Quick quiz, what business are you in? If you just said the pallet business, you’re wrong. Have I got your attention yet? Or just ticked you off?
Pallets are what you produce, not what you are really selling. I have met some fantastic sales people in the pallet industry. But overall, the sector struggles when it comes to building brands and creating identities that stick.
Some of you are likely thinking, “Oh, this is where I get lectured about my website.” And that’s where you are wrong. Your website isn’t the real problem; your company’s approach to marketing is likely the core issue. The website that looks the same since 1997 just reflects your focus.
As a professional hypocrite, I have to be honest that I struggle with marketing too. I am so busy working on our products that sometimes my team and I don’t do a really good job of selling ourselves. You may be in the same boat. My mantra that keeps me focused every day is that I am here to help readers and advertisers develop better plants, people and pallets. That focus hopefully produces magazines and market reports that work well for both advertisers and readers. But sometimes I could do better helping people fully utilize our resources. That is not the purpose of this article. Look for more on those resources in the near future.
My focus in this article is to take you through a little exercise that will hopefully help you discover what stands out about your company. Until you know that, you may struggle to tap into your maximum sales potential. Marketers call it a company’s Unique Selling Point (USP). Unfortunately, many pallet companies don’t know their USP, and even those that do may struggle to speak about it in a way that moves the sales needle.
How do I know that pallet companies struggle with their USP? That’s simple. One of the first questions that I ask most pallet companies when I interview them for stories is, “What makes you stand out from the rest of the pack?” Almost 75% of the company executives respond with just one word, “Service.” Then they go on to share a story about how they were up to midnight producing pallets for a customer. Now, that is a great story, and it may demonstrate why they have been successful. But when everyone says the same thing, it can’t be your USP. In order for something to make you stand out, it has to be unique.
Ok, so let me take you through some questions and homework assignments that may help you discover your USP. Your decision in the end may be service. But there has to be something more to it. What about your service makes you the best choice for customers?
Usually, companies start out with a product as well as a competitive analysis. This is a necessary part of the process. But, that’s not where I suggest you start. If you are a business leader, founder or entrepreneur, I suggest you start with, “Why did you get in business in the first place? What problem did you set out to solve?”
This question puts your focus on your internal motivations. Whether you realize it or not, your internal motivations impact your focus and the end result of your hard work. Do these problems still exist today? How have they changed over the last few years? How are you innovating to stay ahead of the curve?
Part of this process is to help you realize that what was a good selling point yesterday may not work today or tomorrow. Your reason for being in business, the core problem, is likely similar, but the execution pathway may be completely different. See the worksheet on page XX to help your brainstorming and introspective journey. Write on the worksheet the core problem you have set out to solve. Answer questions on how this problem has evolved and is likely to evolve in the future. Is this going to be the focus of your marketing message moving forward? Why or why not?
Now, comes the time to do an analysis of the features and benefits of your product. Do online searches on your direct competitors. Brainstorm what customers have told you about your offerings versus the competition. The goal here is to identify what sets you apart.
The next step is to move beyond the product to how your customers feels. Step away from what you want to sell. Think like your customer. What emotions are going through their heads as they interact with you or the competition? These emotions and what can trigger them will be helpful as you craft a message and develop a sales pitch that connects with them on an emotional level. Your pallets may be selling peace of mind, fewer headaches, greater efficiency, reliability, etc.
Ask yourself, “What are my customers’ core desires in regard to my product or service?” Then, you may need to go deeper when it comes to tailoring specific messages. You may need to ask, “What are the motivations of my customer contact? How do those differ from even his or her company?” All along the process, you need to keep in mind the question, “What’s in it for me (the customer)?”
To discover your USP, you then need to identify aspects of your product or service that your competitors will struggle to imitate. If you find something they can’t do, that’s even better. Circle all the benefits that are unique to your company.
Now, let’s move beyond the simple answers to creative phrases, images and messages that will quickly and clearly promote your USP. For example, let’s say that reliable delivery and order accuracy are your USP. You shouldn’t just say that plainly and move on. You need to brainstorm and play around with this idea. Get a group of your smartest employees together for a lunch. See how they can help you creatively explore some different ways to say the same thing. Let the ideas flow freely. Discuss them as a group. Cut out the bad ones and let the good ones survive. Go through several rounds of this. Maybe bring in some other people to share their opinion on what your group comes up with.
Don’t get in a rush. Let this process take a bit of time. You can’t probably come up with a stellar marketing message in a day. And if you did, you should sleep on it to see how things change in a day or so. At the end of this process, hopefully, you will see that you have a lot more to sell than just a pallet.
