I want you to think back a few years. Before baseball stars admitted to using steroids. Before Madonna started writing children's books. Before Tanya Harding was a boxer and before Nancy Kerrigan teamed up with Uncle Joey from Full House for Celeb-Skating. (author side question: what is our world coming to?) Back to the article...

The year was 1994 and everyone across the United States was watching the highly anticipated U.S. Olympic figure skating trials...okay, I'll admit, I had no clue they were on, but I am sure there were a lot of people that were interested. I personally found out via the several thousand airings of the "incident." Here is the what happened, incase you didn't go outside of your cave in 1994:

Nancy Kerrigan was the favorite to make the U.S. Ice Skating Team for the Winter Olympics. Arch rival, Tanya Harding, schemed with her boyfriend on a bar napkin a dastardly plot to have a large creepy guy whack Kerrigan on the knee so she could not compete. With Kerrigan out of the way, Harding would make the team and live happily ever after.

After getting clubbed by the creepy guy, Kerrigan laid on the floor crying and screaming, "WHY MEEEE ?, WHY MEEEE ?" Lucky for us, the television cameras were there to capture the real-life drama and played it over and over. You may now be thinking, "Thanks for the tabloid history lesson, but what does this have to do with building my small business?" Great question, here is your answer:

As a small business owner, if you do not know the answer to the question, "why me - why use my business?" - how can you expect your prospects to know it? If prospects don't know "why you," they will probably give their business to a company they do know the answer. When you are clear on "why me," you will be able to share that with your prospect.

Here are two steps to help you develop a better understanding and articulation of "why me" with your business.

1) Different Strokes for Different Folks - Todd Bridges is on that Celeb-Skating show too by the way. But I digress! Take a piece of paper and list out all the ways your business is different than your competition. Different not better. People don't usually chose a company because they are better. On the other hand, they do often chose a company because they are different in a way that appeals to them. Hint - if you find the words:service, quality, or caring, on your list, cross them out! You can't be different (even if you are) by saying the same stuff everyone else already says.

2) Spit it Out! - If you can't articulate the difference to prospects, it doesn't do you much good. Looking at your list, pick what you consider to be the three most powerful differences. If you can't decide, share your list with some close business associates and see what they consider to be the three most powerful. Once you have three powerful differences, practice putting them into a brief description of your business. Then get out there and say it. The more you say it, the more you will believe it and the better it will sound.

Two steps to prepare you for the moment a large creepy guy comes and whacks you on the knee. Okay, it won't do much for you in that case. However, it will help you sell your product and services to that very same large creepy guy - which, as long as they are not clubbing people, seems like an acceptable practice. Large creepy guys need to buy stuff too.

Kevin Kearns

Colorado Small Business Marketing / Branding Coach, Kevin Kearns, holds a Master of Science degree in Organization Development from Central Washington University and is a member of the Coachville Graduate School of Coaching. With a mixture of hands-on experience, research, and FUN, He helps Colorado home businesses become the only choice. He is one of the founding partners of the World's First Snowboarder Hotel, THE BLOCK HOTEL. He has profited first-hand from the level of success only true branding can bring. He doesn't just teach branding, he has lived it in his own businesses.

Kevin serves as the Executive Director of the Pikes Peak Advertising Federation in Colorado Springs, a professional association for professionals in advertising, marketing, and sales. He also assists the Better Business Bureau of Southern Colorado by mediating business disputes. Kevin lives with his wife and three children just outside of Colorado Springs, in Woodland Park, Colorado.

With the the right strategy coaching, any business can become a successful brand. If you want to grow your small business, Kevin Kearns provides the expert advice and experience you need to make it happen. He can provide you with step-by-step proven brand and marketing strategies: assessment, vision, promise, positioning, marketing plan, elevator speech, networking skills, and sales and marketing approaches.

In addition to small business brand / marketing coaching, he provides Small Business Brand Development Workshops throughout Colorado to help entrepreneurs with their brand plan in just a few hours. Call Kevin if you would like him to present a workshop to your Chamber of Commerce, networking group, or association.

KevinKearns.com is also the home of The Branding Bunch, a community of small business owners that want to grow their business the easy way. They are tired of the dogfights with competition over each and every customer. Joining The Bunch unlocks the power of building a powerful brand. Members of The Bunch quickly learn the secrets to building a brand that attracts customers. Meaning, no more head-to-head battles with the competition.

The Branding Bunch newsletter offers brand, sales, and marketing tips for free - visit kevinkearns.com and sign-up.