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What can you do to differentiate your Gift Basket business from the thousands of others out there? Your products and services may already be different, use unique techniques, or have a quality that makes you stand out from the rest, and you don't even realize it! You can use these qualities to your advantage to distinguish your company from all of the others and gain sustainable competitive advantage in the market place.
Differentiate your Business from all Others by:
Know Your Competitors
The first step in differentiating yourself in the marketplace is to research your competition. Find out who your direct competitors are, what types of baskets and/or other products they offer, what special services they provide, and how they price their products and services. Understand their strengths and weaknesses, and compare and analyze the results with your own company.
Visit their web sites, retail locations, or look through the yellow pages for advertisements to gather information. This can afford you the opportunity to be creative and come up with a concept that is not used by any other company in your industry.
Know Your Customers
Find out what your customers really want and what benefits attract them when making purchasing decisions. As simple as this may sound, it is frequently overlooked, as people tend to assume the needs and wants of their clients. After all, marketing is about how to satisfy a customer's needs and wants while generating profits in the process. Ask your friends, family and colleagues what they look for in a Gift Basket and what other services you should offer to add value to your product and increase your unique aspect. Conducting a survey and sending it out to your customer base is also a way to gather feedback. You can offer incentives to clients who respond, such as 10% off their next purchase, or a free product sample.
Know Your Company
Make a list of all of the products and services that your company has to offer. Make sure to include everything, as minor details can sometimes prove to be profitable. After having made this list, separate it into three sections: Products, Services and Unique Aspect. Take a good look at your list and include all of the extra touches that you offer and that make you stand out in this business in the Unique section.
Create Value-Added Products
Customers are interested in the added-value of a product. What extra benefits come along with the product itself? It makes customers feel good to know that they are stretching their dollar further. Services such as: free delivery, next day delivery, satisfaction guaranteed, superior customer service, high quality, and lowest costs are all relevant all add an additional value to your product. All of these extra values create a perception in the customers' mind that they are receiving more benefits than the money that they are paying.
Glue Your Customers To Your Company
There's a term in marketing called the "80/20 Rule". It basically suggests that 80% of your revenue is generated from 20% of your overall customer base, while the rest of your customers creates only 20% of your total revenue.
Keeping your existing customers is very important to your business. It 1) allows you to enjoy a steady source of revenue without having to spend extra marketing budget on finding new customers, 2) provides you a free promotion channel by word-of-mouth, 3) avoids losing marketing shares and customers to your competitors.
Try to remind your customers about your company by sending them periodic newsletters, brochures, emails, or by simply calling them by phone. Remember, it's better for you to have those customers than your competitors.
Now you know what makes you different, you can gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace by concentrating your marketing efforts on the Unique Aspect of your company.
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