The Differentiator: What Every Entrepreneur Should Be Clear About

During the time I spent in entrepreneurship accelerators, one of the most frequent questions we as entrepreneurs were asked was: What is your differentiator, what is your value proposition? I remember that immediately after, there would be a few seconds of silence and you would squint your eyes as if  you were trying to see something in the distance but you were just trying to find that answer. All, or if not all, a large percentage of us have gone through that. 

When starting a business or materializing a business idea, we rarely prioritize knowing what makes us different from our competition or what will be our differentiator. I would dare to say that there is a point where we do not understand or simply do not know what differentiates us from others. 

Often, and I include myself here, our first answers are price, quality or customer service. Although I personally believe that these are important differentiators, I don't think they are the first ones we should mention. We must look for differentiators that really make us stand out from the competition. I also believe that we do not always know they are in the early stages of our business, but we are finding them. 

What are some differentiators that I consider important? Obviously everything depends on the type of business but, generally, I could say:

- Hours of operation (which has nothing to do with customer service). That is, maybe your competition opens Monday through Friday and you open Saturdays and Sundays as well or your competition's hours are from 9-6 and yours from 10 to 8, for example. 

- Payment methods: The more the better. If you receive cash, card payment or transfer. If we are talking about an online store, then it would be if you receive payments by Paypal, Mercado Pago, payment in self-service stores, buy now pay later, etc. 

- Contact methods: Some companies handle only one means of contact, either their social networks or whatsapp or mail; the more methods you have for the customer to be in contact with you, the better. Perhaps they can write to you through social networks or talk directly with an agent, but they can also contact you by whatsapp, etc. 

- Social responsibility: Besides the business, do you do anything that has to do with social responsibility? Do you help foundations, do you have a foundation, do you do events or participate in events that help a cause? For some people today, this can be a purchasing-decision factor. 

There are other much more specific differentiators that have to do directly with the type of business. For example:

- Design line.

- Menu (whether food or service)

- Production capacity

- Speed in technology 

- Innovation (you can sell the same thing as someone else or even something very traditional but with a touch of innovation). 

But how can you discover your differentiator? Here are some questions you can ask yourself to find out:

- Let's start with the most basic one: Does the company satisfy the needs of customers? You don't know? Take surveys. 

- Does the quality of the product or service provide benefits to our consumers? Yes? Which ones? 

- What about what I offer represents an added value for my customer?

- Why do they buy from me and not from my competitors?

If after all this, your answer is that you still don't know what your differentiator is or you think you don't have any differentiator, don't worry. Create your own differentiator. Make an analysis of your competition and check what you can do better or differently that represents a competitive advantage for your customers. 

Now that I know what my differentiators are, what do I do? Communicate with them. It is important to tell your customers what you are doing compared to your competition.  Often, we are doing amazing things but our customers do not know it. We must communicate as much as we can. 

A personal example is my clothing brand. I know that my competition has a strong digital presence in all social networks and search engines, offering fast fashion and very low prices. I can't compete on those points but where I can compete and what we have taken care to highlight is our express shipping, support for local commerce and Mexican hands, fast returns, customer service in your language and instantly, and belonging to a community. Once you communicate your differentiators, in addition to letting your audience know, you will find your niche, your tribe, your audience who will give value to what you offer. That will result in more loyal and frequent customers. 

To close, I would say that differentiators are also changeable; they do not have to be the same all the time if your customers’ demands change. Often, without consulting with our customers or testing it for a while, we launch a differentiator believing that our customer will give it value and it turns out they do not,  so it’s better to test the differentiators we offer until we find the right ones.

I wish you much success on your path of entrepreneurship. Remember to always look around you, be aware not only of your competition but also of the local, national and global context.