How to deliver differentiated value when you’re not there

Since B2B buyers have completed up to 70% of their buyer journey before they reach out to a sales professional, how do you deliver differentiated value when you’re not there?

This article explains how to do it when you or your team can't be present.

The key is to take advantage of the most important factors necessary to claim and maintain a strong market position. These include: a clear position expressing a benefit that solves a pressing problem for your target audience, differentiation from competitors, and consistent execution across all marketing communications and touchpoints – repeated until it's ingrained.

It sounds straightforward, yet lack of differentiation plagues many B2B software and technology markets. For instance, in a recent Business Intelligence market assessment by the Eckerson Group, 10 BI vendors claimed to enable better, faster, more informed, and more confident decisions – exhibiting little meaningful differentiation.

Problems that stop buyers from buying

There are several problems caused by lack of differentiation including buyer confusion, no decision, or the dreaded price war. These will be explored in more detail below.

Failure to tap into the power of consistency and repetition is an even bigger problem. Too many B2B technology companies use their position effectively on their homepage and never mention it again.

“One-and-done” is no way to claim a position. To get your position to stick in the target audience’s mind, you need to use it as much as possible.

A book I highly recommend for effective communication is "Neuromarketing: Understanding the 'Buy Buttons' in Your Customer's Brain". It explains that when the decision-making part of the brain encounters key words repeatedly, it recognizes the message as important and commits it to memory.

The key idea is that repetition of the core positioning statements help solidify it in the mind of your target audience. By consistently reinforcing the unique benefits you offer to solve their pressing problems, you can stand out from competitors and remain top-of-mind.

How to differentiate

It’s pretty easy to know how your competitors are positioned because they do it in public. Figure out how they are positioned so you don’t come up with a position that is exactly like a competitor’s.

First during your positioning process, check potential positioning statements to make sure they differentiate. You do this by analyzing your competitors’ websites, especially the home page. Look for a claim that stands out - that’s probably their position.

Once you have determined how your competitors are positioned, create a competitive map that makes it easy to see how they are positioned relative to each other.

When brainstorming potential positioning statements, reference the competitive map to make sure they differentiate. Eliminate those that don’t.

I use an application developed in Excel to automatically create competitive maps. See example of the Business Intelligence & Analytics market in April 2023.

Why is differentiation so important?

According to Neuromarketing, differentiation helps buyers make decisions faster throughout their buyer journey.

That’s because the decision-making portion of the brain is looking for a reason to justify a fast decision. Importantly, unique claims attract buyers because they highlight the difference, gap, or disruption the brain is seeking to justify a quick decision.

Your differentiated value needs to be expressed in all potential buyer touch points because every buyer journey is different.

Once you have converged on a position that differentiates, you can finish the rest of your messaging strategy.

Now that you have converged on a benefit-oriented position that differentiates, you’re one step closer to delivering differentiated value no matter what content or touch point a buyer might explore.

Then you can get ready to put the power of consistency and repetition to work in all marketing communications and buyer touch points. They are the keys to claiming a position (which needs to be important to the target audience and unique) and giving it staying power.

What does consistency and repetition involve?

Being consistent means delivering your position accurately in all marketing communications and buyer touch points. Consistency will improve the effectiveness of your overall marketing program in the short term and create a leadership position in the long term.

Repetition means communicating your position over and over and over and over. Keep in mind your prospects know nothing about your offering, and they really don’t care. You’re competing with thousands of other messages. Put yours out there - and often.

Many B2B software and technology marketers seem unaware of the critical role that consistency and repetition play in claiming a position.

Your position won’t stick in your target audience’s mind unless you use the power of consistency and repetition. Research found it takes at least 7 impressions before an advertisement is noticed.

If it takes 7 impressions to be noticed, think of how many are needed to get your prospects to take action. Yet failure to consistently execute a position and repeat it often is such a big problem it’s hard to find a B2B company doing it right.

Most treat their position like a well-kept secret, hiding it from public view. For example, a CEO recently touted his company’s new website, which looked good, and had a clear position on its home page. That position was never used again on the website.

The difference between consistency and repetition

Which is more important – consistency or repetition? Although repetition and consistent execution go hand in hand, repetition is the stronger partner.

One of the authors of Neuromarketing: Understanding the 'Buy Buttons' in Your Customer's Brain, Patrick S. Renvoise, explains why your position is more memorable by repeating it over and over:

“Repetition – that is, repeatedly exposing your target audience to executions of your same position over an extended time – sends a strong signal to the brain, prompting it to note, ‘I should remember that.’

“Repeat your claims so that the brain will bookmark them as important and remember them.

“The most solid and logical message, though it may interest your prospect, will not trigger a buying decision unless the brain understands and remembers it.”

Now you know how to deliver differentiated value when you’re not there

An effective position helps your target buyers associate a benefit with your product or service and entices them to make fast decisions throughout their buyer journey. But an effective position won’t get you very far unless you tap into the power of consistency and repetition.

Without consistency and repetition, it’s not possible to claim a position or deliver differentiated value at any potential buyer touch point. The solution is so simple, it’s ridiculous that there’s a problem in the first place. Just use your differentiated position in all your marketing communications and potential buyer touch points!

So, in summary, you deliver differentiated value when you’re not there by creating a position that is important to the target audience, differentiating, and then putting the power of consistency and repetition to work.