Differentiating yourself and your products from competitors pays off big because with that clarity, you can sell based on value instead of price.

Yet, rarely does a company articulate real differentiators. When creating disruptive sales messages for clients, I ask companies what makes them different and I hear, “Customer service, better price, longevity in the market.”

These are the same exact words the competitors use. No differentiation there.

You can’t just be different to win. You must be desirably different.

The stark reality: you don’t know your differentiators until your customers tell you what they are. And those differentiators will change over time.

Let me share with you some of the secrets of how you can do this on your own.

Discover Your Strengths

Start by asking your happiest customers why they buy from you. Take them out for a meal and interview them about their reasons for choosing you instead of the competitors. Ask them,

• “Why do you buy from me?”
• “What makes you the happiest about our company?”
• “What would cause you to switch to another vendor?”

Take notes and prepare to be amazed at the answers you get. You may wish to take an audio recorder or use your smartphone’s video recording function and ask to record the conversation for testimonials on your Web site.

Discover Your Competitor’s Strengths and Your Weaknesses

Phone customers who have defected to your competitor to find out why they left. You might think that it’s difficult to get a former customer’s attention, but they’ll give you a few minutes if you tell them, “I really want to know what happened so that I won’t make the same mistake again.”

When they agree, ask

• “What was it we did or didn’t do that caused you to leave?”
• “What did the competitors do or not do that caused you to switch?”
• “What would have to happen to win you back?”

Even if you don’t get their business back, you’ll discover important information about the competition’s strengths that you can counter with your own strengths.

Discover Your Competitor’s Weaknesses

Interview customers that you’ve won away from the competition. Ask them,

• “Why did you choose me over your other options?”
• “What did the competitor do or not do that made you change your mind?”
• “What did I do that made the difference?”

Position Yourself with Your Customer’s Words

Now you have everything you need to present real, powerful, desirable differentiators to prospects. Bring them up early in the conversation to defuse the competitor’s position before your prospect brings them up.

You can present them with real power if you frame them with the phrase, “My customers tell me that they choose me because…”

When you preface your differentiators with that phase, it makes your position inarguable because you’re not making an unproven assertion, you’re reporting what others say as proof of your desireable difference.

Continuously Schedule Customer Interviews

Make a point of repeating this process regularly so that you’re operating with the latest reasons, because your competition probably isn’t sitting still. It’s also a great reason to contact customers and lost customers as part of your regular sales activities.

Let’s have a conversation about growing your business through strategic planning, marketing plans, executive coaching, and customer acquisition systems. Find a mutually agreeable time at MarksSchedule.com or contact me.