When I begin working with a new client the 1^st question I ask is “What business are you in? I usually get answers like: I run a printing company, I’m in plumbing suppliers or I’m a graphic designer. I then ask again “What business are you in.” and I get the blank stare.

Marketing yourself as a plumber, a graphic designer, or a printer is not differentiating yourself from the thousands of competitors in your industry.  Today you are facing increased competition. Getting noticed is more difficult due to advertising and marketing NOISE, prospects have more CHOICES and a lot of traditional marketing methods like newspaper and magazine advertising, mailing out brochures, letters and postcards, cold calling or simply sitting around and waiting for the phone to ring just don’t work very well.

You begin to stand out from the crowd when you begin to focus on how and what you do to assist prospects in using your products/services.  People purchase to alleviate a pain, solve a problem or enhance their life. The focus is not on what you do but rather on what problems you solve, what benefits you bring to prospects, and what pain you alleviate for clients.

So a better answer to “what business are you in” for a graphic design firm “I create powerful communication designs for companies that want to gain more exposure and sales.”  Changing your mindset and thinking like a marketer will have a profound and positive difference in the way you operate your business!

The best way to determine how to position your company is by asking your current clients this question “why do you purchase from me.”  Their answers will provide you with the basic information you can use to form your marketing campaign. Understanding why people purchase and when people purchase will give you insights into how and when to implement your marketing campaigns.

So once again “What business are you in?”