Differentiate yourself: the only way to succeed in a tough economy

You can’t afford to be monotonous in slow economic times. By that I mean you look like any other business that does a good job. If you position yourself as just another “car detailing business,” then your service becomes a commodity, and the only way to differentiate the commodities is to lower your prices. A business based on beating the competition on price will not survive in the long run.

A few years ago, Seth Godin wrote a little book that should be a paradigm shift for any small business that wants to compete in a crowded marketplace. In this book purple cow, Godin cites examples of businesses that have been established with a USP (Unique Selling Proposition) that makes people not only remember, but talk about it with others. What you want to give them is an amazing experience.

One of the many examples he cites is the story of a noted butcher in Italy. Now, there are thousands of butcher shops in Italy, but there is only one that people come from all over the world to visit. His name is Dario Cecchini and he has been featured in various guides and magazines across the country. Is it because his meat is better?

I’m going to assume it isn’t. What it does have, however, is its own style. Cecchini creates a remarkable experience that his clients remember. If you buy meat at his store, you might hear him quoting Dante and raving about the Fiorentina steak. Cecchini even staged a mock funeral and buried a steak when the European Union banned the sale of steak on bones.

A friend was telling me last week about a little cruise his client took to the Caribbean that defines remarkable. The yachts only have a crew of 15 men, so the number of passengers is small. But before a single passenger boards the ship, each member of the crew knows his likes and dislikes, what his favorite wine and cigar is. The crew studies each passenger like a textbook so that his needs are met without fail during the trip. Cost of the cruise for a week trip – $50,000. The lesson: people pay more for extraordinary experiences.
 
Implement a powerful brand

What made Starbucks so popular before their brand started popping up on every street corner? Was it the taste of coffee or the experience of going to a coffee shop and drinking expensive coffee while working on your laptop? Creating a remarkable experience is important for any business to survive in a down economy. How can you implement this strategy in your business? I’m not suggesting that you mention Dante to your customers, but I do suggest that you create an experience that your customers will talk about when they chat with friends and family. Try to find out their likes and dislikes. At least find out their birthdays and send them a birthday card every year. Hardly any other business does this.

The name of the game is “differentiate” in order to survive.