Outshine,
Outrank, Outclass Your Competition
By Gerry Foster
Copyright
2003 by Gerry Foster
I like old movies. A favorite is City Slickers
with Billy Crystal. I once rented the video because I’d heard
the film provided a deeply emotional experience for men.
Little did I know just how emotional – and for a completely
unexpected reason.
The movie was, as I had heard, wonderful. But
the focus of my attention was on the character Curly played
by actor Jack Palance, who won an Academy Award for his performance.
For years I had been a fan of Mr. Palance, and I loved watching
old movies that he starred in. But in all my years of watching
films I didn’t recall seeing a movie where one line had such
a profound impact on me.
If you saw City Slickers, I’m sure you
recall the line I’m talking about Remember when Billy Crystal’s
character asked Curly what the key to life was? And Curly
held up his index finger and said, “One thing.”
Well that line got me thinking. You see, for
years I had been making the same basic claims about my services
and delivering the same messages as my competition. I never
had a single, identifying component of my business that differentiated
me from the rest of the crowd.
“What’s the one thing I can say about
my business that will set me apart and make me stand out in
the eyes of my prospective clients,” I started wondering.
“Why should people choose to work with me over
someone else? What will make me stand head and shoulders
above every other marketing advisor?”
Curly’s line caused me to think about my business
in a way I had never considered before. I knew that if I
didn’t find a way to stand out positively and distinctively
– and somehow give myself a unique, competitive advantage
– tough times were sure to follow.
Find Your Uniqueness
I mean, having to face a skeptical, cautious,
and distrusting buying public is one thing, but having to
face such a market without every advantage possible is ridiculous.
I discovered the “one thing” I didn’t have was
a Statement of Mastery (SOM) – a worthy identity that
makes me totally unique and gives prospects a compelling reason
to do business with me. It’s a phrase that tells everyone
the specific advantage they will gain by using your services.
Most service providers (marketing consultants
not withstanding), it seems, want to be all things to all
people. If you are not strikingly impressive, you will end
up making the same generic, esoteric, abstract claims your
competitors make in an attempt to attract clients. That’s
even more ridiculous.
By zeroing in on an exciting, meaningful, profound
advantage that was sure to impact a prospect’s mind (logically)
and connect with his/her heart (emotionally), I felt that
an SOM would show that I was better, that I was different
… that I was the master in my field.
I thought, “Maybe I can tell people that I have
more experience? Or, that I can provide a deeper, wider range
of service than anybody else? Better yet, maybe I should
say that I have stronger technical skills?”
But these sounded kind of “blah” and not very
original to me. I still wasn’t sure what to say.
Whatever it was, I had to make sure my SOM was
something “fresh” – something my competitors were not offering,
or could not offer. I knew every prospect I came across had
to feel they could expect to receive something of unique value
on an ongoing basis by working with me instead of a competitor
or, even worse, doing their own marketing.
SOM Spells RELIEF
See, I just couldn’t stomach the thought of
not having a unique point of difference. I literally got
sick at the thought of having to always convince, persuade,
and sell people on my services. I got woozy when I considered
resorting to any kind of outdated, pushy sales technique to
get a piece of business.
“I know people want better results,” I said
to myself. “Clients want quick, painless, inexpensive, easy
solutions to their marketing and sales problems. But if they
feel that I don’t have anything special to offer, they most
certainly won’t bother to seek me out.”
Whew!! I have to tell you that I literally
starved not wanting to believe that was the case.
You see, for years I served up basically the
same thing as most other marketing advisors. As an appetizer,
I handed out cups of “my menu of services,” dished out “marketing
jargon” by the bowl as my main entree, and poured “resume-type
data” down the throats of anybody that seemed the least bit
interested in working with me.
The sad thing was that I thought I was satisfying
the hunger of people “starving” for a service like mine.
In my heart of hearts I felt that I could turn even my lukewarm
prospects into clients by simply feeding them this type of
information.
Sure, I made a sale here, and a sale there.
But, with no consistency, no stability, and no peace of mind
at all! I saw my cash flow go up and down, around and around,
spinning like that little girl’s head in “The Exorcist.”
My income was mediocre at best.
I finally declared, “Enough, enough! It’s time
for this madness to stop!”
