It doesn't matter how smart you are

Brains ≠ followers.

It doesn't matter how great your idea is, if people don't listen.  I remember earlier in my career, thinking I had the best ideas (some were good, some were not) and was endlessly frustrated when no one wanted to use them.  It took years to realize that people seldom follow new ideas.  That you have to get them interested in following you, just as much as the idea.

Having incredible skills as a programmer, salesperson or even an accountant is really only the start.  You have to have interpersonal skills, or EQ.  You have to be able to listen to others, and make sure they know you are listening.  Then present your idea, when you know it will help them.

How do I stand out in a crowd?

You could be one in a team of a hundred, or a vendor in a saturated market.  How do you stand apart from the others?  Here are a few ideas.

1) Be an expert.

What is the field?  Do you know it well?  Do you know what your customers are looking for?  How well do you know what your customers want?  Make sure you know this inside and out.  Nothing makes you stand out less than just being a store clerk with no direct expertise in what you sell.

But it doesn't matter how much you know if know one knows you know.  (that's a lot of knows)

2) Be Visible

What would your customers pay attention to?  Who would they follow?  Is there anything out there that a customer can find on you? Do you have a blog, a vlog or are you an active member of a forum often perused by your target customers?  Below are some great places to get visible.

 - Linked In: Like a business card and Rolodex on steroids.  Create awareness of your abilities and expand your reputation.  Generate leads.  Listen and gain insights to what customers are looking for.

 - Twitter: Do you have regular updates?  Blog posts?  Use Twitter to announce new new blog posts.  Don't have some new event going on?  Just mention some useful fact or opinion on a product or feature.

 - Content Forums:  Forums, or Message Boards exist for pretty much every field and industry.  Some good, some not so much.  Do some research and find out which forums are most popular.  Get involved, not by just posting about what you sell, but ask questions to make customers think.  I.e. "What is the biggest challenge your face with [blah] vendors?", "Which system for [blah] do you prefer and why?"  Just get conversations going.   - Listen to posts.  Be helpful on questions.  Just include in your footer & profile, that you help people find solutions.