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How to be first in the customers mind

by air3lement
5 replies
I'm in a pretty niche industry (have been for 5 years), and I'm re-doing my marketing strategy. I wanted to pick the brains of some of you geniuses..

Say our product is fire wood. How do we stand out among the other fire wood companies, who sell regular fire wood, just like us. There isn't much difference in the type of wood - it's just burned anyway.

Assuming all wood companies have the same quality, how would we make our product stand out (how can we categorize it so that it's its own niche) (how can we be our own category)

I'm open to hearing anything you all have.
#customers #mind
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  • Profile picture of the author SARubin
    Originally Posted by air3lement View Post

    I'm in a pretty niche industry (have been for 5 years), and I'm re-doing my marketing strategy. I wanted to pick the brains of some of you geniuses..

    Say our product is fire wood. How do we stand out among the other fire wood companies, who sell regular fire wood, just like us. There isn't much difference in the type of wood - it's just burned anyway.

    Assuming all wood companies have the same quality, how would we make our product stand out (how can we categorize it so that it's its own niche) (how can we be our own category)

    I'm open to hearing anything you all have.
    You could try adding a premium (bonus) to your offer.

    Like Dominoes Pizza. They were selling pizza, just like dozens of other pizza shops (it wasn't even good pizza) they didn't try to compete by talking about mamma's secret recipe from the old country, like everyone else. Instead they offered free 30 minute delivery. No one else was doing that, and an empire was born.

    If everyone else is offering free firewood delivery, maybe you could also offer to stack it when it's delivered (premium service)

    Or, you must have a ton of smaller sticks just laying around. How about bundling it up with twine, and every cord of wood comes with a big, free bundle of all natural kindling.

    These are just a couple examples, but if you want to figure out how to make your offer stand out, try thinking about what you can offer as a premium (bonus) that will make you different from the crowd.

    Anyway, something to think about.

    All the best,
    SAR
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  • Profile picture of the author helisell
    List what qualities the very best firewood would have.

    Then tell the 'story' of your firewood.

    maybe like this?

    Our firewood is sourced from only completely renewable sources so although burning it may contribute to a bigger carbon footprint (honesty) at least you'll know that more trees are getting planted as this one is getting used up.

    There is nothing worse that using damp firewood so we make sure our firewood is kept in completely dry conditions so that when the time comes to start your fire you won't be sitting around for half an hour until the heat start being pumped out.

    Our firewood is packed in eco friendly packaging which means there is no mess when you collect or we deliver..

    I know the above is just made up but the principle should be clear enough.
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  • Profile picture of the author Oziboomer
    [QUOTE=air3lement;11228453Say our product is fire wood. How do we stand out among the other fire wood companies, who sell regular fire wood, just like us. There isn't much difference in the type of wood - it's just burned anyway.[/QUOTE]

    I'd suggest you read the Robert Collier Letter Book.

    Chapter IX about selling coal.

    It talks about 6 essentials which you can go and discover for yourself.

    One of the keys is to provide a reason why people would pay more for the one product over another.

    If you have a copy of the book check it out otherwise it would be prudent to get a copy for reference whenever you want to study proven concepts.

    Adapting those concepts to your situation can unlock some of the solutions you might be looking for.

    Best regards,

    Ozi
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  • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
    It's not always about being first in the customer's mind. Sometimes it's more important to simply be available.

    If I were selling a commodity product, my prime consideration would be to have it stocked where customers expect to find it, and I'd try to tie up as many of those outlets as possible.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    Originally Posted by air3lement View Post

    I'm in a pretty niche industry (have been for 5 years), and I'm re-doing my marketing strategy. I wanted to pick the brains of some of you geniuses..

    Say our product is fire wood. How do we stand out among the other fire wood companies, who sell regular fire wood, just like us. There isn't much difference in the type of wood - it's just burned anyway.

    Assuming all wood companies have the same quality, how would we make our product stand out (how can we categorize it so that it's its own niche) (how can we be our own category)

    I'm open to hearing anything you all have.
    OK this is really simple and you'll wonder why you never thought of it before.

    Can you think of a more saturated market than web designers? Well, I teach this method to web designers all the time to differentiate themselves.

    Here's the gist of the thing:

    DON'T TALK ABOUT FIREWOOD.

    The web designers should not talk about web design.

    You shouldn't talk about firewood.

    When you start talking about features, the prospect starts thinking about price.

    And that's how you've been falling into the commodity trap.

    It's how the web designers fall into the commodity trap.

    So stop talking about what you do.

    Instead, find out what your target market values about what you do (hmm, 5 seconds of thought and "We help you create magical nights" is a marketing message that jumps to mind for your firewood example. All those beach parties, campfire pits, back yard drinkathons, private romantic interludes... you can think of the rest) You want it in their words, not yours.

    It's not about the firewood. Don't make it about the firewood. Think Effect not Cause.
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