Our uniqueness is what differentiates us from others. Something is unique if there is only one of them, such as Van Gough’s smoking skeleton, or if it only exists in a specific place, like kangaroos are unique to Australia. Mathematical equations have unique solutions.
When you choose to buy something, the reason that you select one product over another is because of the features that are unique to that product. There are many similar features between products so in order to choose one to buy, we look for the things that are unique.
There are many different smart phones available to buy and people choose different phones based on their needs and preferences. Some like the integration with other products; some like the camera; some just don’t want to learn how to use a new phone. Even when people choose the same phone, they may do so for different reasons.
When you are trying to sell something to a customer, you must anticipate that they will be doing the same thing. They are going to look for what is unique about what you have to offer. You therefore need to try to identify those things so that you can ensure that you highlight them in any presentation or demonstration of your product. If you spend all of your time showing the things that all of your competitive products do, you are not differentiating yourself.
If you do not make it easy for your customer to understand what is unique about you or your product, you run the risk that they will not find that information for themselves. In those circumstances, they may choose a competitor simply because they were able to understand what was unique about their product.
The unique features of your product may well vary from customer to customer. Not everyone has the same needs or requirements. What is important to one customer may not be important to another. As such, you need to think about what makes you unique for each different customer. Do not assume that because you were unique for one, you will be unique in the same way for another. Emphasise all of features that makes you unique.
Equally, you need to consider your competitor’s position in all of this. They are likely to have features that make them unique. You need to downplay the relevance of these as much as possible. Try to seed some doubt with your customer about the importance of these. These may be reasons for your customer to choose your competitor and that’s obviously an outcome that you would rather not see. Again, these will vary by customer and competitor so will be different for every opportunity.
Finally, always relate your uniqueness back to what it means for the customer. Explain why each uniqueness is important to your customer. Unless they understand its value to them, they cannot decide to buy it. This is partly why it is so important to understand their needs at the start of the sales process.
Whenever you are trying to sell, you have to make it as easy as possible for the customer to say yes. By focussing on the unique features of your product and explaining how they improve the business of your customer, you make it much easier for them to understand why to buy your product.