Your marketplace is full of numerous undifferentiated businesses pushing too many messages through too many channels. How can prospective customers and clients possibly see the forest for the trees? How can my business stand out?
These battle-tested strategies have helped countless brands break through the clutter, capture attention, and turn prospects into loyal customers – and any one of them can do the same for your brand.
Be different
Over millions of years, the human brain has evolved to notice what’s different. So it’s no surprise that the most long-term, sustainable way to stand out is to be… unique. The world is full of ‘me too’ brands. But if your product or service is sufficiently different, you could effectively be competing in a ‘category of one’.
We all remember Dyson’s competitive advantage for several years: the creation of the bagless vacuum cleaner and, consequently, the premium they could charge. Competitors were quick to imitate, but Dyson just kept on innovating.
Although ‘innovation’ has become the most overused term in business today, it should not be the preserve of R&D departments. Even the smallest of businesses can stand out if they do something different and relevant. Could your company be the next ‘disruptor’ brand – the Uber or Airbnb of your market sector? Or will you take the approach of Olympic cycling coach Dave Brailsford and work with your team to improve every little detail of your customer experience, making it truly outstanding?
Try this: If your company can create a ‘culture of innovation’ where everyone can contribute ideas, you can keep building on your competitive advantage (and positively improve employee engagement, too).
Read more on brand differentiation.
Focus. Focus. Focus
As businesses grow, they often face pressure to diversify. Bolt-on services or unrelated products can leave customers unclear about what your brand stands for. The world has plenty of ‘generalists’. Conversely, specialisation in your market equates to deep expertise, and with it comes the reward of a premium price tag and clear differentiation.
You may have heard of a firm’s actions, attributes and values expressed as being ‘on brand’. This is a result of a concerted effort to focus on
- what they do best,
- discard ideas that don’t fit, and
- craft a clear vision for the future.
EasyJet’s attempt to create a no-frills cinema chain was too far a diversification and felt ‘off brand’. Film lovers wanted an amazing experience, not a budget one. In contrast, British Gas launched the Hive brand, a range of smart technology that lets homeowners control their heating from their smartphones. This was a logical brand extension that positioned them as innovation leaders with their customers’ needs in mind.
Try this: Write a vision statement that clearly articulates the impact your business will have on your customers’ lives. This will give you the endpoint for a roadmap that focuses on your business activities.
Read more on brand simplification.
Weave a rich story
Since the dawn of humanity, stories told around campfires have been a way to pass down experiences. Likewise, brand stories can humanise faceless services and give provenance to the most mundane of products. They provide an authentic grounding and a narrative that customers can easily retell. And with social platforms so widespread now, stories and sharing are natural bedfellows.
Forward-thinking businesses have taken this strategy a step further by giving customers a framework to create their own stories around their brands. Once your customers take ownership of your brand, they become your strongest advocates, raising your visibility at little to no cost to you. They can even form tribes with shared beliefs and values.
Camera-maker GoPro has written: “A day on the mountain with friends is more meaningful than one spent alone; the sharing of our collective experiences makes our lives more fun.” Their mission is to provide all the tools to make that happen. Their customers will do the rest.
Try this: If you can paint a vivid picture of how your business is, in fact, an experience, rich in authenticity, and meeting its customers’ needs, you can create a story that will run and run.
Find the white space
Whilst your competitors battle it out for supremacy amongst the clutter of traditional marketing channels, you could be finding clear water. Take the approach of Australian batting legend Ricky Ponting, who once said, “…in my head, I don’t see the fielders, I only see the gaps.”
White-space mapping is used extensively to develop new products and services that fill the gaps in existing markets. It can also create a more imaginative marketing mix, allowing your brand to stand out more effectively. With the emphasis now so heavily on content creation, you may find creating an expert ‘how-to’ YouTube video more effective than an Adshel poster. Or a white paper may have more gravitas than a direct mail campaign. It all depends on the market you are in.
There’s a lot more to getting noticed than shouting in a sea of noise. Your uniqueness, your relevance, your ability to engage with your audience, and how you do it are much more effective ways to stand out. Approach it strategically and see the difference.
