By David T. Rogers
Copyright by FMI Corporation; reprinted with permission.

Why do all consultants look alike? The answer to that question has its roots in the early 1970s, when a communications philosophy called "positioning" revolutionized advertising. Positioning meant finding a market niche for a company's product or service. The idea was to be the first in the niche, but the main goal was to create and occupy a "position" in the prospect's or customer's mind. This is powerful concept.

Now positioning is getting harder and harder. The niches are filled with competitors who are trying to be all things to all customers, and marketing claims are starting to sound alike, too. Here are some common refrains: "We can design the quality facility you need." ... "We offer excellent service." ... "We meet all of our schedules on time and under budget." ... "We have experienced and qualified people." ... "We've done a lot of similar projects."

First, you must rise above the competition. Many firms try to do this by lowering their price. But that's too easy for a competitor to match or undercut. To set yourself apart, consider adopting strategies that are difficult for the competition to match.

Create a label or name. Give each service you offer a marketable or memorable name. One engineering firm decided to call its partnering process the "PSP," for Project Specific Partnering. Some of their clients were turned off by the term "partnering" because they had been hounded for long-term partnering commitments and didn't want them. But they were quite willing to entertain the single partnering concept for the project at hand.

Create a unique product or method. Always meet with your potential client early on to discuss the best approach to the job. This strategy helps differentiate the service you provide. Your use of creative techniques will also cause buyers to view your company more positively than they view your competitors.

I once lost a 40,000-square-foot office addition to a two-person architectural firm. Our company was the right size for this project, with all architectural and engineering disciplines in house, and our proposed architect had designed the original building for the developer. We thought we had covered all the bases. But the other firm did some preliminary sketches and the owner was hooked. It didn't matter how many meetings we had. He eventually awarded the project to our competitor.

Expand your service. Provide excellent service. Respond quickly to inquiries. Offer technical expertise. Go beyond what the client needs; offer a special service that makes your company look good -- and give this service a name.

For example, you can provide your client with a weekly list of what has been accomplished recently and what will be accomplished in the near future. Take the lead at meetings. Suggest ways to speed up the project or to work through scheduling problems. Offer to coordinate the various groups working on the project.

Build relationships. You can get repeat business--and new business--by building good relationships. Don't let relationships slide. Get together with clients between projects by meeting for breakfast or lunch. If this kind of relationship-building makes you uncomfortable, create a service that gives you an excuse to meet with clients between projects.

Build a good image. Are you perceived as easy to get along with and flexible? Are you a team player, or are you a loner? A good image helps you sell yourself, even if you aren't that much different from your competitors in other ways. Go that extra step, and make a phone call or set up a meeting to ask questions. What's important on this job? What services can you provide? What are potential problems, and how can you help the owner avoid them?

Make sure your employees are cooperative and easy to work with. This may require in-house customer-relationship training and creating a company culture that emphasizes teamwork, but it will be well worth the effort.

Provide a way to measure your success. Besides giving each of your services a name, give them a measurement. Consider a scenario in which a client asks two different consultants about the quality of their work. "We do outstanding work," says the first, while the other answers, "We have an overall quality rating of 4.4 out of 5 based on over 100 customer surveys taken over the last three years." The second response provides evidence to back up claims of quality.

After completing a project, ask the client to respond to a one- or two-page survey about your work. Use the survey data to make positive statements about your company--both in brochures and in meetings. To encourage completion of the survey, deliver it to the client personally, or fax the survey and call to follow up.

Make a difference. Identifying or creating the differences between you and the competition takes effort. Set aside time with your employees to brainstorm ways to achieve this goal. Make sure your final ideas are specific and present measurable concepts of your services.

David Rogers is a senior consultant with FMI's Engineering & Architectural Group. FMI is a management consulting firm specializing in the design and construction industry.