Differentiation, true differentiation

I met with a manufacturer that had been experiencing a drop in their market share. They had tried numerous things to overcome the loss of profit, including everything from lowering their prices to re-tooling their processes through Six Sigma. Market share keeps going down.

It turns out that their chief differentiator (which I cannot divulge) is no longer a differentiator since their main competitor can now claim the same thing. This differentiator, which they leaned on for decades, has all but vanished. Yet, they hold on to it. Big mistake.

It's the most exciting or terrifying time in their company's history (or maybe both). They now have to actually look at what they do and determine why a customer should choose them. It's been a good ride for them, but now they have to make the tough decisions that their "differentiator" had allowed them to avoid for years.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
http://www.labov.com/