Knowing why you’re better than your competition affects your marketing efforts. It impacts the content you create, language you use on your website and marketing collateral and how your sales team handles leads. Why did your customers choose you? Why do they stick with you? Understanding your competitive advantage will help you create a visible and verbal presence for all to see and hear. Providing a clear and compelling value proposition will prospects make you an easy choice.
Two basic types of competitive advantages are cost advantage and differentiation advantage. Your organization will maintain a competitive advantage when it can deliver the same benefits as your competitor but at a lower cost (cost advantage) or provide benefits that exceed those of competing products (differentiation advantage).
Your value proposition will help relay your competitive advantage. You can think of a value proposition as a simple sales pitch that provides solutions, resolves problems or enhances performance. It should state your benefits and contrast the competitive alternative. Be clear and concise. State what you offer and why people love you. Sum up in a sleek sentence or two.