new competitors are stealing your clients

Brought to you by The Art Of Positioning Podcast

A 5-year-old firm just closed your ideal client.

Higher price. Less experience. Smaller team.

You've been in business over a decade. Your work is better. Your track record proves it.

So why did the client choose them?

Not because they're better. Because they're clearer.

You didn't become worse as you grew, in fact it’s the opposite.

But you became noisier.

And somewhere in scaling, you buried the signals that made people choose you in the first place.

Newer competitors win because they still send those signals clearly. You've got better experience and infrastructure. You just lost the clarity that makes those advantages visible.

Where the clarity broke down:

As you grew, you made smart operational decisions. More services. Bigger team. Higher prices.

Unbeknownst to you, each smart decision accidentally killed a signal prospects use to decide who to work with...👇

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At $1.2M, everything stopped working.

Landscape company Downer Brothers could add more crews, more equipment, and watch revenue grow. Until they couldn't. Profit tanked. Hours piled up. Same money.

Nicole Downer, President of Downer Brothers Landscaping, Inc., shares in this episode of The Art of Positioning Podcast how they tackled repositioning the business to break through revenue walls at $1M, $3M, and onwards toward $10M

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1. IDENTITY CLARITY

You added capabilities over the years. Roofing became roofing plus siding plus gutters plus windows. Cabinetry became cabinetry plus countertops plus installation plus design services.

Each addition made sense. But positioning-wise, it diluted what you're known for.

A roofing materials supplier now offers shingles, metal, flat roofing systems, gutters, siding, windows, and skylights. Contractor lands on the site and can't figure out if they're a roofing specialist or a general building supply house.

A cabinet supplier added countertops, tile, installation services, and kitchen design. Builders see "full kitchen solutions" and wonder if they're better off going with a cabinet specialist.

Newer competitors say "We supply architectural shingles for residential roofers" or "We manufacture custom cabinets for builders." Contractors know instantly if it's relevant.

You offer more. Prospects can't tell what you're known for.

The fix: Can someone explain in one line what you do, and how it’s different after 30 seconds on your website? After hearing your team pitch? If not, that's the problem.

Run the 5-test positioning diagnostic I shared in last week’s article to rebuild that clarity.

2. ACCESSIBILITY CLARITY

At 15 clients, everyone had direct access. Questions sorted the same day. Personal relationship.

At 80 clients, you built a team and processes. Smart move.

But you might have missed explicitly saying: Here's who handles your account. Here's our response time. Here's how you reach us.

Prospects see "80 clients" and assume they'll be a number. They don't know the engagement model.

A roofing contractor switches from an established supplier to a newer one. Not because the new supplier has better products. Because they said "You'll work with Mike directly. He's on-site visits twice a month. Emergency orders filled same-day."

The established supplier had the same access. They just never spelled it out.

The fix: Be clear about how you actually work with clients.

Who answers their calls? How fast do you respond? How many clients do you take on? Can they reach you directly or go through someone on your team?

Write this down. Put it on your site. Say it in sales calls. Include it in proposals.

3. VALUE CLARITY

Your prices went up over the years. Totally justified. Your expertise increased, systems improved, results got better.

But you never connected the price increase to specific value.

A CPA firm charged $2,500 for tax prep 5 years ago. Now quotes $4,800 with no explanation. Customer sees 92% increase, zero context.

But customers don’t see the quarterly planning calls now included. Tax optimization that saves $15K annually. 24-hour response time instead of 3 days.

Specialized expertise the old setup didn't have.

A roofing materials supplier quotes $450 per square with no breakdown. Newer supplier quotes $475 showing: delivery included, waste calculation done for you, technical support on-site if needed, returns accepted no questions asked.

Newer supplier costs more. But value is clear. That established supplier assumed contractors knew what was included.

The fix: Show them what they're paying for before you show the price.

Pick your 3 main services. For each one, write down:

• What problem does this solve?

• What do they get? (be specific)

• What's included that they might not know about?

• What would happen if they didn't fix this?

Don't say "great service." Say "orders confirmed within 2 hours, delivered by Friday, no questions asked on returns."

Share this before you quote. When they see the price, they already know why it costs what it costs.

So, how do we change this without losing your sophistication?

Newer competitors have constraints that force these three areas. Limited capacity, small team, need to prove themselves.

You have experience, systems, proven results.

Sadly, those advantages got buried under vague positioning and unexplained value.

We’re not about to go backwards, nah, we want to retain your sophistication while recovering that clarity.👇

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😎 Enjoying your read so far? I've built a diagnostic that shows exactly where your positioning is bleeding revenue.

Takes 5 minutes, spots the gaps, and gives you fixes.

Been told I'm nuts for making it free. Time to get ahead of the competition.

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Badass Tip

Pick one signal to fix this week.

Identity is fastest. Test if someone who's never heard of you can explain what you do after 30 seconds on your site.

Accessibility is most impactful. Write down who handles accounts, response times, how many clients you take. Make it clear everywhere.

Value is most urgent for 2026 planning. Connect what you charge to what they actually get before finalizing your fee structure.

What it looks like in practice:

Audit where clarity broke

Pull up your website homepage, core social platform, last 3 sales calls.

Test each one, from your audience’s perspective, not yours.

Can someone new explain what you do in 30 seconds? Do prospects know who works on accounts, response times, access levels? Is pricing immediately connected to specific outcomes?

Fix the weakest one first.

Rebuild the signal

Identity broken?

Run the 5-test diagnostic from last week's article.

Figure out what you're actually known for (talking to existing customers).

Then make sure everywhere prospects find you says the same thing. Website. Socials. Proposals. Sales calls. All of it.

Clarity on access broken?

Write down who handles their account, how fast you respond, how many clients you work with, and how they reach you.

Then put this everywhere prospects look.

Value broken?

Pick your 3 main services. For each one, write down: problem it solves, what they get, what's included, what happens if they don't fix it.

Share this before you quote the price.

Test with prospects

Run 5 conversations using rebuilt signal. Do they understand faster? Ask fewer questions? Reference your commitments back to you?

If yes, roll it out.

If not, get more specific.

Pick one. Fix it this week.

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