What sets you apart from your
competition? A big part of marketing is emphasizing the distinction between you
and your competitors. These are often referred to in marketing circles as your
FABs, which is an acronym for Features, Advantages and Benefits (sometimes
referred to as Features, Attributes
and Benefits.) That works when you are selling a product. Your widget can be
compared to the competition’s widget. But I want to focus on being distinct
within the services industries. Especially those that are heavily regulated, so
distinctions between one service and another is often not so noticeable by the
customer. Industries like banking, insurance, financial services, accounting,
education, etc. are all regulated and are limited on the services they offer
either by licensing or government regulation. Marketing becomes a mantra of "we
care about the customer,” and "customer service is our highest priority” which
everyone in the service sector says. In other words, those taglines don’t set
you apart. So how can a company within the service industry be marketed as
distinct?
You must do something that makes you
memorable to the customer. Let me give you two examples of this from the
service sector of insurance. Years ago I met a father and son who had an
independent insurance agency in a small town. They had a very small staff, but
they consistently outsold not only their competition, but other insurance
agencies in their state - many of whom were in much larger metropolitan areas.
They were selling the same products as the other agencies, they just sold more
of it. They had the customer service gig down to a science, with their small
staff jumping on each claim as soon as it came in their doors. Their calling
card became a very simple device that no one else did and it helped make them
memorable in the minds of customers: they wore a fresh carnation in their lapel
everywhere they went when they were conducting business. The principal
of the agency told me that he had insured a local florist who was just starting
out. He wanted to help them get off the ground, so he ordered a flower to wear
each day of the week. It became so popular with his clients that they began to
question him about it when he was not wearing a fresh boutonniere. He knew he
was on to something. It helped the customer remember him.
The other
example is from an insurance executive who grew tired of handing out the
typical trinkets that make up marketing specialties offerings – logo pens,
notepads, mouse pads, water bottles, golf balls, etc. He decided he would take
another route to being memorable. He handed out neckties! In a business where
people still wear them, a fine silk necktie made a bigger impression than logo
apparel did. He had taken a liking to a particular brand of ties from the McIlhenny Company, the makers, of all
things, of Tabasco Sauce.
He had a lot of compliments from people when he wore the ties, so he kept several
dozen with him. When he met someone wearing a tie, he would tell them, "your
tie is ugly! You need a better looking tie!” Then he would pull out his
assortment of ties and tell them to take one! Memorable? You bet it was! People
began to talk about the Tabasco tie guy and his generous ways. Do you think he
would have gotten the same reaction had he given them a coffee cup with his
logo on it?
Forget the usual junk that gets
passed around and no one really cares about. Do something original to make you
and your company distinctive. Don’t do what everyone else is doing, be
original. If you do, the customer will remember you. That’s what marketing is all
about.