Most businesses get into the rut of marketing their products and services by launching campaigns around their “new and shiny” things, by extolling their features, benefits and discounts, and just by simply pounding customers over the head again-and-again with the same cliched messages. The common factor that creates this seemingly endless cycle is that the focus is incorrectly inward-facing on the business, the brand, the product, etc. The goal is seemingly to extract more value FROM the customer. But what if it wasn’t? What if it didn’t have to be that way?
Take a moment and consider this idea: How would your business change if you started to look at how you could create more value FOR your customers for the dollars they are already spending? How would your marketing change?
For starters, you have to recognize what your customers actually value. In the industry you are in, what is your position? Are you a low-cost provider? Convenience-focused? High-quality, high-dollar offerings? Speed? Are you a socially-conscious brand? This is where the value proposition begins—knowing what your value actually is. Not to you, but to your customer.
Here are three examples:
Chick-fil-A
Chick-fil-A is the highest-grossing-per-location quick service restaurant franchise in the country and not coincidentally, the highest-rated for customer satisfaction. They have been around for 50 years and have grown revenue every year. Their menu is simple, and their prices aren’t the cheapest, so they primarily compete on quality, service and experience. They do this by keeping their restaurants clean, hiring team members who are genuinely happy to be there and serve people. They are constantly looking at ways to create more value for their customers, such as an app that allows busy moms to order their food from the table or the drive-through, vs. standing in line. When the drive-through is extra busy, they also have folks come out and take your order and your payment by tablet and even deliver your food to your car. They think of their customers as raving fans who come with high expectations to be exceeded on each and every visit.
Southwest Airlines
When you look at the airline industry, there’s only one company that has grown consistently since its founding and has maintained profitability in a space where that is a rare thing. Consider how most airlines charge for checked bags as a way to extract more dollars from their customers. Southwest allows each passenger to check two bags free of charge. They also have free in-flight TV on planes equipped with wi-fi. Flight cancelled due to weather conditions? The gate agent has likely already rebooked you. They also have a handy, easy-to-use app that does a lot of the same stuff you used to have to call or be sitting at a computer to accomplish. Ultimately, they are also driven by the desire to serve people well. It’s no coincidence that they use a heart in their branding.
AirBnB
AirBnB has come along in the last few years and similar to how Uber and Lyft have disrupted the taxi industry, they have created more value and more control for customers looking for a unique experience. If you’ve got kids, staying in a hotel room has never been optimal, and how feasible is it to rent two rooms? A traveler can now choose from hundreds more options than hotel chains can offer. You can rent a single room or an entire home for a night, for a week, or for a month. You can choose from different neighborhoods, different amenities, and different sizes at all price ranges. They also offer twice the value by creating a marketplace for homeowners that may have vacant properties that can be creating income for them. Because they are a 100% customer-centric business (they don’t actually make what they sell), they are constantly improving and adding value by incorporating feedback into their service. And as they create more demand through awareness, supply follows right behind, thus keeping prices low.
How can you take your existing business model and create more value for your customers, which will in turn create more loyalty and revenue opportunities? There may be other things that don’t add value that you can actually eliminate. The key is to think holistically and really examine what your customers value about your business and your brand. It may be as simple as changing the messaging on your website or in your ads to match what your core audience is already doing, thus attracting more customers who are looking for the same thing. The best ideas don’t have to come with complexity or cost. Start small. Start simple. Just start thinking differently about giving your customers more for their money.