Core Differentiation Is What Makes You Stand Out In The Crowd

Change is the essence of life. Everything changes with time and so does your business and competition. Today the market is witnessing cut throat competition between industries and differentiation is what allows the business to survive this competition. Every entrepreneur understands the significance and need of being different from their competitors. The market is thriving on the philosophy of core differentiation. This means that if you are not different from your competitor then there is no way you can get ahead of your competitors and steal away their customers. If you are neither diversified nor have a unique selling proposition, then there is just the price you compete on. It is known how the businesses exit the market because of the competition based on price. This is because the already existing brands would do anything in their power to retain their customers or build prospective customers and erode profits from them leaving you way behind.

The Significance of Being Different

Already established companies always attract customers as they don’t have a reputation to build or have to establish themselves from scratch. But what small business or new entrants don’t understand is that their growth is based on the marketing message they send out to their target market and the USP of being different from the others. Differentiation here doesn’t mean what the ideal client is expecting from your company but what added advantage they will get from purchasing your products. Differentiation in products should be such that customers feel that the product is giving them more than what they expect or others are providing. This can be in terms of product differentiation or market differentiation rather than focusing on the customer service. Many entrepreneurs feel that if they offer the customer support in the market they would be different from others. However, it is not true. As said by Vicki M. James, “customer service is an expectation not a differentiation”.

Tests to determine your stand in the market

If you want to present yourself as an industry leader rather than just a substitute company, then you should focus on core differentiation, unique selling process and your marketing campaign. This is because if your ideal clients feel that there is nothing else they can compare you on other than price then you are actually fitting in rather than standing out of the crowd. Here is how you can determine whether you stand out of the crowd or not.

1. Reconsider your Business Card: The business should mention the name of your firm. This is essential because it tells what your company does, what benefit it offers and how they are better than others in the market.
2. Marketing Brochures: The marketing messages or brochures that you send out to your prospective clients should bear your firm name else the clients would not be able to differentiate between you and competitor.
3. Website: Ecommerce has compelled everyone to go online these days. This is where you can actually find out your stand in the market. You can compare your website with five other competitors and hide the company name. Then you look for which company looks more different than the other. This will reflect where you stand in your competition by showing how different you are.

It is good to enter the market with a new brand name, but unless you have something different and unique to offer to your prospective customers, you won’t be able to stand out of the crowd. So change your USPs and hit the market with differentiated products to taste the flavour of success.