5 Ways to Attract Customers to Your Business

A novel idea isn't the same as success. A single idea isn't enough to make a business profitable. You have to go further and creatively think through the what, how, where, when, why and what-for of implementing that idea, so it pays off as a successful business.

With so much competition among products and services, adding one more business might seem doomed to fail. However, if your idea already exists, that means it's profitable — but it also means that audience is waiting for a real differentiator to look somewhere else: your brand.

Grabbing your target audience's attention shouldn't focus only on price, because that would be like trying to be attractive based solely on “youth and beauty.” Reputation is much more than that. To confirm this, I always suggest the following exercise: ask two older adults what their favorite brands are, and you'll notice that those brands that have been on the market for a long time are still relevant, despite not exactly being the cheapest.

Let's try another exercise. Think of three attributes: creative, brilliant or imaginative. Which of these three could define your business over your competition? Take your time and pick your answer. The correct answer is: none of the above. You don't need any of those three words to stand out from the competition. It's about being logical. Logic works through rules and contrasts of sound judgment.

Differentiation means being the best option in your business niche, and that's achieved through logical arguments. Without those reasons, failure is inevitable. If your argument is logical, your chances of success multiply.

Standing out from the competition means educating your audience on the purchase criteria, which should logically be geared toward getting that customer to choose your business as the best in its niche. That's only achieved through a unique selling proposition (USP).

Building your USP can take a bit of time, but to speed up the process you need to answer the following questions:

1. What are the reasons your target audience should pay attention to your brand?  

   Lay out the reasons your brand should be the first choice in your field, grab attention and aim to meet your audience's need. For example, if your electricity bill were higher than usual because of running the AC in summer, an ad like: “Lower your electricity bill — this AC unit cuts your power consumption by 60%” would grab your attention immediately.

2. Build your credentials.

   If you have a different product, you need to know how to show that difference. That action becomes your credentials. Your product is good, so prove it. For example, “Pioneer, the rest is silence” — meaning your sound quality is better than your competitors'.

3. How will your brand change your customers' lives. 

   If your potential customers had a problem that your brand came to solve, then how will that change affect their lives? If the answer is encouraging, they'll come back to your brand again and again. Best of all, they'll speak well of you to others, and your customer base will grow.

4. Study your competition and list 10 advantages over them. 

   If you have a differentiated product, the world will flood you with orders. It's not the best products that win, but the ones that stand apart from the rest. Read up on and learn about your competition. Then come back to your product and write down the ten advantages you should highlight, the ones that will lead you to success.

5. List the five things your competitors should look for in a product like yours. 

   Your competitors should turn to look at your product, and the reasons for them to do so need to stand out.

“Allow me to guide you in using communication and Public Relations so your brand builds or strengthens its reputation and secures the leadership it has always sought. 

My team and I will support you through the whole process as if your company were our own. We'll build a communication plan tailored to your specific needs based on a diagnosis, so that your brand becomes recognized and your profits grow.”

With a bit of patience and a lot of logic, your unique selling proposition will be the differentiator between a successful business and one that fell by the wayside.