Tell It All By Being Different

In the previous edition of our “Tell It!” series, we indicated that the tongue is the most powerful marketing and promotions instrument for the entrepreneur.  We also said that one of the ways to promote your business is to follow up on remarks made to you by people during social events.  Responding to prompts received during social events may contain useful leads.  These are, however not the only source to find opportunities for promoting your business.

In subsequent series, we will discuss basic methods that the entrepreneur can use to promote and advertise their business.  Readers should not view these methods should not be viewed as the only ways to promote their businesses.

Management scientists, business strategists and marketing experts all agree that efficient marketing relies on a differentiation statement or unique positioning.  What does this mean in ordinary language?

Differentiation means that a business is better at some things than others are.  Think, for example of two restaurants next to one another.  Let us assume that both are French Bistros.  Let us also assume that both serve the same menus.  Visiting Bistro 1, the patron notices that an order arrives within twenty minutes after being placed.  The patron also notices that Bistro 2 ensures that an order arrives within twenty minutes.  So far, both restaurants are the same.

Let us now assume that the ingredients used in Bistro 1 are about three days old and that Bistro 2 uses ingredients that came in this morning.  In addition, let us assume that Bistro 1 buys vegetables from the market and Bistro 2 grows its own vegetables in a small organic garden.

Which Bistro differentiated it in the eyes of the patron?  Clearly, Bistro 2 has the so-called edge over Bistro 1.

Taking the example further, let us look at the wait staff at both Bistros.  The watrons in Bistro 1 are all well groomed and friendly.  The watrons in Bistro 2 are a bit dishevelled and passive aggressive.  Does Bistro 2 still have an edge over its competitor?  In the view of Skopus Business Consultants, we would not visit anyone of these Bistros.  We may want to consider a place where orders arrive on time, the food is well presented, the chef uses the freshest ingredients possible in a squeaky-clean kitchen, AND the wait staff is friendly and clearly has a passion for what they do.

Differentiation or unique positioning, in other words, is all about how a business can stand out far above its competitors.  And the funny things is that differentiation sometimes means more common sense than spending lots of money on décor, advertising or the clichéd “location, location, location”.  Location is important and we will talk about that later.

However, in our view, differentiation has a slight edge over location.

This is the official blog of Skopus Business Consultants.  Visit us at www.skopus.co.za