One of the “personal productivity” websites I subscribe to just sent me a really useful guide on “How To Score The Best Holiday Shopping Deals”.
It shares some really good tips and tricks to make sure you’re getting the best bargain from a number of online and local merchants.
Great for me.
Great other consumers.
Bad for businesses.
Why?
Because these types of tactics effectively reduce a business’s value to one thing: PRICE.
The one with the best overall price (including shipping and tax) invariably gets the sale.
BTW… If you’re thinking, “Phil, that’s great and all, but I’m not selling electronics or toys or cookware, so this just doesn’t apply to me.”
BUZZ! WRONG ANSWER!
Make no mistake…
Whether it’s the portion of your servings, your star rating, the distance to your customer’s house, the number of reviews on your profile…
You are being compared to your customers in one way or another.
Back in my suit-and-tie days, we used to call these types of situations “column fodder”.
Purchasing managers would create reports for decision makers (AKA check signers) on their best recommendation for a product or service using a spreadsheet.
This would put every bid/vendor on an even scale so that they can make “fair apples-to-apples” comparisons.
Yeesh! I cringe every time I hear that phrase… apples-to-apples.
So how do you get out of that one and still come out on top?
Two ways…
First, stop being an apple and be an orange instead.
Structure your offer, describe your business/product/service, and approach your prospect in a completely different way than your competitors do.
For example, bundle your services so that they can’t be broken out piecemeal and easily plugged into an Excel column.
Second, if you’re looking to win the price battle to attract customers, make sure you have a strategy for making back that lost margin.
Former customers of group buy services like Groupon and livingsocial know only too well that a flood of customers can quickly turn into disaster.
Don’t just look at winning that short-term transaction.
Think of your long term relationship with your new customer both in terms of repeat business and referrals.
Of course, this doesn’t just apply to the holidays, does it?
Cheers to your success!
Philipp
P.S. If you know you need help with creating effective, long term, automated marketing strategies, keep an eye out for my upcoming trainings.
Or for faster, more personal attention, you can request my comprehensive Marketing Process Audit at 909-297-1662.
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