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Example of a Well-Positioned Business – Dilmah Tea
There’s an interesting article in the latest edition of Wealth Creator magazine about the founder of Dilmah Tea, Merill J. Fernando.
Apart from enjoying a cuppa of Dilmah Tea on a regular basis, I’ve always admired Dilmah as a well-positioned product.
What does “well-positioned” mean?
To me, it means, clearly differentiated from competitors and focussed around a single, appealing idea.
Dilmah’s USP [definition: Unique Selling Proposition] is encapsulated by the tagline, The Single Origin Tea.
Now a tagline alone does not a USP make. Dilmah goes much further, fleshing out their commitment to the perfect cup in myriad ways.
For example, each box of Dilmah tea contains a folded insert that explains the care that goes into the sourcing, packing and delivery of every cup of tea.
The website features some great copy too. Here’s an exerpt:
Dilmah is the product of a lifetime devoted to tea. Founder of Dilmah, Merrill J. Fernando embarked on a quest to bring quality back to tea when in the 1950s, he witnessed the concentration of ownership in the tea industry into the hands of a few large corporations and as a result, the ‘commoditisation’ of tea. As one of the first Ceylonese to have the opportunity to be trained in tea, Merrill harboured a dream since his initiation in the world of tea, to launch his own brand of tea, and to offer consumers the choice of something truly different. His dream took over three decades to come true, and in 1988 he launched his own brand – Dilmah, coined from the names of his two sons Dilhan and Malik. Dilmah introduced lovers of fine tea to the concept of tea ‘picked, perfected and packed’ at origin. Being owned and managed by a tea producer, Dilmah is also a role model for producing countries. Merrill pioneered the concept of ‘Single Origin Tea,’ choosing to remain faithful to Ceylon Tea, acknowledged the finest tea on earth.
Essentially, this is really just “About Us” sales copy – but look at the different strands that are woven together into a captivating product story…a lifetime devoted to tea…struggling against the corporate hegemony to fulfil a dream…the family story behind the name…a model for developing countries…remaining faithful to Ceylon Tea….
This passage oozes with authenticity – so often missing from most marketing communications and something so difficult to convey well. As soon as you try too hard, it slips away.
Almost every day, I’m reminded of how important a strong USP is to the success of any marketing project. A great USP with average execution can succeed, but a weak USP with superb execution often tanks.
To make your marketing work better (without spending any more money), consider re-thinking your USP.
Will
The “YOU” Mentality Sells More
I was on a conference call the other day with marketing genius Jay Abraham, and he said something very simple but powerful that I wanted to share with you.
That is, the single most powerful marketing strategy or mentality available to you and your business is the YOU mentality. Put simply, the YOU mentality means focusing on the needs of your customers over and above your own needs.
“Of course”, you say, “That’s marketing 101 for dummies”. But isn’t it funny how often many businesses ignore this most basic principle? For example, over 50% of websites start by focusing on the company, NOT on the needs of the visitor. They open with something like this:
“ABC widgets is the foremost supplier of quality plastic, vinyl and stainless steel widgets in Australia”
YAAAAAAAWN!
This approach is spectacularly unsuccessful, because
1) people care more about themselves and their problems than about other people AND
2) it’s invariably filled with unsupported claims and meaningless boasts.
All you have to do is turn this around is to focus on why the customer is even interested in your widgets in the first place – that is, their PROBLEM. Once you’ve shown that you understand their problem, you can start to get them interested in your SOLUTION.
A good rule of thumb is, the word “YOU” should either be written or implied in your headline, and it should feature many times over in all of your advertising materials.
Here’s an example: In my work as an advertising copywriter, I recently wrote the copy for a website aimed at helping companies Export to Japan. Notice how many times “you” and “your” are used to engage the reader.
By examining all of your marketing materials and honing your “YOU” mentality, your marketing results can only increase.
