Effectively position and focus your service business for success

Stand for one distinctive thing to give you a competitive advantage
Develop a fanatical focus on doing one thing well.

Broaden your appeal, narrow your position and apply ‘lesser logic.’ Ask yourself the following questions:
 - What special skill can the business develop and communicate that would, by the lesser logic, position you strongly in other areas?
 - What core skill could you develop and market that implies other valuable skills? 
 - In your service, what is the hardest task? Position yourself as the expert at this task, and you’ll have lesser logic in your corner.

Harness the power of the Halo Effect.
Say one positive thing in your advertising, and you will become associated with many other positive attributes.

Identify and communicate your differences and leverage your existing position.
If you cannot see the differences in your service, look hard or create new ones. Take your position and turn it to your benefit.

Create your position statement after asking yourself, your clients, and your prospects to identify your current position. The statement will detail:
 - Who? – Company name
 - What? – Size of business and sector
 - Whom? – Your current clients and prospects
 - Against? – Your main competitors
 - What’s different? – Your typical prospects' perception of your service and how it differs from competitors.

Create your positioning statement as to how you wish to be perceived. Ask the following questions.
 - Who: Who are you? 
 - What: What business are you in? 
 - For whom: What people do you serve? 
 - What needs: What are the special needs of the people you serve? 
 - Against whom: With whom are you competing? 
 - What’s different: What makes you different from those competitors? Try to reposition your competitors by standing out but also allaying any client concerns.
 - What’s the benefit? What unique benefit does a client derive from your service?

Bridge the gap between your position and positioning statement.
If the gap is too big, your customers won’t make the leap so keep your steps small. If you are a small service company, stress advantages like responsiveness/attention.

Don’t lose focus, as this can lead to no position and plummeting sales/profits.