Evaluation: Who Else Can Say That?

MYM Tip #41

This is a product of lazy communication. Pay close attention to this one; the question is not who else can do what you do, but rather who else can say what you say. The answer is usually...anybody and everybody.

Let me give you an example to show you what I mean. In a consultation with an auto repair facility we found that this one was BY FAR the most awesome auto repair facility that we had ever seen. They had 11 ASE certified mechanics, twice the high-tech equipment as any dealership, 63 bays, and floors you could eat off of. Do you realize how many ELEVEN ASE certified mechanics is? It's a ton for one shop. Most have one, maybe two. Do you realize how many bays 63 is? It's a ton. Most BIG shops have fewer than 20...and small ones only have 4 or 5 or FEWER. This company had the ability to start and complete 95% of all jobs in less than 24 hours - the only exceptions were transmissions, engine replacements, and differentials - and every repair job was absolutely 100% guaranteed. If you called in to check the progress of your car, they would send your call straight through to the TECHNICIAN who was working on your car within 10 seconds. How? Every mechanic carried a 900-megahertz cordless phone at all times. I'm telling you, this place kicked some serious butt. They put three or four competitors out of business every year and as a result, they literally monopolize the marketplace in their city.

But even though their inside reality was extraordinary and even though they were very successful, they still had a big marketing problem: despite the fact that nobody could even come close to performing at their level - nobody could match their "inside reality" - their yellow page ad (where a good portion of their new business was generated) looked virtually identical to all of their less competent competitors. By looking at the ads there was no way for a prospect to tell how this shop was any different or better than the next. It used the same generalities and platitudes as everybody else: it said things like "ASE certified mechanics. Foreign and Domestic Cars Serviced." And then the usual long laundry list of services performed...ranging from air conditioners to brakes to transmissions and more. Iy you’re at all familiar with the MYM System, you should recognize that it fails the "Well, I would hope so!" test. Well, I would hope that you fixed this, that, and the other. You're a repair shop. But then ask this question: "Who else can say that?"

In the initial consultation, we asked the owner and the service manager that very question, "Who else can say that?" and the service manager started to get really upset with us. He started ranting and raving, "There's nobody else that can say what we say. They can't even come close to touching us. Even the dealerships bring their cars to us when THEY can't fix them. Our mechanics are far and away the best in the state. Nobody, and I mean nobody, can say what we say." I'm telling you, the guy was red-faced and angry!

Here's what we did to try to demonstrate the point, in a non-confrontational way. We had, the owner, pull out the yellow pages and compare what his ad said with what all of his competitors were saying in their ads. He pulled out the book and sure enough, he looked at the ads and stood there in silence for about two minutes. Finally, he pointed at the page and said to the service manager, "Look. I know this guy. He's terrible. His ad says the exact same thing that ours does. And look at this guy. He's a rip-off artist and his ad reads just like ours too. In fact, I think he copied our layout and verbiage word for word." That's what we call SELF-EVIDENCE. If you've got a great inside reality but don't exploit it in your advertising by saying it well, then anybody can say what you say...whether or not they can perform at your level.

Another client, a box company, could take a custom box order and in just four hours or less have it ready to ship. They started using a slogan and a logo that read, "Custom Boxes On Your Dock In Just Four Hours...Guaranteed." What about that? Do you think any of their competitors would even dare put that slogan on any of THEIR promotional materials? Not on your life. Why? Because there's no way that anyone else could perform at that level. Not even close. The company's competitors had an inside reality that could not support the outside perception. Although the box company could deliver the on their four hour promise, even when we first met them, they weren't using that slant in their advertising. This meant they weren't taking advantage of that opportunity.  The very thing that made them unique and better wasn’t even mentioned in their advertising. They would just spew out the same junk everyone else used. "We have boxes, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah." Not anymore.

Here are a couple of other examples from past clients and seminar attendees: A big barbecue catering company stated in their advertising that, "The flavor and taste of our quality meats gives you the best BBQ you've ever eaten." Oh, now that's really believable. Who else could say that? Every other barbeque company on the planet would say the exact same thing. Anyone who's ever fired up the backyard barbeque could and would say that too. You've probably also noticed that it wouldn't pass the "Well, I would hope so test" either. Advertising that is poorly written will often fail more than one of the evaluations.

Guess what industry this is: "Experienced staff; company in business 35 years. Research & development of new technology. Customer service always available. I'm always available to client after the sale." Who else can say that? This could be any company, any industry.

Here are some more "Who else can say that?" examples: a chiropractor with a headline that says, "Gentle Techniques To Relieve Your Back Pain." That's original. I would hope so. Who else can say that? What about this ad for computers: "We've got the lowest computer prices in town." Lazy communication at its worst! Everyone else could certainly say that...and most of competitors DO say that.

Does this make sense to you? Are you seeing how this evaluation could potentially expose gaping holes in your current marketing efforts? Does your advertising pass the "Who else can say that?" evaluation?