How to sell in 2010

As consumers, we live in happy times.  We can get quality products at cheap prices with good customer service and fast delivery.  We can publicly hold accountable any company that mistreats us.  The hardest part of being a consumer is sifting through all the options.

On the other hand, most retailers are not in great shape.  There might have been a time when a retailer with great products, good prices, and impeccable customer service could not lose.  That was back in the days when there was no internet.  Remember when you had to wait 4-6 weeks for delivery of something you bought by mail?  Remember the difficulty in researching the quality of products and waiting on hold for customer service?

To say the least, the bar is much higher in 2010.  Today, I see retailers struggling everywhere that apparently have the ingredients for success.  But good prices, good products and good customer service are not enough any more.  Everybody has good prices, products and service.

What I am about to say applies to retailers of practically anything from electronics to vitamins.  It is true for online businesses as well as stores in the neighborhood.  It is also true for musicians who want to sell their music.

It is really as simple as this.  In today’s crowded, ultra-competitive retail landscape, retailers have to focus on their brand more than anything else. 

When I talk about brand building, I am referring to differentiation.  I am also referring to making yourself, your company or your products memorable. 

Now, sometimes good prices, good products, and great customer service help define your brand. (Think Amazon for pricing, Mercedes for products and Nordstrom for customer service.)  But frankly, most small businesses cannot differentiate on those factors.  So, you need something else.

There is a little hot dog joint here in my town.  The food is mediocre at best but the place is usually packed.  Why? They are famous for an ongoing competition where if you eat a few hot dogs slathered with hot sauce, you get your picture on the wall.  That tactic works for them.

If you start thinking, you can probably come up with dozens of similar examples of companies who are known for something.  You need to be known for something too.  If you aren’t, you are really going to struggle in retail in 2010.