Weak Branding and Average Sales

I have spoken to many professionals lately that are in industries such as banking where they perceive their only competitive advantage is in providing better customer service and convenience than their competitors.  In fact, there are many companies that market slogans such as "Our people make the difference."

Really?  What does that mean?  Having quality people and providing great customer service is not a competitive advantage!  Those things are merely table stakes.  Customer service is the ante required to play the high stakes poker game of sales and business development.

To win the game, the business owner and sales professional has to be "branded" as someone who has the expertise, resources, and creativity to be a solution to problems known and unknown and one who can help leverage opportunities known and unknown.

Wow!  What a mouthful!

Let's use a simple idea for commercial bankers to demonstrate.  I know a few dozen.  Only one has asked me about my future plans to grow my business and suggested that even though I don't need the bank's support now, he would be happy to sit down with me now and talk to me about how my financial records need to look when the time comes.

He is demonstrating his brand by showing me that he can alleviate some of my anxiety in the future by being a resource to me now. 

He can't do this for everyone, but if he prequalifies those to whom he makes the offer based upon things such as their influence in the business community and the soundness of their current business model and management, he won't be wasting time.  He'll be investing it!

With me and others, he has branded himself.

For whom can you be someone with expertise, resources, and creativity such that you are a solution to problems known and unknown or someone who can help leverage opportunities known and unknown?