How Online Marketing Can Separate You From Your Competition
Here in the McKinney TX and Allen area, we are blessed to have so many great businesses, from restaurants to daycares to dentists to pet care—you name it, we have it! This is a very good community to live in, and it’s great for consumers!
But that can make it a challenge for business owners because there is so much competition for your business! I want to show you a few different ways that you can use social media and online marketing to differentiate yourself from the competition so that people want to do business with you.
First, I want you to think about something. Think of your website as being like a movie. You go to see a movie once, maybe twice, and it’s the same every time you watch it. Your social media is more like a TV show, where there are several different episodes and stories. Just think about “Friends,” for instance, where you get to follow the characters through all the different stories and episodes. Your social media posting is like this, because it changes every day and keeps moving through different stories and episodes, and it never ends! (Unlike “Friends,” which did come to an end, so we’ll forget that part to make our metaphor work!)
So with that in mind, here are some ways you can use social media and online marketing as your own “TV show” to help people see why they should do business with you:
1. Show how you’re different:
There are little things that you do in your business that are different from how your competition does things. Use your social media to show these differences.
For instance, let’s say that you’re an auto repair shop and you offer pickup and delivery service for free for busy professionals who don’t have time to come in for repairs or service. You can make a post to your social media accounts: “Hey! I’m just on the way to go pick up a client’s car because they are too busy to bring it in.” When you post like this you subtly show people how you’re different.
I once heard of a lawn care company that would take pictures of the completed yard work, the beautifully-landscaped yard, and text that to the homeowner to say “Your yard is done, and this is what it looks like!” This kind of thing can also be a Facebook post. “We’re done with Mr. and Mrs. Johnson’s yard, and we’re about to text this picture to them so that they can see how we did!” That way you can show people, through Facebook, how you’re different!
2. Let your customers tell how you’re different:
This is my favorite. We have been getting video testimonies for our clients of customers who are just over the moon for their services! When you have customers who are excited about what you’ve done for them, they’ll tell your story for you better than you ever can!
In some cases, you might be the 2nd or 3rd company that your customer has tried. Now that they have found you and love you, let them tell people why they were with some other company, but now they’re with you! This kind of video testimonial from your clients is so powerful! So whenever you can, let other people tell the world how you’re different!
3. Tell stories:
This ties in with the whole “TV show” idea. Tell a story! Be a storyteller! People remember stories. I will never forget the story that the lawn care company told me about the texts that they send people. So make sure that when you have a compelling story, you tell it.
Here’s an example. Let’s say you’re an air conditioner repair company. Your potential client called several other people first, got super low bids for the work, and hired someone. That company came in and was not professional, didn’t put booties on their shoes, tried to upsell them on everything. And even worse, their house did not get cool! The result was a very unsatisfied customer!
So then they call you. They find out a little bit about why your service costs a little more: You have professional background checks on your guys, professional trucks, knowledgeable workers who explain the process, do the work with a servant’s heart, don’t try to upsell the customer, and most importantly—get the house cool again! This would be a great story to share on Facebook!
I don’t mean that you should bash the competition! I’m a big believer in talking about what you do well, not about what other people don’t do well. I’m talking about subtle stories about how you are different. Always put the focus on what you do well.
My whole philosophy is that we want people to choose our clients because they’re better, not because they’re necessarily cheaper! So if you do these three things, show how you’re different, have clients tell your story, and then you tell stories yourself, you are going to find more and more people who will choose you over your competition. There are a lot of businesses out there, and I want to make sure that people choose yours! Who could benefit from this article? When you think of someone, please share it with them!