How can you differentiate your internet service in a crowded market?

Establishing a robust presence in community initiatives and local events can fortify the brand’s image. Engaging in local CSR activities, sponsoring local events, or initiating community development projects can enhance brand perception and foster community spirit.

THIS, is the area that most people do not invest nearly enough time in. A great place to start is to read Purple Cow, by Seth Godin, which explains the idea of a genuine unique value proposition really well. Areas to avoid in your UVP or USP (unique selling point); -should not contain the word 'and'. Try to find only ONE crucially different angle -validated by actual customers, not just because you think its unique -avoid generic stuff like "our service is better" and go for specifics. -is validated by extensive competitor research ...and finally, your UVP should instantly make sense and be of desired value to your client.

Unique like a unicorn. These days people tend to understand a statement of "unique value proposition" as something that it is okay for their business to be just a little different or a little better than the competition. If you cannot lead in your service category or offer something that cannot be offered by anyone else, then your value proposition is simply not good enough. That does not mean you should not start testing your service offering until it is "pixel perfect". You simply realize your uniqueness or not by selling and listening to your customers only. Start today.

Yes to segmenting! In the busy world of marketing your service it might sound attractive to send the same thing to everyone but segmenting your audiences and then really focussing on them in your messaging makes a massive difference to response rates and sign up rates, particularly in an internet/online service where consumer trust is naturally much lower. My preference is to segment primarily on basic demographics, but then lean right into psychographics when writing your content and doing your design.

Consistency is achieved through repetition and playing the long game - your end customer needs to see and hear about you a lot, from different channels in order to really trust your brand. Authenticity requires you to be transparent (not always presenting the 'perfect', 'insta' picture of yourself or your brand) and honest - being real about what you offer. Lastly, a great way to show authenticity is to use less formal language and grammar - speak like a person and you'll be seen as a person. People do business with people, even in internet services.

I once helped an online physical trainer (Google: Brock Asbhy) to re-build his customer funnel via redisgn of websites, offers and landing pages. A crucial element was the layering of a variety of forms of social proof. We added the following; - before and after shots of customers - verified google reviews - live sign ups shown on a pop up - customer testimonials - customer DM messages, cropped and added as animated Gif's to the landing page When we launched the new service to his existing (very large) instagram and email audience, the sales in the first month exceeded his ambitious target by 177%. A key factor in the success was the huge focus on social proof.

For a good angle on this, read Growth Hacker Marketing by Ryan Holiday which outlines a really effective set of strategies to iterate both your product/service offering whilst getting fast feedback from the marketplace.