5 Easy Ways to Differentiate Yourself From Your Competitors

The most important thing you can do to grow your sales is to differentiate yourself from your competitors. Differentiation isn't just about what you deliver as a product or service. It starts before that and involves positioning your brand as a thought leader and trusted resource. Foster the perception that your company has the most skill and knowledge regarding the products and services you offer.A few quick things that can help you achieve this:• Communicate often. Utilize a series of high-value content related to the services you provide and that is directly attributed to your company. Every 90 days minimum. Every 30 days ideal. As Rio Longacre says, “It's selling without really selling.”• Be unique. Sending out the same materials or having websites that are similar to your competitors helps to commoditize your services. You'll end up selling on price.• Avoid the “old school” image. Talk about and offer services that are perceived as being leading edge. Assure your clients that you are staying abreast of the latest trends and technologies (mobile, personalization, drip and trigger campaigns) .• Embrace social media. Regardless of what you think about it, utilizing social media properly has a huge impact on how your company is perceived. It also allows you to connect with your audience in a more personable manner. It humanizes your company. Don't discount that.• Keep you website up to date. Having old, dated content on your website is a brand killer. It's the first place prospects go to gather information about your company. First impressions are critical. Updating your website content on a consistent, established basis should be a company policy. If you take the approach of “I'll get to it when I can get to it”, you will get left behind in 2014 with Googles new algorithms.If your looking to grow in 2014, contact me directly to discuss what you can do differently to generate new revenues.Patrick Whelanpat@greatreachinc.com