How do you differentiate your product or service in such a way that it cannot be compared to anything that anyone else is offering? If you have lived in the Triad for even a short period of time, you know that Greensboro is a far different city from High Point…that Winston-Salem has its own charm and qualities that differentiate it from Greensboro, High Point, Thomasville, Kernersville or anywhere else in the area.

But here it is again: How do you successfully differentiate what you sell from all of your competitors? Over the past 21 years I have worked with lots of organizations whose products or services could easily have been perceived as a commodity – banks (selling money), beef producers (selling meat), ink suppliers (selling printing ink), paper manufacturers (selling paper). The list is virtually endless since we have worked with over 2,000 organizations from over 300 industries worldwide!

Let’s take a look at five signs that should (or could) be a sure tip-off that you are allowing what you sell to be perceived as a commodity:

Every negotiation, sales presentation or transaction degenerates to an issue of price.

Prospects or customers are asking for a breakdown of your selling costs, margins, production costs, etc. ("spreadsheet buying").

Long time customers are inviting other potential suppliers to bid on business.

A lot of your business is won or lost strictly on bid.

Too many of your RFQ’s (Requests For Quote) outline a specific set of requirements, standards and terms for qualification.

• Convenience
• Customer Service
• Number of financial relationships you already have
• Friendliness of branch employees
• Ease of paperwork
• Faster qualification
• Timeliness of answers/turnaround
• Sense of security
• Number of branches near your home

The trick is to be able to really (and I mean really) understand what your customer’s hidden agenda is. Expect them to tell you that the only thing important to them is price – but understand that they really covet things like on-time delivery, quality at 98%, expert customer service, timely advice, experienced support staff or any number of other issues relating to everything that surrounds your product or service!

Let’s take a quick look at three secrets behind how to truly differentiate you, your organization and your products or services from all of your competitors.

• Understand the difference between customer Needs and Wants. Needs relate to your product while Wants relate to the emotional agenda and the beneath-the-surface reasons why customers really buy anything – security, confidence, independence, recognition and control are all examples of this. And they all depend upon the buyer!
• Learn how to ask the right questions. Questions that will allow your prospects and customers to tell you what they are looking for that supercedes price.
• Understand how to present your product or service in such a way that the features related to your product are secondary and that the components and result benefits and solutions most essential to your prospect become primary in the mind of the buyer.