How to Differentiate Your Business

Several years ago, Hanes went tagless.  Gone were the itchiness of tags, the inconvenience of cutting them off, and the embarrassment of having them stick out of Hanes underwear.  Management at Hanes made this move partly because they found tags to be annoying to customers.  Management also removed the tags to differentiate the product from that of the competition. 

At first glance, underwear seems to be a straightforward product.  Although I’m sure Hanes management and that of other underwear companies would disagree with me, underwear does not appear to have much opportunity for differentiation from its competition.  Different fabrics, designs, and colors are offered for customers who want fashion, but these are a niche market.  The next time you walk past the underwear section in a store, notice what is heavily stocked.  It’s the most comfortable, basic underwear styles.    

How does a company differentiate such a basic product?  Management must find out what matters to customers.  What annoys them about the product?  What would they like that they can’t find?  Why do they buy one product instead of another?  In differentiating a product, little things make a big difference.  Something as seemingly insignificant as a tag can be important.

In Hanes’s case, management pinpointed tags as annoying, itchy, and unnecessary to customers.  Getting rid of tags offered customers more comfort.  Thus, Hanes underwear went tagless.  In order to have this change contribute to Hanes positioning in customers’ minds, management is airing commercials with long-time spokesperson Michael Jordan.  Keeping the continuity of Michael promoting the tagless differentiation is wise marketing.       

Although Hanes made the change to tagless several years ago, management still feels it is an important differentiation.  That is why I saw this commercial recently.  Management not only identified the differentiation, they are maintaining top of the mind awareness about it by airing commercials at peak purchasing times of the year.

You can apply this process to your business by answering these questions.  What differentiates your business from the competition?  Discover your business’s difference and keep it at the top of your customers’ minds.

This week's marketing trivia challenge is Name the differentiation of a business or a product from its competition.  E-mail me your answer.

“Say It’s Your Birthday!”

Gavin Kaysen, owner and chef of Spoon and Stable, told a story about walking past tables in his restaurant and overhearing conversations.

“Say it’s your birthday,” urged one guest to another.  “Say it’s your birthday.”

“But it’s not my birthday,” replied the second guest.

“Do it anyway,” returned the first.

“Why?” questioned the second.

“Because they will give you cotton candy!” exclaimed the first.

Gavin said he continued on his way, smiling.

He ended the story by noting “My pastry chef is going to be upset with me for telling this story.”

I chuckled.  Whatever the pastry chef thinks, that is very smart marketing. 

Gavin knows how to differentiate his restaurant.  While other restaurants are serving birthday cakes, sundaes, or some other dessert from their menus as a free “Happy Birthday” treat, he is offering cotton candy.  That simple, different action is memorable and prompts people to talk.  Cotton candy is unexpected.  It is rarely available and seldom found anywhere but at a fair.  It is never served at a restaurant.  Having a restaurant give it as a “Happy Birthday” treat is unique. 

Cotton candy sets Spoon and Stable apart and differentiates the restaurant.  In addition to providing a special experience, the cotton candy sets the stage that guests will have even more unique experiences at the restaurant.  Consequently, they pay close attention to the restaurant’s upcoming events.  They tell their friends about the restaurant.  They urge those at their table to “Say it’s your birthday!”

Guests learn to expect a special experience at Spoon and Stable, and the staff works everyday to meet that expectation.  Having the expectation of a special experience fulfilled every time a guest visits the restaurant keeps the eatery at the top of a guest’s mind.  Establishing and meeting an expectation of a customer retains his business, prompts his return, and encourages his referral.  This is profitable marketing. 

What expectations have you created in your customers’ minds?  What does your staff do everyday to meet those expectations?           

This week's marketing trivia challenge is  What expectations of a particular business have you developed?  E-mail me your answer.



   

How Do You View Your Products and Services?

After watching the twelve days of cookies on Twin Cities Live sponsored by Land O Lakes butter, I wondered why the company doesn’t differentiate its product.  I saw a picture of the product on the TV screen but nothing to tell the customer why to buy it instead of other butter.  Land O Lakes butter must be have a unique selling proposition.  It must be different in some way from its competition. 

Thinking the company must have differentiated its product somewhere, I found the Land O Lakes Web site and clicked on the butter description.  Here is what I found for the salted butter.  “Land O Lakes salted butter is the all-purpose butter that is great for every use, everyday.  Use it for cooking, baking, spreading, or topping.”  The unsalted version had a similar description with comment on controlling the salt content and flavor of the foods. 

How do those descriptions differentiate Land O Lakes butter?  They don’t.

Mulling this over, I came to the conclusion that Land O Lakes sees its products as pure commodities that do not differ from their competition.  Their marketing objective is to have the Land O Lakes name in front of consumers so much that consumers will be more likely to buy it than the competition.  However, Land O Lakes butter is the highest-priced butter in the store, generally 50% more than its competition.  Without a defining difference in customers’ minds that makes it worth more, customers likely will not pay more for it at the store.  They will buy a cheaper butter. 

That’s the problem with management viewing a product or service as a commodity.  Since management doesn’t differentiate the product or service in their minds, they don’t do so in customers’ minds, either.  The lack of a differentiation leaves the product or service as a commodity and subject to selection by customers based on price alone.  Why bother to spend money advertising a commodity, especially one that doesn‘t compete on price?

A couple days later, I noticed a new commercial for Fruit of the Loom.  We could easily consider underwear to be a commodity, too, just like butter.  However, Fruit of the Loom management does not allow its product to have commodity status.  In the past Fruit has differentiated its products through innovative changes.  From boxer briefs with no-ride-up-legs to softer panties to a better fitting tee, Fruit of the Loom management is constantly differentiating it products.  Fruit’s new differentiation was that its underwear is now tagless.  The lack of scratchy tags makes Fruit of the Loom underwear more comfortable for customers. 

This comfort is so important to its customers that the company brought back Michael Jordan to be in the commercial announcing the change.  The commercial opens on an office worker in discomfort from a scratchy tag.  Michael Jordan appears, has the guy take the tag from his underwear, and hand it to Jordan.  Michael promptly tosses the tag into the paper shredder, telling the guy “No more tags.”

Paying Michael as a spokesperson and running these ads was worth it for Fruit of the Loom because the ads communicated a differentiation and a reason for customers to buy.

Take a look at your advertising.  Are you differentiating your products and services?  Are you giving customers a reason to buy them instead of your competition’s? 

This week's marketing trivia challenge is What differentiation of a product or service have you noticed?  E-mail me your answer.