Unleash Your Competitive Streak: How To Leave Your Rivals Standing

Unleash Your Competitive Streak: How To Leave Your Rivals Standing

In business, it’s all about reaching the top of the tree. Whatever your area of expertise, you’re always going to encounter competition. To win, you need to make sure that you can outrun your rivals, and leave them standing. It’s not easy to get ahead, especially in a saturated marketplace, but hopefully, this guide will come in handy.

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Originality

If you’re offering a service or selling a product or a range of products, there’s every chance that there are other firms that are doing the same. Whether you’ve developed a new product or you’ve set up a shop, for example, you need to make sure that you adopt an original approach, and that you are different to your competitors. Think about how your store will stand out from the crowd and attract more customers than another shop. What’s going to make people stop at your door, rather than theirs? Every business, from window cleaning services and marketing agencies to accounting firms, plumbing companies and retailers should have a USP. This is what makes your brand and what you do unique. Once you’ve figured out your USP, up-sell it as best you can. If you’re willing to go to your clients and provide a bespoke service, include this feature in all your marketing material. If you’ve got a product nobody has ever seen before, make sure people know that this is a brand new concept. If you can offer state of the art technology and results that are better than those produced by others using older gadgets and gizmos, make this the focus of your marketing campaign. When customers are trying to choose which firm to go for, you want your business to be the flamingo in a flock of pigeons, so always try and be as original as possible.

Minimizing risk and encouraging trust

Running any type of business carries risks. Even if you have extensive experience and you’ve got the latest kit and the best team of people around you, there’s no guarantee that everything will run smoothly on a daily basis. As the manager, you may not be able to prevent every problem, but you need to ensure that you’re doing everything you can to minimize risk and oversee a company that gives customers what they want.

When you run a business, it’s always best to be cautious and to have plans in place, which can be called upon if things do go wrong. Consider what would happen if you or one of your employees made a mistake, which ended up costing a client. This could affect your reputation, result in lost sales and cost you money in compensation. That is if you don’t have insurance cover. When you’re touting for business, and you’re trying to persuade new customers to choose you, trust is important. If you can show a client that you’re a reputable firm and you’ve got policies and procedures in place to protect both yourself and your clients, this could help to set you apart from others. If you don’t already have business insurance, click here to find out more. Building trust isn’t just about showing customers you can respond to concerns or cope with bumps in the road. It’s also about taking time to listen, responding to feedback, and making that customer feel sure that they’re making the right choice.

Getting your name out there

If you’re trying to compete with companies either on a local, national or international scale, you need to get your name out there. Being successful isn’t just about providing a service or selling products that people want or need. You’ve got to make sure that people know how to reach you and that they choose your business over others. Whether you have a shop, you arrange all your business over the telephone, or you run a website, it’s essential to ensure that potential clients are aware of that all-important phone number, web address or store location. You want to make it as easy as possible to convert interest into sales.

There are so many ways you can spread the word when it comes to generating interest in your business. If you’re opening a shop, a salon, a hotel, a restaurant or a bar or you’re offering a service such as dog walking, plumbing, general maintenance or mobile hairdressing, for example, you can use a diverse range of marketing techniques. Examples include flyers and adverts in the local press, features in magazines and local newspapers and social media. If you are opening new premises, it’s also a really good idea to host an event and invite local people to attend. This gives you a chance to show off your new venture, and it will get people talking. If the launch is a success, you’ll have those attending passing recommendations on to friends and family, and hopefully, you’ll notice a surge in sales.

 

If you run an online business or you want to add an online component to your marketing strategy, the first thing to ensure is that you’ve got a brilliant website. So many consumers buy online now, and you need to make sure that your site looks the part. Just as a stunning window display can entice customers to visit a shop, your website design can make all the difference when it comes to helping a client choose which company to use. If your site is dated, it looks drab, or it lacks any kind of compelling content, it’s likely that clients won’t spend much time looking around and finding out more. In contrast, if your site looks slick, stylish, and professional, it’s easy to use, and it enables you to do what you want very quickly and conveniently, you’re onto a winner.

Once you’ve got your site up and running, the next step is to try and encourage more people to use it. You can do this by using methods like SEO (search engine optimization) and social media marketing. Email marketing campaigns can also be effective. SEO involves using tailored content to drive your links up the search results pages. When you use a search engine like Google, which links do you typically follow? The vast majority of people don’t even bother looking past the first page. You can also use social media accounts linked to your website to run competitions, advertise special offers and events, and encourage people to check out your site and learn more about what you do and why you’re so special.

Prioritizing customer care

If you own a business, it’s always useful to put yourself in a customer’s shoes. If you were on the lookout for a new car, a plumber or somewhere to enjoy a special occasion, who you would plump for? A company with a good reputation that offers that personal touch or a firm that is simply out to make as much money as possible? Every client wants to feel valued, so make sure you listen to your customers, you treat everyone the same, and you go the extra mile to provide the best service possible.

Whether you’re a new business owner or you’ve been around the block, it’s essential to understand the importance of being competitive. If you can’t outshine your rivals, respond to the moves your rivals make and impress your customers, you won’t last long. Keep a close eye on what your competitors do, be original, and work on creating a good reputation. Spread the word, promote your business, showcase it in its best light, and never underestimate the value of customer service.

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