www.zhlzw.com ☆ 励志成功·人生激励·心灵关怀·生活智慧·潜能开发·成功彼岸 ☆2008-11-1

　　□Bill and Becky operated a bakery and sandwich shop called Wholegrain Bakery. Customers lined up early each morning to purchase bagels, muffins, croissants, bread, and other goodies, but the bakery’s highly profitable specialty items□outstanding cakes and desserts□didn’t sell very well.

　　Although they produced great products, Bill and Becky neglected to build the bakery’s image around their premium, high-quality items. Casual customers perceived the shop as an average bakery rather than as a purveyor of top-flight desserts. Why?

　　First, the owners presented their company as an old-fashioned corner bakery. Their window displays and signage were neat but simple, not conveying an upscale image. Inside, the counters and display cases were filled with an abundance of baked goods, but the high-end desserts were jammed in alongside the breads and rolls. A sign listing the daily specials was handwritten. The staff were neatly dressed but without a uniform appearance.

　　“Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7, niv). Unfortunately, if the outward appearance of a business doesn’t clearly communicate a company’s unique strengths, customers may not understand everything the company has to offer. Bill and Becky did a good job of merchandising their everyday items, but they failed to capitalize on the potential of their high-margin desserts.

　　The first step in building your company’s image is to clearly understand your key competitive advantage in the marketplace, and then to craft your image around that advantage. For example, Wholegrain Bakery had several competitors for bagels and bread, but these other shops couldn’t match the bakery’s array of high-quality dessert items.

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