How to Stand Out in a Sea of Competition

  by Ann Barr

At a seminar recently, someone asked me how she could differentiate herself from the competition. Her question was: “How can I set myself apart from other telephone sales people who are calling prospects? What can I say or do to cause a prospect to want to switch vendors and buy from my company?”

My answer was to offer something of value to the prospect in the way of knowledge or information that can help the prospect.

Add Value

When I first began selling office equipment supplies—and was responsible for buying supplies—one vendor that I purchased from set herself apart from the competition very quickly. During our first conversation, this sales person (Rita) said that if I ever had a question about supplies, she would help me. She went on to say that even if her company did not stock the product I was looking for, she could tell me where to find it. That was impressive: It sounded as though she was sincere about being helpful, and not just trying to sell me something.

During the years that I dealt with Rita, she always came through whenever I had questions. This was valuable, because it made my job easier. I became a very loyal customer and always called her first—and last—for quotes on supplies.

Another example of adding value is something that happened a few months ago to a friend of mine.

After receiving dozens of letters and telemarketing calls from banks and mortgage companies offering to refinance the mortgage on his home (at a lower interest rate), he decided to compare rates and fees.

My friend (Tom) went to four different sources, to get information about refinancing his home; he visited one mortgage company and three different banks.

One bank stood out among the others. They did something that none of their competitors did.

When Tom asked about rates and fees, everyone quoted different prices, but an employee at one bank impressed him more than the others—and not because of lower interest rates or lower fees.

This employee gave him a printout, "A Good Faith Estimate of Settlement Fees," and said: "Be sure that whoever you deal with gives you a good faith estimate so you know exactly what you will have to pay."

Knowledge that Helps the Customer

Tom said: "I was impressed with the fact that this bank employee took the time to print this out, instead of just giving me a verbal quote. I felt enlightened and more knowledgeable."

In your business, you too can stand out in a sea of competition.

Example

If you sell copier supplies, you can alert customers about the very serious “toner pirate” situation. Even though you may be familiar with toner pirates and how they operate, many of your customers may not be aware—until they are called by one of these people.

Toner pirates are unscrupulous telemarketers who prey on businesses all over the world and misrepresent themselves as being from the "local warehouse" or "local supplier."

They may even say they are calling from Canon or Sharp or Panasonic or any other major manufacturer. These fraudulent telemarketers will usually say they are calling about an upcoming price increase and offer to sell supplies (usually copier toner) at a "special price.” The “special price” is often much higher than the retail price. The products sold by toner pirates are sometimes counterfeit supplies.

Unfortunately, many toner pirates are skilled telemarketers who bilk businesses out of millions of dollars every year. You can help your customers by giving them the information they need to avoid becoming a victim of fraudulent telemarketers.

To see an example of a letter you can send to prospects and customers explaining the toner pirate situation, go to http://www.sellingsupplies.com/pirateletter.htm or visit http://www.sellingsupplies.com and click on “Fraud Alert” in the site map.

Customers will appreciate getting this information and will remember that you are the person who took the time to alert them of the situation—just like my friend was impressed by the bank employee who took the time to print out the “Good Faith Estimate” when he was looking for refinancing information.

Be Known for What You Know

Every salesperson has knowledge that his or her prospects and customers do not have—and which can help and inform the customer. When you are the sales person who communicates that knowledge, you will stand out in a sea of competition.

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Ann Barr is a consultant and sales trainer who has

written eight books on sales and marketing
available on her web site www.sellingsupplies.com