
| Defining your value proposition is the first step in clearly | | | | providing to their customers? Are they offering real |
| identifying how your products and services are | | | | value in their newsletter or are they simply pushing |
| different from your competition. | | | | their products? |
| What Makes You Different? | | | | Studying how your competition provides value can help |
| The first step in creating a unique value proposition is | | | | you position your own products and services and to |
| to discover what your competitors do well and then | | | | make them unique. |
| find a way to either do it better, or offer a guarantee | | | | After you’ve spent some time understanding your |
| that puts you on a completely different level. | | | | competition, create a spreadsheet that compares |
| Here are a couple of ways to discover more about | | | | what they do well with what you do well. Doing this |
| your competition. | | | | always provides additional ideas for improving the |
| 1. Buy from them. | | | | value you provide your customer base. |
| Buying from your competitors allows you to see | | | | Ideas for Making Your Company Unique |
| how they handle the sales process from beginning to | | | | One easy way to make your offers unique is to |
| end. In addition, you may also start receiving their | | | | package goods and services together in a new way. |
| emails and brochures, allowing you to understand how | | | | Try packaging main items along with a few accessory |
| they are marketing to their customers. | | | | items. If you’re a service provider, try offering |
| If one of your competitors sells products on their | | | | extended services options at no additional charge. |
| website, go on and make a purchase. Call their | | | | You can also create value through excellence in |
| Customer Service and ask a few questions. Do you | | | | customer service. Vow to return customer calls within |
| get the information you need in an efficient manner? | | | | 60 minutes or provide a compelling guarantee that |
| Was it easy to find the product you wanted? Was the | | | | install differentiates your business. There are many |
| checkout process easy? Did you get an email | | | | ways to stand out from the crowd that don't rely on a |
| confirmation right away? Did the product ship quickly? | | | | particular product or service offering. Think about it and |
| Did the company follow up with any additional | | | | be creative. |
| marketing? | | | | Once you have defined the unique value you can bring |
| Making an actual purchase from your competition can | | | | your clients, make sure you communicate this value |
| teach you quite a bit about what they do well and | | | | through all your marketing channels, including your |
| what they can improve upon. It can also give you | | | | website, direct mail, brochures and newsletters. |
| some ideas for serving your customers better. | | | | Creating and communicating your unique value |
| 2. Sign up for their newsletter. | | | | proposition is the groundwork for your entire marketing |
| Many companies have a regular newsletter they send | | | | program. Don't ignore it! |