Competitive Advantages 101 – The Secret of Your Success

Why does one person get a job over another?

Why do customers or clients choose one company over another?

What makes an organization successful?

QUITE SIMPLY …

It’s because they do things better than their competition … it’s their competitive advantages that make the difference and make them special. 

BUILDING ON COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES …

people need to know about your competitive advantages and what makes you different than everyone else.  Having competitive advantages that no one knows about is almost worse than not having any advantages.

I know what some people are thinking … “What about luck?”  Many people make the excuse that successful people and organizations are just lucky, they were in the right place at the right time and didn’t have to do anything and success just fell in their lap.  It happens, but they had to be prepared and ready when the “luck” happened, which is a competitive advantage.

This is all very nice to say, but how do you take the concept of “competitive advantages” and apply this in the real world?

PERSONAL COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES

Bruce Beattie once told me that at a personal level everything comes down to your “Attitude, Behavior, and Skills.”

Do you have a healthy attitude towards life, work, and yourself?  It might seem simplistic to say this, but you can likely think of many people who do not have a positive outlook.  They complain about everything, they suck the energy from the room … in general, these people do not succeed as well as people who make the best of everything and every situation. 

As a place to start, here are 3 simple things you can do to improve yourself and make this a competitive advantage:

1. Try to make 3 people feel better about themselves every day
2. Count the number of times you say thank-you each day and don’t be satisfied until you say it at least 50 times a day.
3. The next time you find yourself about to complain about something; stop, think, and ask yourself:  “Is this making anything better or is it making it worse?” and then only proceed if it’s helping the situation.

Does your behavior help or hinder your life, your job, or what you are trying to accomplish?  Again, many people overlook the obvious cause/effect things that result from your behavior.  The best way to make this point is with an example:

• Many zoom meetings have a round table portion about “what is new” for each person.  Some people only answer superficially and give a forgettable answer.  If you want to communicate that you are different and/or special; take a few minutes and think of the most interesting or surprising thing you have done and briefly explain it … you will be amazed at the difference.

What unique skills and experience do you bring to your workplace or your career?  Tying into this point, is what are you continuing to do to build your skills and experiences.  Think about the people in your field or the companies that compete with your organization and ask yourself:

1. What do they do well?  Learn about their competitive advantages and figure out how to compete.
2. What do they not do well?  Figure out how to do it better for your organization.
3. What can you do differently?  How do you improve the value for your clients, customers, and donors?

HOW DO YOU INFORM PEOPLE?

1. Your resume.
2. Find creative ways to show your skills and experience.
3. LinkedIn, this is an excellent tool to showcase your abilities.
4. Ask employers, co-workers, and friends to write you testimonials and references.
5. Demonstrate your attitude and behaviors to everyone that you meet.

WHY WOULD A CLIENT/CUSTOMER CHOOSE YOUR ORGANIZATION?

For anyone, whether a client or customer, to choose you there must be a reason.  Remember that people have 5 principle motivations for purchasing products or services (5 Customer Motivations – step 2 qualifying).  Your organization needs to ask the right questions, provide the right answers, and then follow through and deliver on your promises.

1. Security – Essentially you need to prove to your customer/client/donor, that their investment in your organization will give them better value than they will receive anywhere else.  Trust and integrity are everything. 
2. Utility – Your customer/client must be aware of the products or services that you offer and timing is a major element.  Usually people want an answer and they want it right now.  You will lose customer loyalty every time they have to call you to find out where their order is or with every unexpected delay.  If a customer asks a question and no one gets back to them, that customer will try someone else next time.
3. Prestige – If your organization offers the “newest” or “the best” of anything, make sure all your people know about those products or services and respond appropriately when dealing with this motivation.
4. Pleasure – For some products or services this might seem not to make as much difference as the other motivations, but my challenge to you is to find ways to touch this.  For a charity competing for donations, letting a prospective donor know how their money is going to make an impact is important as many donors like the feeling that comes from making a difference in the world.
5. Savings – Everyone likes to save, and many organizations make the mistake of only advertising low-end price points when in fact they are missing the point that it isn’t the price point that matters, it is the savings that does. 

Just as important as the 5 Motivations, are ensuring that your clients or customers are aware of all the services that you offer.  Dave Booy, who runs a successful repair shop, has listed all of the services that he offers to his clients in his waiting area.  He is proud of those competitive advantages; he also has the same list posted in his staff area to remind his people of the things that makes his company special.  You should never assume that either your customers or associates are aware of all of your competitive advantages.*

HOW DO YOU LET PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT ALL OF THE THINGS THAT MAKE YOUR ORGANIZATION SPECIAL?

1. Tell them – simple social media posts, for example: “Did you know that … We give you a free car wash with every service,” like what Dave Booy does.
2. Signs and advertising.
3. Encouraging google reviews from clients.
4. Training your people on how to present your products and services.  Sales ability is not a natural skill, it needs to be nurtured and honed over time.
5. Simply do not allow ANY CUSTOMER to leave without being satisfied.  Regardless of the size of your community, “word of mouth” advertising and repeat business is the cornerstone of your ability to win customers and loyalty.

WHAT MAKES AN ORGANIZATION SUCCESSFUL?

In terms of competitive advantages, a successful organization is one that is constantly aware of and building their competitive advantages.  The marketplace of today is a constantly shifting and evolving entity that you cannot expect to remain static. 

Preparation, awareness, and self-awareness, and offering better value to your customers/clients are constants that have remained throughout.