Look, I’ve seen it a thousand times. You’re sitting there, looking at a quote you just sent off, and you know you’ve gone too low. You’ve trimmed the fat, cut your margin, and you’re basically working for a slab of beer just to get the job. Why? Because the bloke down the road is doing it for five bucks cheaper.
It’s a race to the bottom, and honestly? It’s a race you don’t want to win.
If the only thing that makes you different from the guy in the next suburb is your price, you don’t have a business—you have a commodity. And commodities get treated like dirt. People don't care about your expertise or your twenty years in the game; they just care about the bottom line.
But here’s the good news: you can fix this. You can stop being just another name in a Google search and start being the only logical choice for your customers.
The "Me Too" Trap
Most small businesses in Brisbane—whether they’re electrics, law firms, or cafes—all look the same. They use the same stock photos of people shaking hands. They use the same slogans like "Quality Service Guaranteed" or "Family Owned Since 1994."
Newsflash: Nobody cares.
Every customer expects quality service. Every customer assumes you’re not a cowboy (until you prove otherwise). When you say the same stuff as everyone else, you’re sending mixed messages that confuse people. And when people are confused, they default to the only thing they can measure: price.
I was chatting with a builder in Paddington recently. He was frustrated because he kept losing jobs to guys who were clearly cutting corners. We looked at his website and his brochures. He looked exactly like the cowboys. He didn’t show his unique process, he didn't talk about his specific niche (heritage renovations), and he didn't explain why his quotes were higher.
He was making it impossible for the customer to choose him for any reason other than the dollar figure.
How to Actually Stand Out (Without the Fluff)
Differentiation isn't about a fancy logo or a clever radio jingle. It’s about solving a specific problem better than anyone else.
#### 1. Pick a Lane
You can’t be everything to everyone. If you try to be the "cheapest, fastest, and best," you’re lying—mostly to yourself.
Pick one thing. Maybe you’re the guy who specialises in emergency repairs and shows up within an hour. Maybe you’re the premium option that uses the best materials and leaves the site cleaner than when you arrived.
When you specialise, you stop being a commodity and start being an expert. Experts get to charge more. Generalists get to fight over scraps.
#### 2. Fix the "Invisible" Problems
Think about what your customers actually hate about your industry. - Tradies who don't show up on time. - Lawyers who talk in riddles. - Accountants who only call once a year when the tax bill is due.
If you can build your entire business around fixing those specific annoyances, you’ve won. If you can honestly say, "We show up within 15 minutes of the booking or the first hour is free," you aren't competing on price anymore. You’re competing on peace of mind. That’s worth gold.
#### 3. Be a Real Person
People buy from people. Most small business websites look like they were written by a robot that’s had a lobotomy.
Stop using "we aim to provide excellence." Start saying, "I’ve been doing this for fifteen years and I’ve seen every mistake in the book. Here’s how I’ll make sure your roof doesn’t leak in the next big Brisbane storm."
Show your face. Show your team. Show the messy reality of a job well done. Authenticity is a massive competitive advantage because most people are too scared to be themselves.
A Tale of Two Landscapers
Let's look at a real-world example of how this plays out.
Landscaper A does everything. Mowing, hedging, paving, retaining walls. His flyers say "Free Quotes. All Work Guaranteed." He’s constantly chasing invoices and arguing with people about why a retaining wall costs ten grand.
Landscaper B decided he only does "Low-Maintenance Native Gardens for Busy Families." He knows exactly who his customer is: someone with a decent income, a big backyard in a suburb like Ashgrove, and zero time to pull weeds.
Landscaper B’s website shows how he selects plants that survive a Queensland summer without being watered every day. He explains his process for making sure the kids have a safe place to play.
Who do you think gets the call when a family wants their yard done? And who do you think gets to charge a premium because they’re the "expert" in exactly what that family needs?
Landscaper B isn't just a guy with a shovel. He’s a specialist. That’s differentiation.
The Cost of Being Different
I’ll be honest with you: being different takes guts.
You will turn some people away. The person looking for the cheapest quote won't call you. And that’s a good thing. You don't want the bottom-feeders; they’re the ones who complain the most and pay the slowest.
It also takes time. You won't change your reputation overnight. It takes a few months for your new messaging to sink in and for the right kind of leads to start hitting your inbox.
But once it starts working? Your sales calls get easier. You aren't defending your price anymore because the customer already knows why you’re worth it. You spend less time quoting for people who were never going to hire you anyway.
Don't Let an Agency Blow Smoke Up Your...
If you hire someone to help with this, make sure they aren't just giving you a "pretty" version of what you already have.
I’ve seen plenty of business owners get burnt by people who promise the world but just deliver a shiny new website that still says the same boring stuff as everyone else. If you feel like your agency is making up rubbish, they probably are.
Real marketing strategy isn't about picking a nice colour for your logo. It’s about figuring out how to position your business so you win more jobs and make more money. Period.
What Should You Do First?
If you’re ready to stop competing on price, do this today:
1. Look at your three biggest competitors. What are they promising? If they all say "quality" and "reliability," then those words are officially useless to you. 2. Ask your five best customers why they keep coming back. It’s rarely because of the price. Is it because you explain things clearly? Is it because you’re tidy? Is it because you’re the only one who answers the phone? Whatever they say—that’s your new marketing strategy. 3. Update your website header. Take down the generic "Welcome to [Business Name]" and replace it with the specific problem you solve.
Marketing shouldn't be a mystery. It’s just about being the most obvious solution to a specific person’s problem.
If you want to chat about how to make your business stand out in Brisbane, or if you’re sick of your marketing feeling like a waste of cash, give us a shout at Local Marketing Group. We’ll tell it to you straight.