I decided it was time to come up with something
BIG that I could promise and live up to … and enjoy living
up to it. If not, I’d most likely fail.
In other words, I knew better than to make a
promise I couldn’t deliver!
But what was it? “What BIG promise can I make,”
I wondered.
I rattled my brain for days, trying to figure
out my uniqueness – my one thing – my point of difference.
And I knew that the number of possible SOMs for any kind of
service provider was virtually limitless.
Classic SOMs
I recalled my days back at Procter & Gamble,
working in Brand Management and developing branding strategies.
When I worked on Cascade dishwasher detergent, we promised
“virtually spotless dishes” because of its unique “sheeting
action.” A few floors down the folks on Crest toothpaste
promised to “prevent cavities” because it contained fluoride.
A buddy of mine worked on Dawn dish liquid detergent, and
they touted “less scrubbing with less effort on tough grease.”
I mean, is there any doubt about what the SOM
is for FEDEX? That’s right, “If it absolutely, positively
has to be there …”
Remember the one Dominos Pizza had for so many
years?
That’s right, “30 minutes or free.”
Or how about Kodak? They learned a long time
ago that people didn’t want to take pictures; they wanted
to “capture memories.”
Is any of this making sense?
Haven’t you found that few people will respond
to anything you say or do to “prospect” for new business unless
you give prospects a valid, compelling reason to use your
services? This means you have to make people want to do business
with you, rather than someone else.
Well, it does to me.
So, after a lot of soul searching, praying and
research, I discovered something very interesting about myself.
I realized that I had this strange, very deep spiritual desire
to share a unique marketing process I had developed with as
many service providers as possible, at fair prices.
And I wanted them to receive the best professional
support and advice available, to ensure each and every one
of my clients got the success they deserved.
Then it finally struck me like a ton of bricks.
I said to myself, “Gerry, you must be willing
to hold yourself accountable to a level of performance that
most other marketing consultants and coaches do not and cannot
match.”
This revelation renewed, restored, and reenergized
my business. A “new future” for my work got created. All
my past disappointments and setbacks got swept away.
In the end, I wound up writing a Statement of
Mastery that became my corporate soul … my image … my personality
… my point of difference and superiority that now serves as
the centerpiece for my marketing program.
Life’s Too Short Not To Have
Fun
See, marketing your services is, and should
be, a fun thing to do. It’s fun telling prospects “why” they
should favor you over the competition. It’s fun landing clients
that you enjoy servicing, working with super people who truly
appreciate what you’re doing for them. It’s fun getting paid
for something you truly love to do.
So, if you are not having fun anymore, or you
are working harder than ever with little to show for it, then
it’s time for you to get a centerpiece as well. That is,
a Statement of Mastery - an appealing promise or unique feature
- that conveys precious value.
It’s you clearly and precisely letting prospects
know what they’re going to receive in terms of unique service,
commitment, and focused energy on your part.
And once you nail it down, your SOM should then
be integrated - woven into the fabric – of virtually everything
you do.
After that, the sky’s the limit!
See, merely bragging or boasting about your
credentials - how smart you are, how successful you are, how
many awards you’ve won, how long you’ve been in business,
how many books you’ve written, that you’ve got the newest
equipment, and whatever “just hire us because we’re good”
or “we’re open for business” statement you come up with -
is not my idea of having fun.
And believe me when I say that listening to
or reading about such accolades is definitely not a fun thing
for prospects to do. Nor is it a justifiable reason for them
to seek out your services.
Take it from me. Until you have a unique and
special promise or claim to make, folks have every right to
fight you on price, stall you with excuses, ignore your calls,
and say “no” over and over … basically, pay you no mind whatsoever!!
The sad truth, however, is that very few service
providers – no matter what industry you compete in - have
statements of mastery. It’s something that people seem to
struggle at developing. Yet, because it is your company’s
heart and soul, it really is the essence of what your work
is all about.
From the top down, your SOM should be evident,
be obvious, and be crystal clear to everyone inside and outside
your organization. So much so that it comes to mind whenever
prospects think about your type of service.
A Day At The Beach
Listen. Developing a SOM is indeed a
fun thing to do. It will put more money in your pocket. And
your company’s bottom-line.
