As a subject matter expert you may not realize how different marketing services is from say… marketing an electric car. Or the latest smart watch. Or any other product.
Marketing services is different, because you’re not marketing a product. Instead, you’re marketing relationships and trust.
Think about it. The key resources for any professional service firm are:
- Services – The things your clients pay you to do for them. Nicely labeled as ‘legal advice’ or ‘strategy consulting’.
- Knowledge – The things your clients expect you to know. Like ‘the latest rules and regulations on greenwashing in the European Union’ or ‘the pitfalls of acquiring another company’.
- Tools & methodologies – The steps you take to solve your client’s challenges effectively and efficiently.
- Data – Facts and figures you can easily access when you need to. Usually results from the (recent) past.
- Relationships – The relationship between you and your client. The amount of trust you built in order to be rewarded the business you want.
So, when marketing services…
- Services don’t make a big difference. Especially because your competitors offer the exact same services.
- Knowledge can be a competitive advantage, but only for a short period of time. When you’re an expert in a certain field others will catch up.
- Tools & methodologies can help you be more efficient.
- Just like data.
- Relationships, however, are the big differentiator.
When marketing services, it pays big time to work towards these two strategic goals:
- Make sure the right people know you
- And recognize you as the number one expert in your field.
Hope this helps!
Thank you for reading Nudge #009, sent to busy subject matter experts on October 31, 2023.
Also sign up for The Nudge if you feel you can use a little marketing & business development push now and then.
