Apr 6, 2022
Do you ever feel like you’re drowning in a sea of competition?
The internet is a noisy, crowded space and the fact of the matter is, if you don’t stand out - if you don’t learn how to “stop the scroll” - that’s when you get skipped over or end up potentially losing out when it comes to pricing.
In business, it is essential that you learn how to innovate and differentiate yourself from your competitors. You’re not like anyone else, and your customers need to see that.
In today's post, I’m helping you uncover ways to attract attention by embracing your uniqueness throughout the full arc of your buyer’s journey.
Read on and be sure to grab a pen and paper. This is a topic you’ll want to spend some quality time brainstorming on.
You weren’t made to fit in - you were born to stand out.
As a child, you were taught to fit in - in school and in your family. You were trained to fit in within the social structure of your peers. We grow up with the Goldilocks syndrome: we want to be not too tall, not too short, not too fat, not too thin, not too loud, not too quiet… we want to be just right.
But these “survival strategies” you learned growing up need to be unlearned now that you’re a business owner. Because if you are trying to fit in with everyone else around you in your business, you’re going to get lost in the crowd of competition.
so much so that you look like everyone else on the internet, then when someone comes across your social media post, that is supposed to garner attention and attraction and curiosity so that they engage with you and connect with you and potentially become customers. Well, if you look like everyone else, then no, one's gonna stop their scroll to even find out more about you. So the real key here is to be yourself, no matter how weird or strange or funky that may be, because that differentiator that unique part of you, especially if you're a personal brand business is the piece that's going to stand out to others and peak their curiosity in a way that makes them want to learn more. And your business needs to stand out as well. So if you're using reels or tos to gain attention, and you're going to the trending audio, because that's an easier way to get found. And you're trying to work with the algorithm. Yes, I applaud you. Well, you can't just make a realtor TikTok that looks like a everyone. Else's take the trending audio, use that to your advantage and come up with something unique and fun. And I find that the people who are having the most fun in their business
And having the most fun with social media are the ones who are able to stand out online. So the questions you need to ask yourself are, can you stop? The scroll is what you're doing in your business. Stop the scroll worthy and what can you off fur? How can you innovate and show value in a way that makes you different from your competition? Because when you show up like everyone else, you drown in a sea of competition, and that's when you start to fight and potentially lose on price. And if you're ready to differentiate yourself, then you need to start asking what makes you attractive? What value do you offer in the marketplace? That's different or better than your competition? How noticeable is your marketing? What do people think and say, when they see your message, what makes you different? What makes you unique? What makes you memorable? What makes your customers want to hit that? Share button and spread the word? And why do your customers return time after time?
What is the perceived value of differentiation that you offer that they keep coming back for? And if you're unsure what that is, then just ask your customers, call them up, take them to lunch, figure out a way to connect with them and ask them why they continue to work with you. What is it about where working with you that they love the most? When you're trying to stand out to gain attention, you may use different strategies than when you're trying to stand out to differentiate yourself in the marketplace and have the customer continue working with you. For example, to gain attention, you may focus on a pop of color. So we hosted our live event, uh, last week or two weeks ago in Charlotte. And there was one girl in the room wearing a pink blazer and she stood out. She became memorable. When I used to go to networking events in New York city, I would always wear a red hat.
And I became known to many people as that, that girl in the red hat and someone people wanted to meet because I had a look about me. I had a, a style that set me apart from everyone else. I can't tell you how many networking events I went to, where people would follow up with that girl in the red hat. Eventually they got to know me and you know, do business with me or refer me to others. But it all started because of something that stood out, it all started because I didn't look like every single other person in the room who was dressed in all black. And yes, most new Yorkers dressed in all black. I've had to really do a closet makeover since moving to the south. So you can use a pop of color or other tools, strategies to gain a, but once you gain the attention, you need to have something that differentiates you even further, that sets you apart from your competition, even more where you are offering value, that's better or different from everyone else they can work with.
And you can look at various aspects of your business to determine where exactly you can fit in these differentiators. For example, take service. How good is your service and service is what happens after they buy service is what happens after the sale. So how quickly do you follow up? You have an onboarding process to get your client onboarded with you. Do you have something that's easy and smooth or is it cumbersome and difficult? What does that look like? And how does it meet and exceed keyword being exceed your customer's expectations? Okay.
Standing out at every stage of your buyer’s journey
Becoming unforgettable and your customers’ one-and-only is not just about the initial attraction/acquisition. It’s important to look at every stage of your buyer’s journey and find ways to differentiate yourself throughout.
I like to break up the buyer’s journey into three easy to remember parts:
This stage is all about marketing, attraction, engagement, and connection.
This stage is your online intake, your discovery call, your proposal, and your follow-up.
This stage is everything that comes after they agree to buy: your delivery, the service you provide, how you keep in touch and foster the relationship, and how you gain testimonials and referrals.
When looking at each stage of the buyer’s journey, find ways that you can differentiate yourself. In each of these phases, consider what sets you apart from the competition. Incorporate your unique self and your unique business into the value you provide. Not only will this help you get seen and noticed in a crowded marketplace, but it will ultimately lead to far more profit in your business. People gladly pay more to have their needs met in ways no one else can.
Wondering how you can incorporate all of this into your sales process? This is something I work with my clients on both individually and in my mastermind group and retreats that I host. If you’d like to dig into how you can become truly outstanding in your business by standing out from your competitors, DM me over on Instagram and let’s chat. I know I’ve given you a lot to think about and journal on here today, but I’m always here to support you!
Improving your differentiation factor is work worth doing.
Are you currently doing anything specific to intentionally stand out? I’d love to hear about it!