Stop Worrying So Much About Your Competition

Why differentiation matters.

The idea of differentiation in business is figuring out what you want to be known for. What sets you apart from all the other shops out there. Not even necessarily how you’re better than them… but how you’re different from them.

In other words, if you want to be a successful home services business, rather than trying to be just like your competitors, you’ve gotta be intentionally different in some noticeable, marketable way.

In his Forbes article “Less Cow, More Cowbell,” Stan Phelps says it this way:

… companies tend to define their strengths and weaknesses using the same measurements and standards as their competitors. ...  When everyone is trying to build on the same strengths and eliminate the same weaknesses, all companies start to look the same.

If you’re thinking, “So what?” let me put it this way: If every home services business in your area looks the same, there’s really no good reason for your prospects to choose your business. Instead, they’ll choose based on proximity or, more often, price. And Lord knows you don’t want to get into a race to the bottom with the undercutting asshats from across town.

Later in that same article, Phelps offers three paradigm shifts essential to companies who want “customer-getting distinction”: 

• First, fitting in and becoming a “me-too” brand will never lead to success. 
• Second, trying to fix a weakness is a waste of time and effort.
• Third, if you try to be great at everything, you will end up being great at nothing. 

In short, not only is comparison the thief of joy (H/T Theodore Roosevelt and self-help gurus everywhere), but it’s also the thief of profit. If you spend too much time focused on your competitors, you’ll wind up looking just like them. 

The far more effective strategy is to look like you.

But… but… they’re bigger and making more money than I am.

OK, listen up: It doesn’t freaking matter how bigger or how much more money Acme’s making than you are. What matters is that you’re meeting your own revenue goals and creating the life you want. 

Again, comparison is the thief of joy.

Think West Elm cares that IKEA’s got them beat by billions of dollars in annual revenue? 

Think KFC’s worried about Chick-fil-A’s longer (but way faster) drive-thru lines?

Think Target’s sweating over Walmart’s continued dominance?

OK, maybe a little. But they also know there are plenty of customers to go around—and the same is true in plumbing, HVAC, and electric.

So rather than trying to “act like” those other businesses, West Elm, KFC, and Target continue to set themselves apart from their rivals. And if you want to be successful, you’ve gotta do the same.

So, what sets you apart?

Let’s talk this through.