It’s like clockwork. Every time I walk into a small business or do business with someone, I instinctively anticipate what separates this business/this person from another one down the street. I may not actively and consciously think about it, but my mind immediately goes to the same questions: What exactly do they offer? How do they stand out in the community as the “go-to” place that people rave about? What is their “wow factor” and what’s going to make me tell my friends and neighbors about them? If I can’t find the answers to those questions pretty quickly, or I can’t quite wrap my head around the point of their business and why I should choose them over their competitors, I quickly lose interest and either forget about them or actively move on. There are few exceptions to how this plays out in my mind. And while I can’t speak for most consumers and their thought-process, I would estimate that, whether they are consciously thinking about it or not, they are processing the businesses they patronize in the same way.
These questions we ask ourselves when we step into a brick and mortar or go online to buy or set up an appointment influence our buying behavior. Will we gladly trust this person…this business and give our hard-earned money to them? Or will we shy away and hesitate before we open up our wallets?
Unfortunately, and more often than not, I am completely underwhelmed as a consumer by part or all of my experience when I walk into a business for the first time. Perhaps, this comes from living all over the world and experiencing the very best, cohesive brands that make me want to come back again and again (typically in large, thriving cities where there’s more competition as well as up and coming consumers who dictate behavior), and many times, the very worst unbranded businesses (in smaller, less robust communities) that make you wonder how they are still even open. Usually, however, the differences I experience are fairly minimal from one brand to the next, and the necessary improvements that would help a business stand out and thrive are straightforward, simple ones that can be learned and implemented rather easily.
So, what are the wow factors every single business (from big to small, from sole proprietors to LLCs and corporations) should be implementing to help them stand out from the rest? While those may vary slightly from one type of business to another depending on the needs of the consumer, and there are many facets of business to consider, I want to address the marketing side of things since it’s my favorite part — and in my humble opinion, just as every movement from the stage before you sing is part of the performance — EVERYTHING customer facing IS marketing!! That said, I have found some common threads that make really successful businesses outperform their competitors by a long shot, and I’d love to share them with you here. You may agree or disagree, and that’s OK, but this is my opinion as a small business brand strategist and educator.
So, let’s get this list underway, shall we?
- EDUCATION. This is a big one. The businesses that are way ahead of the game in terms of what to offer and how to set up shop can no longer rely on success of their predecessors or base their SOP (standard operating procedure) on what others in their industry are doing. While this may be true for how to make pasta or pastries like my grandmother used to do back in Italy, this is no longer the case for how you operate your business and market it to the world if you truly want to do more than just survive. As we know, things are constantly changing, and the way you present your business, gain visibility, acquire and retain customers should be changing as well. If you’re not educating yourself and your staff about the changes needed to uplevel your business, you may maintain status for a while, but you will eventually fall behind and become obsolete and archaic.
- CLARITY. What do you offer? Who is your ideal customer? Where does your ideal customer currently go for the same service you offer? How can you serve them better than your competitor? All of these factors are crucial as you brainstorm your brand strategy and clarify your brand voice. Some old school folks might think a lot of this is mumbo jumbo or even redundant when it comes to their business and won’t take the time to do it. “Well, it’s clear what I do — I cut hair…I sell insurance…I’m a realtor…why do I need to think about all this?” But in this day and age, people need to distinguish your business from the rest and the clearer you can get about who you serve and how you serve them, the better. Think of it as a light in the fog. You are pulling back the curtains to your business and unveiling it like Apple unveils it’s new and improved iPhone every few months. Your ultimate goal is that you want them to see all your benefits and have complete assurance that your business is THE ONE they will come to. It’s that simple.
- SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY. You may love it or hate it, but the brands that are currently thriving in communities all over the world are doing so with a clear social media strategy to attract more clients and guide them to their business over others in their community. Instead of resisting this change to the climate of advertising and marketing with print ads, business cards, mailers, flyers and brochures that were and are costly for the business and unwanted clutter for the consumer, they are embracing their free visibility and brand identity on social media as a positive, inexpensive way to communicate their business and understand their customer needs and profiles in a more intimate, insightful way. Do you think understanding this gives them a leg up? I sure do!
- INTIMACY. Speaking of which, the next and final way I see high producing brands and businesses stand out from their competitors is by taking the time to get to know their potential clients/customers and understand what they are needing. Now, before you get the wrong idea about what I’m saying, let me clarify: the word intimacy simply means “close familiarity or friendship; closeness.” And through the channels of social media (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, NextDoor, etc…) as well as email and text, we can accomplish that closeness by forming bonds with our potential clients in a way that traditional advertising and promoting our corporate labels all over the place can’t do. We can take surveys, do polls, ask questions, give answers, provide insight, take requests, say thank you, provide valuable, informative content and help our clients in a way that no other form of marketing has ever been able to do before — and we can do it en masse and reach thousands of would-be customers in one click of a button!
If you are reading this and thinking, “Oh, I love all this and need it, but I’m so far IN my business that I just don’t have time to implement any of it!” I want you to take a step back and breathe. By no means, am I suggesting you have to do all this immediately…or on your own! But I do want you to take it seriously and understand how your brand voice needs to stand out and be set apart from your competitors in order for you to 1. have a FULL client roster and neverending leads, 2. scale your business beyond your wildest imagination and 3. (optional, but highly suggested) teach others in your field how to do the same!
Wouldn’t it be great if your marketing SOP was just as set in stone and solid as your daily, monthly, quarterly operating procedure for your actual business is? Do you see even a glimpse of how this could help you long term?
If so (and I hope so!), I want to invite you to come along with me and learn how to develop your brand strategy that can quite literally SET YOU APART from the rest. My goal for you is neverending leads that not only continually do business with you again and again, but they are raving fans who tell the world (or at least your local community) about how great you are! Wouldn’t that be something? It’s possible. And it’s possible for you THIS YEAR in 2022!
If this post provided you value or if you have any questions about how you can work with me, I’d love to hear from you in the comments as well as have you share this content out with those in your industry who may need this as well.
Remember: the more you PROVIDE value, the more you BECOME invaluable to those who do business with you!
xo,
Amy