June 1997

Positioning... The Forgotten Point In Marketing

Differentiation Is The Key To The Successful Marketer

BY NADJI TEHRANI

Marketing does not begin with a great idea or unique product. It begins with customers - those people who want or need your product and will actually buy it. They aren't just buying your product/service, however. They're also buying the concept of what the product will do for them, or help them do for themselves. This concept is created by your marketing efforts. You tell them the strengths, benefits and uniqueness of your widget. You position your widget as the leading widget in the industry. In stentorian tones you must broadcast the differences between your widget and the others on the market. If you don't create an image for your company, product and/or service, your competition will do it for you; rest assured, they will not be acting in your best interests. In the minds of your potential customers, perception unfortunately equals reality.

Positioning Is Key
Positioning is a powerful tool that allows you to create an image of where your product/service fits into the marketplace. Its effective use puts you first in line in the minds of potential customers. Being positioned by someone else (a competitor) restricts your choices and limits your opportunities. In the super competitive '90s and beyond, it is absolutely necessary for you to forcefully position your product/ service/company. For every attack, deploy a measured response. Then counterattack. You and your competitors want the brass ring and only one of you can have it. Even if your product is far superior to your competition's, if no one knows about you, or discounts you because of bad press, you might as well not be in business. Identify your greatest strength and use it to position your product - this is your competitive strategy.

Find Your Niche
One way to create a customer base is to focus on specific groups of potential customers that share common characteristics. Your product/service can't be everything to everyone. Rather than try to fulfill an illusory/impossible demand, spend time researching the market to find out who is most likely to buy your offering and sell to them. Not only is this common sense, but you build in-depth knowledge of their profile, as well as the industry, and you develop an environment of trust which translates into customer loyalty and thus, customer retention. Once you've evaluated your market, identify your competition. You can't position yourself or your product unless you know what your competition is doing. Don't underestimate them under any circumstances. Try to counter their underlying strategy, not necessarily their exact movements. Don't get caught in a game of "oneupmanship": it will make your company look foolish and provide plenty of fodder for the competition to use against you. Be aware that there is, by definition, a cap to your niche. Take early steps to streamline your organization so as to garner the highest profit you can while still providing the highest level of quality service and product to your customer. If you obtain customers but can't retain them, your company will fail. Also consider the development of multiple niches with new lines of products/ services related to the original. This strategy minimizes capital expenditure, thus enabling you to access related niches with a minimum of effort.

How To Position Your Product/Service
As I stated earlier, positioning is your competitive strategy. The follow-ing questions should help you define what you need to be doing, provided you're not already doing them.

• What do you do better, faster, cheaper, with higher quality that differentiates you from your competitors? Don't be vague, be specific.
• What is your target market? Does it know what makes you different?
• How are you letting the market-place know?
• What techniques do you use to make the point?
• Are your advertisements and pub-lic relations efforts spreading the word you want spread?
• Is your ad agency or PR firm (these could be internal departments) aware of your unique solution and are they making every effort to promulgate that difference in every form of media they create?
• How are you driving the point home at trade shows?
• Do you conduct pre-, during- and post-trade-show marketing? (If not, you should be.) If so, are you stressing your unique qualities?
• Are you using database marketing to contact those with whom you have an existing relationship in an effort to cement that relationship? Are they aware that the product/service to which they are accustomed can only be found with your company?

Differentiation
You must carefully select the ways in which you will distinguish your company's products/services from the competition. The differences you advertise should be:

• Distinctive - either isn't offered by others or is offered in a more distinctive way by your company.
• Important - delivers a highly valued benefit to a sufficient number of buyers.
• Superior - is superior to other ways to obtain the same benefit.
• Communicable - is communicable and visible to buyers.
• Preemptive - cannot be easily copied by competitors.
• Affordable - the buyer can afford to pay for the difference.
• Profitable - the company will find it profitable to introduce the difference. Your advertising should be bold and go "against the grain." Don't be offensive, by any means, but do be original. Every form of media generated by your company or its proxies should continually and eloquently emphasize why your product is the one of choice.

Hazardous Waste
As in all things, there will be copy-cats who will make every attempt to supplant you from your niche by mimicking your actions and positioning themselves as leaders. And while they add little value to the marketplace, they do perform a vital function - they make you look good. They force you to maintain your competitive edge. That is why monopolies seldom live up to their potential - there is no outside presence to keep the company on its toes. As long as you continually position yourself as a leader and you can back up this assertion with verifiable results and achievements, your position will remain secure. But do not forget, ever, that perception is reality. If you don't create an image for yourself, your competitor will do it for you. To paraphrase Thomas Henry Huxley, your competition "never overlooks a mistake, or makes the smallest allowance for ignorance." As always, I look forward to your comments. Please send them to ntehrani@tmcnet.com. Thank you.

Sincerely,
Nadji Tehrani
Publisher & Editor-in-Chief

Don’t Miss The World’s Most Complete Call Center Event - TCCS FALL ’97!

I invite you to attend the all-new TCCS FALL '97 from September 17-18, 1997 at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta, GA. With 11 years and 25 consecutive shows worth of experience, TCCS events are the world's most comprehensive Exhibitions and Conferences on technology applications and management solutions for inbound/outbound, customer service and help desk solutions. With its expanded focus, illustrious keynote speakers and comprehensive exhibit hall, we are confident TCCS FALL '97 will be the most advanced and complete call center event ever.

TCCS™ FALL '97 Is The One Event That Offers:

• The Most Spectacular And Comprehensive Conference Program In TCCS™ History;
• Over 70% New Sessions;
• Techniques For Combining The Power Of Computer-Telephony Integration, The Internet And Multimedia;
• Requirements For Implementing Natural Speech Recognition In Your Call Center;
• ALL NEW Industry-Specific Seminars;
• The Largest, Most Diversified Exhibit Hall Ever;
• Outstanding Networking Opportunities.

This year's event will be the largest, best-attended and most informative TCCSever, making it a must-attend call center convention! Take a few minutes to look at the tremendous number of new sessions we are offering, descriptions of which begin on page 89. Then, simply complete and return your pre-registration form today to take advantage of early-bird savings. I look forward to seeing you in Atlanta in September!

Be Sure To Examine The Teleservices Outsourcing Directory Supplement Included With This Issue, Because Sometimes "Doing It Right" Means Letting Someone Else Do It

If, when following the advice laid out in my Publisher's Outlook about positioning your company as a leader, you find that by analyzing your company's resources that outsourcing part or all of your marketing functions to a teleservices agency is the prudent and profitable answer, then be sure not to overlook the Teleservices Outsourcing Directory - The Definitive Guide To Corporate America's New Profit Center supplement that is included with this issue. The dramatic changes in the corporte landscape have created the dawn of a new era in corporate sales, marketing and customer care. What used to be the thing to do internally not long ago is now more prudent to be outsourced. The statistics provided in this supplement clearly prove that corporate America has discovered the powerful benefits of outsourcing as a new corporate marketing strategy. The phenomenal growth and acceptance of outsourcing has made it an integral part of most progressive Fortune 500 and smaller companies. We have produced this directory to provide a blueprint to what you should know about outsourcing your teleservices operations. The directory covers everything you will need to make an informed decision: from what technologies an agency should have in place to what to ask on a Request For Proposal to personnel and location issues. To assist you in your search, we have included a contact listing of service agencies arranged by headquarters location. To narrow your search even further, be sure to study the many advertisements from leading service agencies, which will provide you insight into the range and types of services these agencies provide.