Look, I don’t want to mention any names (it’s Mel) but someone here in the office now has reading glasses.
The same someone has always taken great pride in her perfect eyesight and sees reading glasses as a bit of an indication that she may be getting a little older.
Anyhow, the point of all this is this.
- Reading glasses are not something you need to get off your optometrist – which is where most people do buy them.
- You can buy reading glasses from a range of online places now – all you need is your prescription and any number of online stores will sell you a pair very cheap. I’m talking hundreds of $$$ in savings.
So the question is, for an online reading glasses store, what do you have to do to get customers?
- Get known/get in front of your target market – advertising, public relations, search engine optimisation.
- Have a relevant and unique point of difference that influences the buying decision.
- 3. Make an offer.
Like all marketing, that’s it.
Why Price Is A Bad Unique Selling Point
Price is many businesses unique selling point. But that’s a bad one. And it’s a bad unique selling point because someone will always come along and beat you on price.
Always.
Every time.
No question.
For something like reading glasses you want a unique selling point that is relevant.
Seeing as though (what a pun!) your main competition will be optometrists, I’d think that incredibly fast service might be the best one to focus on.
- What’s different about you to your competitors?
- Is that difference important in the customer’s decision making process?
- Is it a difference that can be easily beaten by your competition? No….then that’s it then.
Cheers
Hi – I read your article about reading glasses with interest, and particularly agree with your point regarding price as a bad USP – the fact that regardless of the product, in a market economy there will always be someone out there who is prepared to undercut you. Our company is always keen to adhere to any RRP’s that may be provided by manufacturers as this in turn gives retailers a genuinely fair crack of the whip, and is often an accurate reflection of the quality and brand. As you quite rightly suggest the USP then shifts toward the service you, as an individual or a company, are able and willing to provide. As a small online optical company we feel our USP can be summed up with “prompt and responsive high quality customer service with an ongoing drive to source bright new products that represent the ever changing demands of society.“
Kind regards, Daniel Cullen.
google: daniel cullen