Ask any business owner about how they stand apart from the competition and they’ll probably begin with the tangible, the things they can easily explain. “We offer a more competitive interest rate.” “Our products have more features. “We have better distribution.”

In 2008 Windows accounted for 84% of personal computing devices shipped. Today that number is just 28%. It turns out that people weren’t buying monitors and motherboards.

Customers don’t often pay for the actual value the product delivers. If they did $4 cups of coffee wouldn’t exist. People pay for the intangible value, for what they experience and what they care about.

If you can’t finish this sentence, then like Microsoft, it might be time for a rethink.

“Our customers love how it feels when they ———————— our product or service, because ————————.”

Your competitive advantage is what your customers believe, not what you make in the factory.

Image by Bianca Nogrady.