Is it your strategy to meet everyone’s needs? If it is, you will have a hard time achieving a competitive distinction. Instead of gaining a reputation for providing excellent services to a select market, you will gain a reputation for doing anything so long as you get paid for it.

If you try to be the highest quality, lowest cost, quickest provider with the widest variety of services, you will undoubtedly fail.

It is not enough to be known. You must be known for something special.

What all this means is that you must learn to say “no.” But it takes courage to say no because saying no conflicts with the need to be liked. It is better to say you are not the best firm to serve the client’s special requirement and then help the client find the firm that is. This will possibly enhance your perceived honesty and value.

There is always the fear that letting a competitor in will jeopardize the client relationship. But it is not possible to keep all competitors away from your clients, and client loyalty is best earned with great service and honesty.

It may appear easier for an established firm to say no. But if a firm never says no, will it ever become established?

The key to establishing and adhering to this strategy is management. Management must convince people that sticking with the strategy is more important than making the budget. It is difficult to convince people that management really means it. Management must be steadfast to convince people that it will not yield to temptation.

From David Maister, Professional and Business Life, 2006, http://davidmaister.com. For the complete article, click on the following link: http://davidmaister.com/articles/4/95/.