How Do You Position Yourself?

Are you trying to be Wal-Mart or Saks 5th Avenue?

So many people that I talk to are confused about the value of them selves, their products, and their services. They offering the "greatest service or product" in town, at the "a very low price". The Problem with this offer is that most people, at least on a subconscious level, believe that a higher quality product or service should have a higher price tag, therefore and higher value. They create a paradigm where a potential customer's subconscious says that it is not possible to have the best products and service at the lowest price. They are shooting them selves in the foot by confusing their potential customers, and most people don't buy when there are confused about the value of a product or service.

Look at Wal-Mart verse Saks 5th Avenue? Both of these companies are long time successful retails that sell clothes among other things. Wal-Mart's message is very clear, the lowest prices always. With this message, they are targeting only the middle and lower class that are price conscious 1st above all other concerns. There is no confusion. If price is your number one buying decision, Wal-Mart is your store. The problem for most sales people and small businesses adopting is model, is that you have to sell a lot of volume to make a decent profit. And in many cases, they are competing with Wal-Mart.

We usually recommend the Saks 5th Avenue and stop competing on price. Build the VALUE and and get paid according to that VALUE. Sure, you might have a fewer number of customers to start with, but they are going to be the type of people and companies that understand VALUE and are willing to invest in it. By holding yourself, your services, and your products to a higher standard, you will weed out many of your time robbing, life draining, low margin customers, and increase profitability.

I know what the Little Voice in your head just said. It said that this is a different economy everybody is competing on price. The reason that 5% of the population, controls 95% of the wealth in the world is because the 5% understand that VALUE is more important then price. If you do some research you will find the many of the most powerful companies in the world, got powerful in a recession. A lot of it had to do with knowing how to position VALUE 1st.

Something to think about. You can either have lots of price conscious customers or a few less VALUE conscious customers. You have have to pick one or the other. Trying to go for both confuses everybody.

My choice is, a few less customers, with higher VALUE, higher margins, and high profitability which means less headaches and more time to do the things I love to do.