On the first Monday in January, I began a series called “The 12 Marketing Fundamentals You Need to Succeed in 2021.“
In my first article of the series, I laid an important foundation that I will continue to build on. In that article I said…
Based on some things I’ve been reading from the experts I follow, there are some interesting trends and predictions that are said to be coming our way in 2021.
These trends and predictions will be opportunities for people that know how to leverage them.
But I believe that the sweet spot in 2021 is the place where opportunity and the fundamentals meet.
You see, the people and companies that succeed the most are the ones that keep their eye out for opportunities and then take advantage of them by harnessing the fundamentals.
What fundamentals? The marketing fundamentals that have existed for at least 100 years and that will probably exist for at least another 100 years.
-Scott Aughtmon, The 12 Marketing Fundamentals You Need to Succeed in 2021.
The First 3 Marketing Fundamentals:
The three marketing fundamentals that I’ve revealed so far are:
- The first marketing fundamental is attention. Because without attention, there is no marketing.
- The second marketing fundamental is attraction. Without attraction, all the work you put into capturing their attention will be wasted.
- The third marketing fundamental is follow-up. Because two of the biggest mistakes many companies make are tied to follow-up. They don’t follow-up at all. They don’t follow-up enough.
The 4th Marketing Fundamental You Need to Succeed in 2021
The fourth marketing fundamental that you’re going to need in 2021 is the one that really has an impact on all of the marketing fundamentals I’ve revealed so far.
And honestly, it probably impacts all the fundamentals I’m still going to reveal.
What is the fourth marketing fundamental? It’s your unique selling proposition or USP. Some call this your point of difference or POD.
Whatever you call it, it’s a marketing fundamental you can’t overlook. Why?
Because if you’re ever going to have any chance of your prospects choosing your company, product, or service over your competition, then they have to understand something important.
Your prospects have to know WHY and HOW your business is different and better than any of the other choices.
I have two situations for you to imagine to help you see the need for this.
SITUATION #1
Imagine that you’re thirsty and want to buy a bottle of water. Now imagine a whole crowd of people who all look and sound similar. They are even dressed similarly.
They are all yelling your name, holding up water bottles, and telling you they have what you want! Which one are you going to choose?
It’s hard to decide, isn’t it? It’s actually pretty confusing. You’ll probably pick the closest and/or the loudest one.
Let’s look at the next situation and see how different it is…
SITUATION #2
Now imagine the same situation and the same crowd yelling out the same things. But suddenly you look closer at the crowd and you see one guy who is dressed differently.
He’s yelling your name too, but he’s saying something different. He’s telling you that his water is chilled at exactly 40ºF to make it extremely refreshing. He tells you that the others are just at room temperature.
He also tells you that his water comes from a pure spring at the top of a mountain and is filtered to remove any impurities. He tells you that even though it is filtered, it still maintains the important minerals your body needs.
He also mentions that all of the others are offering just filtered and bottled tap water. He tells you that his water is priced at the same as the others, but that it will be much more refreshing and helpful for your body.
Which one are you going to choose now? The one guy who is different! Why? Because you know why/how what he is offering is different and better than the others.
This is what it’s like when we make it clear to our prospects why/how we’re different from the competition.
The Van with the Generic Sign
Many years ago, I was driving through a city and saw a van with a generic sign on its door that just said, “Air conditioning and heating service.’ It also had a phone number on the sign that you could call.
I couldn’t believe that was all it said! Did they think someone who needed that service was going to see the van a scream, “YES! I finally found an A/C and heating service!” And then call them right away?
In a small town, with no competition for miles around, that might work. But it’s not going to work in most other areas! Why didn’t this guy at least have his name on A/C & heating sign? Something at least like, “Steve Smith’s A/C& Heating service?”
Better yet, why didn’t this guy ALSO have something on the sign that explained how his service was unique. He could’ve had something like, “We offer the guaranteed best-priced services that are fully guaranteed for 1 year!”
That would’ve been much more powerful and attractive to prospects looking for his services. My prediction is that his business is no longer in existence.
Successful companies make it very clear that their companies are different than the competition. They clearly spell out how their product or service is better/different.
If you want your company to have a chance of succeeding, then prospects must know how you’re different than other companies selling the same things.
USP or POD Applied to the Other Fundamentals
But remember what I said earlier? I said that this also applies to the previous marketing fundamentals. Well, think about that for a second and then answer these questions:
- If you want to capture attention, do you think something different or the same will do it best?
- If you want to capture attraction, do you think something different or the same will do it best?
- If you want to capture attention with your follow-up, do you think something different or the same will do it best?
You know the answer.
Do you now see why I’ve said a USP or POD is so important?
I’ve mentioned the importance of your prospects knowing how your company or product is different or better is than the competition.
But the reality is that in this world that’s crowded with competition in every vertical, one of these things is more important than the other.
The short video below gives a pretty powerful argument as to why different is better than better.
Sally Hoghead – Why Different is Better Than Better
VIDEO DESCRIPTION: It’s no longer enough to be good, or better, or even the best. Now the question is…what makes you DIFFERENT? Sally Hogshead, New York Times Bestselling author, Hall of Fame Speaker, and creator of the Fascinate test speaks on the subject of why DIFFERENT is better than BETTER.
Want to Catch Up on This Series?
Have you missed my other articles and want to catch up? You can go to this page I’ve created for the series.
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