As a small business owner, you know that you have something unique to offer to your customers. But how do you communicate that effectively and convincingly? How do you show them why they should choose you over your competitors? In this article, we will share some tips on how to present your competitive advantage to customers in a clear and compelling way.
Before you can present your competitive advantage, you need to define it. What is your value proposition? This is the statement that summarizes what benefits you provide to your customers, how you solve their problems or meet their needs, and what makes you different from others in your market. Your value proposition should be specific, relevant, and credible. It should answer the question: why should your customers buy from you?
Scan your competitive landscape and understand what the competition is doing well, and not so well. Find the gap between what your customers want and what the competition is not providing. Position yourself within that space, and use contrast in your brand assets to call competitors out on their faults.
most certainly, small business owners have the ability to be the actual person providing the service to the customer. With larger organizations the actual person with the decades of experience and skill set, who actually cares about the customers best interests is the one actually providing the service. Small business which start becoming too busy requiring the delegation of duties to a less experienced employee, who is not a stakeholder of the business your hiring results is less quality of services.
I'm in the confections industry and one thing I have found helpful is continuing to provide something unique. Small batch is still something valued. It's familiar, remind you of a simpler time, but at the same time is not mass produced. You can still be "niche" providing 1000 store chains. That's one definition.
Understand your value proposition. Question? "Why would or anyone else buy or purchase from you? rather then a competitor or not even making a purchase? One thing that really baffles me is that you need to "Find a hungry audience or customers and then tailor your product or service to that hungry audience!" The reason I state that is that what successful entrepreneurs and businesses do. Thats your value proposition Unsuccessful and loss making businesses do the exact opposite. Become a problem solver and solution provider. Its not about you and its about your customer, client, investor. Wheres the pain? In selling we have a F.A.B (ie link features to benefits). If you can be absolutely 100% clarity in the above.
In my experience, it almost always comes down to customer service. Everything has become so commoditized these days and with the development of AI I think that will only get worse. I truly believe that in order to be competitive you have to have a customer service experience that sets you apart from the rest of the pack.
Once you have your value proposition, you need to know who you are talking to. Who are your ideal customers? What are their goals, challenges, preferences, and behaviors? How do they make buying decisions? How do they perceive your industry and your competitors? By understanding your target audience, you can tailor your message and your marketing channels to reach them effectively and persuade them.
I have to be perfectly honest that I really initially struggle with this. I wanted to target everyone and I actually ended up with no one. You have to be 100% clear on who your ideal potential customer, client or investor is. Without this you will not even get started. Let alone succeed in your own small business. Identify your target audience and attract them. Otherwise your competitors will
One thing I do with our product-based company, is I will go into the field and look at placement and comparable products by size, texture, pricing, placement. Sometimes you're the trend setter and sometimes you're the follower. It's finding the right balance.
Research what they are already doing to determine how to improve on their results. Share information with them and get their feedback so you can really help them with the solution you provide.
Everyone is not your target audience! Identifying the people who need what you offer can be hard because we default to thinking everyone can use something. That thinking has you providing watered down information, and it ends up being too generic. It becomes something they can get anywhere. If you've built a strong value proposition, it is easier to determine your market. And don't be afraid to say no!
Now that you have your value proposition and your target audience, you need to present your competitive advantage in a way that showcases your benefits and features. Benefits are the outcomes or results that your customers get from using your product or service. Features are the characteristics or attributes that enable those benefits. For example, if you sell organic skincare products, a benefit could be healthier and smoother skin, and a feature could be natural ingredients. You should emphasize the benefits more than the features, as they appeal to the emotions and needs of your customers.
An example I've seen is built-in features. For example our ingredient list is not the cleanest, but NOT by design they do not include gluten and are vegan friendly. So they were not designed to be this way but because they are it's worth highlighting. And each year that went by I would find other features and add features such as Americana (peanut butter being the primary flavor and Kraft packaging), better for you, small portion size, etc.
You heard it many times show, not tell. Talk is cheap. As a producer for Clear Star Media, our goal is to show samples of what we do so our clients can see the clear advantages and the differences between what we're doing and our competitors. I'm less concerned about my competitor and more concerned about my client's competitor, that's our goal! More than that, what I really love is testimonials, especially if they're on camera video testimonials, you're the best person to sell your company, and your customer is the best referral for your company. Stay Creative!
Be specific about what our unique solution solves for them and the benefits it will provide vs. what they are currently doing and the results they are getting.
One of the best ways to present your competitive advantage is to use storytelling and testimonials. Stories are powerful tools to engage your customers, connect with them emotionally, and demonstrate how you can help them. You can use stories to illustrate how you came up with your solution, how you overcame challenges, how you improved your processes, or how you delivered value to other customers. Testimonials are also effective ways to show social proof, build trust, and highlight your results. You can use quotes, videos, case studies, or reviews from your satisfied customers to showcase your competitive advantage.
It’s all about the story. With one of my products, I know the story of its beginnings and constant evolution is unique. How? Because it’s so intertwined with the 20 years of working for myself. It started with building an app to solve a pain which transformed how I worked forever. Now every time I sit with a prospect, I’m just telling them my own story. I’m not selling; I’m simply being enthusiastic about the results of my journey. I’m fortunate in that respect.
Sometimes the most complicated question is the most common "How did you get started?" I have to quickly gauge who is asking, how long do they have, what value can I give them. It's not always difficult, just complicated. I start with the mini and build upon it if they have more questions. I'm a classically trained pastry chef entrepreneur and built a candy company that reached national distribution. I also can tell you the price of sugar, the weight of a truffle, operations birthdays and work anniversaries but that's not how I got started that's "how's it going" ??
Case studies showing what your product or service has done for others in their niche/market open their eyes to the possibilities.
Telling a story of a client/customer who used your product/services allows the listener to imagine themselves in the story. Addressing objections before they are raised can be done well with storytelling. The feel/felt/found way of telling a story still works (and it's old.) For example: I know how you feel about the above average cost of xxx, I felt that way too. Why is the price higher than average? Here's what Sam Smith from Birmingham found out - you actually use less of the product over time, so the cost is lower!
Finally, you need to be consistent and authentic when you present your competitive advantage. This means that you should align your message, your tone, your style, and your actions with your value proposition and your brand identity. You should also be honest, transparent, and respectful with your customers, and avoid making exaggerated or false claims. By being consistent and authentic, you can build a strong reputation, a loyal customer base, and a lasting competitive advantage.
I try to be all of these things, but honestly it's hard being ALL things. This is more goal setting. You'll miss the mark unintentionally. And especially if you're an entrepreneur you can't keep all plates spinning, so to speak. I agree with others this is where stellar customer service will set you apart.
In knowledge based industries like accounting and tax advisory, it can be difficult to show a potential client my competitive advantage. In order to do this, I share my expertise in thought leadership articles and social media posts; as well as provide a first consultation free of charge. This gives clients an idea of how I am different from my competitors before they decide to engage my services.