Looking for markets with low competition doesn’t make sense – if only a chosen few can make money there, then why bother? Looking for a holy Graal type of nitche that you’ll win over is pointless because having competitors can only benefit you.
The thing is that it’s nerve-wracking to watch your competitors’ wonderful ads and marketing campaigns when you’re not doing much of that and focusing on delivering quality results.
That’s awesome – and it might mean that you don’t need to increase your marketing budget to sell more. You just need to learn to highlight the specific benefits customers will get from working with you.
Don’t be the same as your competitors – stand out by finding and promoting your company’s strenghts. Based on messages from a few of the hundreds of cold email campaigns we’ve ran, I’ll show you how to convince potential clients about your advantages over the competition.
Find your strenghts
Your strength isn’t how much you can spend on mindblowing marketing – it’s all the simple things you do for your clients’ comfort. I’m sure you offer a lot that others don’t – there are things you consider standard that the competition won’t provide for their clients.
Part of what RightHello does it finding and pitching our clients’ advantages in our cold email campaigns, which is why I think I know a thing or two and can help you answer the question:
What (and how) can you pitch as your advantage?
1. Your portfolio – the right way
I’m not going to re-discover the wheel by saying that you should showcase your portfolio when approaching new clients online.
But you’ll make it more effective when you showcase projects you’ve done for companies similar to the one you’re approaching. Make a note of the fact that you understand what your potential client might need – and prove it with the right projects from your portfolio.
2. Communication and transparency
Bad communication is one of the main reasons for B2B deals ending prematurely.
It’s important to get communication with your clients right, but many companies still treat it like a necessity rather than an opportunity to be better than the competition. Someone who’s paying you with their company’s money wants to know if it’s spent right – and you have to be open about the results of your work.
Not every company is, so if you have a tried and tested process for communicating with your customers, do business transparently and make an effort to always provide data for your clients, you should definitely pitch it.
3. Quick delivery
Time of delivery is often a make-or-break factor when negotiating B2B deals (check the knowledge base about business to business lead generation). Clients need efficient, on-time delivery. There are many companies that ignore that though, and because of ineffective workflows they constantly push the boundaries of late delivery.
If you can handle time-sensitive projects and have an effective workflow, let potential clients know.
4. Team experience
Your team is a group of people with the same goal – help your customers – and the sum of their experiences means how well it can achieve that goal.
So if you hire only the best people, or happen to have extraordinary employees on-board, let it be known.
5. Unique workflow
When improving your workflow, it’s important to think about your clients’ comfort as much as your team’s. But there aren’t many companies that do this.
If your workflow includes actions that aren’t necessary to finish the project – but are supposed to make your customers more comfortable, go ahead and pitch it.
Bet on your strenghts and keep selling
There’s no point in trying to imitate everyone else on the market, because it’s full of posers. Many companies promise but don’t deliver. Especially in highly competitive markets.
Such is life, and that’s why people don’t believe overpromising salespeople anymore. But you can stand out by giving the simple things, really delivering on your promises – and turning the spotlight on the simple things you do that make your clients’ comfortable.
These days it’s all about trust – and it’s gained with simple things, like being transparent, treating your customers well, adding value without being asked for it, etc. So don’t worry about competition – you just keep doing anything you can to make sure you’re company is trustworthy and base your marketing around that.
