Are you “following the crowd” or have you found additional ways to be of service to customers who are seeking a different experience?
For example, a car salesman showed customers he was serving how they could save interest expense by financing their car over a shorter term, giving customers more financing choices. The customer would also be in position to trade in their car for another model sooner. Customers appreciated this additional service and referred their family and friends.
Most car salespeople are anxious to get their customers on the road so they can move on to the next sale. What if they spent a few more minutes explaining how to use the options of the car, including pairing the customers’ smartphones to the car before they leave? Wouldn’t that make the purchase a better experience, leading to more referrals and sales?
In some cases, an innovation can disrupt an entire industry. For example, Napster, followed by Apple iTunes, has practically eliminated physical music CDs and other recording media, replacing them with streaming. The same thing has happened, led by Netflix, with streaming services for movies, practically eliminating DVDs.
When Walt Disney took his children to amusement parks, he saw they were dirty, the employees looked scary, and there wasn’t much for parents to do. He decided to create a clean amusement park for the entire family, with well-scrubbed young “cast members” to serve the “guests”. Disneyland became the prototype for family entertainment amusement parks.
What can you offer, from small additional services and bonuses to major disruptive innovations, to make you and/or your business different from your competitors?
Would you like someone to brainstorm ideas with? Send me an email at mgray@profitadvisors.com to schedule an initial consultation.