Reilly Newman | Many service businesses struggle with speaking to the right audience, getting paid what they are worth, and standing out from the other service vendors they align themselves.
The good news is that these business problems have brand solutions. You see, when it comes to specialized service businesses, expert brands can become one of the greatest business assets.
Most service providers who sell to businesses (B2B) think brand is an unnecessary asset to invest in. This is a fallacy I’ve seen become more and more harmful to service businesses as the line between B2C (selling to consumers) and B2B (selling to businesses) becomes blurred further due to changes in technology, society, and culture. Frankly, whether selling in a B2B or B2C scenario, you’re still selling to a human. A human who has emotions, aspirations, pains, and perceptions. Your service business is being perceived by them in one scene (B2C) just as it is in the alternative (B2B).
Yes, brand is ever increasingly important for service businesses. It can increase your presence in the market and increase your sales. That’s not the kicker though…
Where I see brand help specialized service businesses the most is when it leverages their expertise. You see, when you’re a specialist in a certain skill you have talents and knowledge you can reveal to your clientele. Some service providers lose sight of this and race to low prices by charging hourly and devaluing their business to just a common vendor. When they and their business have much more potential for success.
For profitability to be achieved in a service business, there must be an emphasis of the specialization being brought to the audience. (Granted, you must bring true value to your market and not just a bunch of hot air… with true value, this specialization can be accomplished through strategic positioning of your brand) This brings tremendous value and helps separate your business from the other vendors you were once lumping yourself in with. This perception increases the value of your service and adds more equity to your brand. Like magic, this begins adding more momentum and margin to your business.
Once your business is positioned in the market with a specialization that has focus and your business aligns with it, then you are ready to further this service brand into the realm of expertise.
Through specialization and brand positioning, I’ve seen many service businesses increase their overall success. It has been a true testament to the power of brand, especially when you’re selling something intangible like a service. This next lever has proven even more powerful to increase the success of your service business.
Your specialized brand is out of the vendor market now and stands out from the crowd. Now developing further expertise in your field is ideal. This expertise is best reinforced when the brand is perceived to not only specialize but have a specific way of accomplishing the provided service. When this is supported by case studies, specific language, and perspectives your brand further leverages the business into a new realm where you not only specialize but have a certain way of doing so that is unique to your business.
As you can see, we are further driving your business away from the white noise commonly found in markets for service businesses. The brand (how your audience perceives your business) is further benefiting from these strategic decisions. Brand and pricing are the two greatest ways to grow your business organically and drive profitable results.
Your business is dependent on the service you provide and typically this service is tied to your time. You only have so many hours so specializing will help your business detach this service from time as well as lay the initial momentum for your brand. The two benefits at this point add value to your business model by adjusting away from the input of pesky hours as well as increasing the perceived value of your business by having a brand of specialization. It’s a win-win.
Further exploration and focus found in being an expert come with experience, but also the development of your perspective and approach. It’s like going from a general doctor to a doctor who only focuses on the heart… or even as specific as a surgeon! It’s a very specific specialization that demands the practitioner to have their own way of conducting the service to provide the best results possible.
“Best results possible”… precisely. Not the amount of time or the cost of the materials, but the best possible results for the ultimate value provided to the client through the service. The expertise of branding will take your business from just providing services to being an expert service provider.
