The art of differentiation: How to be unique in the eyes of your market (Part 1)

Start-up entrepreneurs and businessmen are always advised to be different because of the popular belief that being different is good for business – and the bigger the difference the better.

Business owners often find it a challenge to find the one particular differentiator that they think will be the one that will bring them success. But there are a number of ways that you can use differentiation to achieve success. Of course, some are easier to do than others.

According to business experts that for a business to be successful it must have either of two things – a lower cost than the competition or differentiate itself from the competition.

Although having a lower cost may sound like the easiest to do, this option is also a bit more dangerous especially if you will pit your business against a larger company that has more financial muscle and has the economies of scale running in its favor. It’s also not a good business option for small businesses. Thus, the strategy of differentiation is the best option left.

Business experts believe that differentiation works because customers are willing to spend for a product that meets their needs compared to a lesser product or service that is just barely satisfactory. Also, customers are willing to pay for quality.

So, how can a business differentiate itself from the competition?

Learn to position your products or service

The first step you should take is to find out how your business may be different from your competitors. It is important to make this position clear to yourself and your management team because this will make customer understanding easier as well as the dissemination of business issues. Three things should be considered:

Variety. Clients may go and do business with you if you have an exceptionally wide variety of products or services to sell. Customers would know that they can purchase a nice range of products and services from you and this makes purchasing large numbers of different items easier and much quicker.

Needs-based positioning. Clients would want to do business with you because they know that you can best meet their specific needs. This is the kind of position that niche market players take. For a good example, try to think of a company or store you know that only addresses a specific need or desire.

Access-based positioning. Clients would want to do business with you because you make your business available in a manner that is attractive to them. Most people are getting more cash-rich but at the expense of losing the luxury of time. That’s why being able to purchase goods when and where it is convenient is becoming more and more of a premium. The internet has grown based on these principles. The ease of shopping – compared to travelling to a bricks and mortar store – is a major factor in the popularity of the internet.

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