Well enough to tell a buyer, in one sentence, why customers pick you over the shop down the street, and to back that sentence up with proof. That means knowing what your competitors sell, how they market and what their own customers say about them, then putting it all on one page you can hand a buyer.
A serious buyer is going to ask you some version of that question. An answer like “we just do better work” won't build much confidence, because almost every owner says it. A buyer isn't only buying your business. They are buying your place in the market, so they want to know who else is in it and why customers keep choosing you.
Know what your competitors actually sell
Start with the offer itself. Look at their services, their prices, and what they do that you don't, along with what you do that they don't. Walk through their website, read their price sheet or menu, and if it makes sense in your industry, call them the way a customer would.
The goal isn't to copy anyone. It is to find the specific, checkable things that set you apart. Let's say you are the only shop in the area that offers same day service. A buyer can verify that. A buyer can't do much with “we care more.”
Look at how they market and where they show up
Next, look at how they find customers. Are they running ads, sending mailers or sponsoring the local team? Where are they showing up that you're not?
This tells a buyer two things. It shows how crowded your market really is, and it can point to growth a new owner could chase. If a competitor wins business through a channel you have never tried, that is an opportunity a buyer can see for themselves.
Read what their customers say about them
Then read their reviews, including the complaints. What frustrates their customers is often exactly what you do well. If people complain that a competitor never calls back, and your own reviews keep mentioning how quickly you respond, that is a selling point with evidence behind it.
Read your own reviews with the same eye. The patterns in them are the closest thing you have to an outside answer to why customers pick you.
Put your edge on one page
Once you have done the research, put it on one page: your main competitors, what they sell and charge, how they market, and the few specific reasons customers choose you instead. When a buyer asks why you win, you can hand them proof instead of opinions.
That page is useful long before a sale. It shows where you are strong and where a competitor is pulling ahead, while there is still time to do something about it. Your position in the market is one of the things that shapes what a buyer will pay, and my page on what your business is worth walks through the rest.
So what is one thing your business does better than the competition? Start there, and write it down.
Ready to talk it through? Talk with me about selling. No cost, no obligation.
Read the transcript
People ask me how well they really need to know their competition. Here's a quick test. Can you tell a buyer in one sentence why customers pick you over the shop down the street?
A serious buyer is going to ask you some version of that question, and “we just do better work” won't build much confidence.
Here's why it matters. A buyer isn't only buying your business. They're buying your place in the marketplace, so they want to know who else is in it.
The first thing to know is what your competitors actually sell. Look at their services, their prices, and what they do that you don't offer.
The second thing is how they market. Are they running ads, sending mailers, or sponsoring the local team? Where are they showing up that you're not?
And the last one is what they post and what their customers say about them. Read their reviews, their complaints. Those are often your selling points.
Now, put it all on one page. When a buyer asks you why you win, you can hand them proof instead of opinions.
So what's one thing that your business does better than the competition? Tell me in the comments.