To develop one for your organization, simply
ask a basic question, “What bold, unheard of promise or claim
can we make that fills an unmet want in our industry?”
That’s it.
It could be that you can respond to a service
call in 2 hours instead of 4 hours. And if the client does
not get that response, he receives a discount off his invoice.
It could be that your people are five times
better trained or technically skilled and thus, are master
technicians.
It could be that your process is the most comprehensive
in the industry and thus, is the best solution.
Maybe your guarantee or warranty is six times
better than the norm.
Maybe clients can get a hold of someone for
advice and assistance immediately if they contact your office.
Or, maybe you can offer something dramatic and
sexy, like these examples:
- A janitorial service
promised to vacuum the carpets, empty out the trash, clean
all desks, and so on. But for an additional nominal monthly
fee, they would clean all PC monitors and terminals, clean
the glass frames of any print art, scrub the light fixtures,
and wash all walls.
- A computer repair firm I advised now guarantees
a desired result by saying, "If we can't fix it,
you don't have to pay us."
- Telecom says they have
the 2nd largest fiber optic network, a dedicated
flat, low rate of 2.2 cents per minute, 6-second minimums
and billing increments, and 24-hour customer service.
- A payroll service firm
I advised guaranteed “no checks printed incorrectly”
and stood behind their claim by saying, “Or else we’ll
refund the entire cost of processing your payroll.”
- A mortgage banker guaranteed,
“1 hour loan approval!” And to boot, NO points, NO closing
costs, NO money down, and NO income verification
loans!!
- Phone USA offers FREE
unlimited local & local toll calls, FREE unlimited
long distance calls to all 50 states, FREE features of
call waiting, ID, speed dial, and 3-way calling, and FREE
voice mail with find me, notify me and personal website
features - all for a monthly per line flat rate of $49.99
for residential customers.
Or how about this gem:
A heating and air conditioning company offered Southern California
home owners an 18
Point Precision Tune-Up on your furnace for only
$69 (a savings of $60 off the normal
price), backed by an ironclad 3-part guarantee:
- If you’re not happy with the tune-up for
any reasons whatsoever, just let the technician know and
you don’t pay.
- If you don’t save at
least $100 on your heating bills during the winter, simply
let us know and we’ll immediately refund your money, with
no questions asked – no hard feelings, either, and
- If your air conditioning
system breaks down any time, we’ll come out and fix it absolutely
free
The point is to come up with something powerful
and unique that grabs, startles, hooks, and surprises people.
Work with an outside professional (like yours truly) to help
communicate your special talents, skills and abilities in
terms that are both meaningful and compelling to prospects.
Folks must feel they can’t get your offer anywhere else.
If not, you’re doomed!!
My advice is that your SOM revolves around a
promise or guarantee of certainty, and high levels of performance
that will make you perform even better than you normally would.
And if you work in a profession that prohibits you from making
performance claims of any sort, then differentiate yourself
by being a specialist. A financial planner, for instance,
could specialize in servicing specific niche markets such
as widows, divorced women, CEOs, physicians, and so on. Or,
he/she could specialize in retirement planning, estate planning,
college education funding, or whatever.
The beauty of positioning yourself as a specialist
is that it does not limit you exclusively to an area
of concentration. You can specialize in working with several
types of clients if you wish. Specialization allows you to
say to someone, “I understand your market. I speak your language.
I have a track record of success in this area.”
But whatever you come up with, make sure it’s
the truth and that you can fulfill it. You and your team
must maintain the highest standards to deliver that SOM through
your whole organization.
Bottom line: Be it, project it, and flow with
it.
And above all, have fun with it!
Oh, what did I come up with as my SOM, you may
be asking? Glad you asked. This is what I tell service providers
who purchase my Mastery Marketing® System:
You're going to like the results we produce
for you. I guarantee it.
Here's what I mean.
You're going to be satisfied
with our work, the price,
and the amount of new business you receive.
Or? We'll make it right … plus a whole lot more!
No one can match our TRIPLE
GUARANTEE!!
Please
contact me directly by phone at 949.499.1174 or by email at
gerry@masterymarketing.com if you
would like me to assist you with developing your Statement
of Mastery.
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