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How businesses in the same industry are all making money

Ever wondered how two of the same products or services with the same features and the same price could both make money? It’s mind-boggling to see how many businesses are opening their doors every single day, whilst it appears that most of them are operating in a profitable capacity. 

Choice is infinite and it’s easier than ever to discover an offering that appeals perfectly to your needs with online searches, testimonials and rating sites, etc.  I am going to use an example of education, specifically nurseries and pre-schools in Dubai, to explain how brand positioning can win market share and profit.

My colleague is an expat mom in Dubai, she started the search for a nursery within four months of being pregnant, as an oversupply of choice can be intimidating in this city.  After ruling out nurseries that weren’t near the office, within their budget and the curriculum they wanted, she still had a shortlist that wasn’t, well…so short. 

Being a brand strategist, I’ve learned how to read between the lines to see what a business is all about, what is at its essence, purpose, set of core values, etc.  And as a consumer, you buy the product that is closest to what you believe in.

A business or brand’s positioning is the unique space a brand claims in the minds of its consumers and specifically in this case, in the minds of parents. 

In its primary state, a nursery has two basic reasons for existing:

  1. It has facilities with a safe environment for children to eat, sleep and play
  2. It provides children opportunities to learn and discover new things to grow

These are certainly nothing an Early Child Development Center should talk about, be proud of, or establish a reputation on. These are passports, the ‘must-haves’ for a business to exist and in a developed country like the UAE, and  Dubai specifically, a safe environment and educational growth are to be expected and we almost ‘assume’ they are present.

However, the different perceptions and methods in which to conduct these basic services are where the magic lies. That is where parents will choose one nursery over another or drive 30 minutes in traffic when there’s another offering the same basics just around the corner.  This is what makes your brand different and when it’s done right, this is what will drive customers to your business.

It is impossible for a nursery to be all things to all children, it cannot be all about ‘let children play the old school way’ as well as all about technology and getting your child ready for the digital world.

Here are five nurseries, each with a unique approach to care and education:

  • School A: Play is at the foundation of early childhood development
  • School B: Believes in a tailored learning experience
  • School C: Follow a sensory approach to learning
  • School D: A ‘Green Thinking’ children’s nursery inspired by motherly instincts and the harmony of nature.
  • School E: Works with parents to raise children with confidence and personality

As a branding agency, we look for a business’ uniqueness and combine it with its philosophy and skills to formulate a recipe that will allow us to talk to a market that believes in what they do.  A clear positioning makes staff recruitment and training, marketing efforts, communication plans and business management a whole lot easier when you are focused on one specific territory within an industry.

Most clients are terrified that their product or service is not general enough to cater to everyone who is in the market to buy, so instead of focusing their efforts in a specific direction, they scramble around with inconsistent and meaningless communication and behaviour that doesn’t really appeal to any market because it is simply just too generic and lacks differentiation.

The hardest but essential phase in brand positioning is to list your buyer or user personas.  Yes, anyone can buy the product, but who would be the top three customers or users? Try to move away from demographics and list psychographics. These would include mindset, lifestyle, philosophy, personality type, etc, instead of age group, nationality, income or gender and so on.

In the case of school A, which uses play as its foundation, the brand will talk to parents that:

  • Are likely to take their children on outdoor excursions over the weekend
  • Encourages their children to play outside with minimal use of technology
  • Are looking for large open spaces and natural sunlight within the school facilities
  • Raise their children to be independent and use the school’s bus service.

This is just an example, but it would look completely different to the parents who would associate with the ‘green thinking’ positioning and offering.

You might argue that being environmentally friendly, a combined parent and teacher approach, and play are all essential to the existence of a nursery, and you’re right. However, to deliver on all of them consistently in an outstanding manner and for staff to direct their efforts and become experts in one subject as well as be innovative with new methods is tough. A single focused brand positioning can differentiate you from your competition, provided it’s not just a set of words but something stakeholders live and buy into. 

This diagram shows the elements that contribute to your positioning.

Take 10 minutes and ask yourself these three questions to analyse whether you claim a space in the consumer’s mind that is idiosyncratic:

  1. Do you truly know your customers? (What is the one thing all of them have in common and which things make them unique to each other)
  2. What is the one benefit or Unique Selling Proposition of a customer using your product or service over the competitor’s
  3. What’s the evidence that your brand delivers on your USP?

Please remember that the value of brand positioning lies not in the written statement but rather in what you do (action! action! action!) as a brand to create a desirable perception of your business in your consumer’s mind.

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