The Biggest Crime In Web Businesses

The biggest crime in small businesses today goes unnoticed by most outsiders. It is not reported in the media. There are no police reports filed and companies do not even mention it on their websites. People don't talk about it on the street and employees often overlook it. Even though this crime is rampant among small businesses, it's presence is so subtle that many business owners fail to recognize when it is happening! Unfortunately, this crime is the same one that is most likely to kill a small business. It is not stealing by employees, burglaries, trivial lawsuits, or industrial espionage.

The biggest crime in small business today is the crime of being forgotten. Think about it-you can recover from most other crimes by installing an alarm system, filing patents, or buying insurance, but if your business falls victim to the crime of being forgotten it is on the fast track to failure. There are opportunities every day for your business to be forgotten by existing clients, potential clients, your best employees, surrounding businesses, your neighborhood, vendors, the media, and your potential investors.

SIGNS OF THE CRIME

Have you fallen victim to the crime of being forgotten? Here are some of the signs of being forgotten:
Lowered top line sales
Few people visiting your website
Less customer inquiries
Losing large accounts
Losing long-time accounts
High employee turnover
Inability to attract top candidates to help run your business
No "new" news
Fewer repeat buyers
Less revenue

STEPS TO SOLVE THE CRIME

There are many things you can do as a small business owner to help people remember you. I am not of the opinion that hiring a big PR company is the only solution. Here are some things you can implement today:

1. Focus on the question that every customer and client wants to know: What's in it for me?

At the end of the day, every client is selfish. With so many things out there vying for their time, attention and money, they have become more and more cynical and self-centered. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but more a self-protective measure.

Your job as a small business owner is to tell them what your service can do for them personally and remember-they do not want to spend time looking for the answer. The answer to this question must be one of the first things your clients see on your website and in your company-wide communications. If your clients are going to remember you, you must first answer the question "What's in it for them?"

ACTION STEP: List everything your client receives from your service or product. Closely examine all of your corporate communications with a critical eye. How accurately and consistent are they in answering this question to your clients and customers?

2. What differentiates your service or product from everyone else?

If you believe there is nothing new under the sun then you must recognize that for every product or service you provide, chances are very good that someone, somewhere else does almost exactly what you do.

Then the question becomes, not WHAT do you do, but HOW you do it. In other words, what is your U.S.P.-your "unique selling proposition"? What can a client get from you that they cannot get from anyone else? Perhaps it is your broad-based expertise or that every solution is completely customized to meet their needs or your company's 100% satisfaction guarantee. You must determine what differentiates your business from anyone else and market that point.

When defining your U.S.P., one of the keys to being remembered is to not use either of these two characteristics: quality or service. The reason is that EVERY business says they provide quality and service (even though we know they don't). Therefore quality and service have become meaningless when it comes to differentiating your service because every customer EXPECTS quality and service and will not do business with any company that doesn't have both already. Your U.S.P must be creative, yet accurately reflect who you are and what you offer that no one else does.

ACTION STEP: Set aside a few hours this week to brainstorm with your partner and employees on what your company offers that other companies do not. Do some research to find out how other companies in your field are differentiating themselves. Be sure to develop a U.S.P that your clients will not confuse with your competition's.


By Stephen Fairley
Stephen Fairley is a bestselling author, international speaker, small business coach, and president of Today's Leadership Coaching