If you haven’t already subscribed to the free monthly “Results-Driven Marketing Secrets” newsletter, sign up now so you can start implementing effective low-cost and no-cost marketing strategies in your business. Subscribe here…
Are You Making These Common Small Business Marketing Mistakes? (Part 4)
This mini-article is one of a series aimed at helping you avoid common small business marketing mistakes.
Many businesses only generate a fraction of sales and profits that they’re capable of because they limit the number of different marketing methods that they use.
In fact, most businesses use exactly the same marketing methods as every other operator in their industry – in effect, they focus all their energies on the areas where they have maximum competition!
On the other hand, many small businesses have grown their profits by adapting the successful marketing practices of other industries to their own situation. By simply using a greater number of successful marketing methods, they’re able to do achieve excellent results.
Here are a few examples of slightly unorthodox marketing methods that some of my marketing consulting clients are using with good results…
1. A sticker printer sends direct mail to targeted industries, offering “Full-Color Promotional Stickers at a 1-Color Price”. None of the competition are doing it, so he mops up!
2. A proofreading business hands out flyers at local universities, and gets a huge amount of interest from students who want help checking their essays.
3. A rubbish removal contractor has a very profitable website, which they use to get new business – while their competitors slog it out in the overpriced and hyper-competitive Yellow Pages. Who would have thought people are looking for rubbish removal on the web? But they are.
4. A counsellor uses an active referral program to generate many new clients from a tighly-knit social group.
5. A professional services firm gets highly qualified prospects by offering a free informational report, then converts prospects into clients using a sequential sales process.
My point is – there are a huge variety of marketing methods at your disposal. Do you know what they are, or how to get the most out of them? As a first step, you can subscribe free to our “Results-Driven Marketing Secrets” Newsletter, where you’ll learn how to implement effective low-cost and no-cost marketing strategies in your business.
Sign up here…
Are You Making These Common Small Business Marketing Mistakes? (Part 3)
Not Making The Most of a Powerful Guarantee
This mini-article is one of a series aimed at helping you avoid common small business advertising mistakes. Many small businesses don’t have a strong guarantee, or they don’t know how to incorporate their guarantee into their ads. This is important, because powerful guarantees have been shown to increase ad response by 50+ percent.
Gurantees work because they remove the risk of purchase from your customer, making it easier for them to buy. When you guarantee your product or service, you’re showing confidence that it will produce the result you claim – customers respond to that.
Here are a few tips for successfully incorporating your guarantee into your ads:
1. Your guarantee should be a specific promise of performance or results.
Don’t use boilerplate phrases like “Satisfaction Guaranteed” or even “Money-Back Guaranteed”. While these are probably better than nothing, they don’t have a fraction of the effect of a specific promise like:
“Be thrilled with your treatment or we’ll pay you to go to the competition”
” Enjoy a minimum 50% increase in website traffic within 60 days or your money back”
“Send $35 to [Your Company Name and Address]. $40 refund if you’re not completely satisfied.”
2. Test Your Guarantee
In my work as a small business marketing consultant and copywriter, I often work with clients to develop a powerful guarantee. Sometimes the business owners are hesitant – what will happen if customers try to take advantage of a money-back offer? The simple answer to this is to test. Test small at first (one ad with the guarantee, versus one ad without). Keep track of the difference in sales results and any returns or refund requests. If it works, keep doing it!
I’ve always found that a strong guarantee generates more than enough additional sales to cover any returns or refund requests.
Also test different aspects of your guarantee (e.g. wording, time period, conditions etc.) The difference in sales generated by a 30 day and 60 day guarantee can be significant.
3. Make your guarantee highly visible
If you have a strong guarantee, don’t hide it away where it won’t be seen. Strong guarantees make great headlines. Visual devices such as a “Money-Back Guarantee” rosette also work well – but remember to enlarge on your guarantee statement.
What powerful guarantee can you offer your prospects to make it easier for them to do business with you?
If you haven’t already subscribed to our free marketing newsletter “Results-Driven Marketing Secrets” newsletter, sign up now so you can start implementing effective low-cost and no-cost marketing strategies in your business. Subscribe here…
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