Creating Your Unique Selling Proposition or USP
Creating Your Unique Selling Proposition "Don't tell them what you do. Tell them what you do for them." To capture a larger market share and remain profitable, you absolutely, positively need to distinguish your products and/or services from your competitors. In other words, you need to make your business special in the eyes of your clients: You need to create a Unique Selling Proposition, or USP. So what is a USP? Simply put a USP is that one distinct idea that sets you and your business apart from your competitors. Or put bluntly it's your response to the question "Why should I buy from you?" The competition out there is relentless and the chances are you already work in a very diluted business sector. So, what is going to make you stand out, what is going to get your business get noticed? What's the one clear and overriding reason why I should do business with you? I'm looking through the Yellow Pages, visiting your website, reading your letter, so tell me, "Why the hell should I buy from you?" Don't say, "because we offer great customer service", or "we offer a service that's at a price right for you" ? don't we all?! Think about what makes you unique ? what's the one thing that your business offers, something so compelling that I'm going to contact you and nobody else? Why should I, your prospect, choose to do business with you versus any and every other option available to me in your category? Deciding on your Unique Selling Proposition can take time, and perhaps you don't know what it is? Yet. If this is the case, then I have three powerful ways that you can use to generate your USP. Firstly, ask yourself these questions: ? What is my business really good at?
? What aspect of my business is totally unique?
? What do I provide that no other competitor does? Secondly, ask someone else. Ask a client why they use you ? what is it about company that they like? This can be extremely revealing, as very often their objective view point can turn up something very different from your own perceived USP. Thirdly, imagine you're the customer. Come up with a reason to do business with your company, and then ask yourself 'So what?' Keep asking yourself this question until you've generated something very unique and special. For example, let's imagine you run an accountancy firm, the conversation could go something like this... Why should I do business with you? - Because we offer a great service. So what? - Well? Because we understand the needs of local businesses. So what? - Well? Because our work is second to none. We offer an extremely professional and accurate service. So what? - In fact we believe our work is so good, we offer a full money back guarantee if your not satisfied. In fact , you could say we're 100% accountable to our clients. You get the idea? Now once you've generated your Unique Selling Point, there are then two MAJOR factors you must remember and commit to. Number 1) you must LIVE UP to your USP, you most honour it. It's no good offering, say, a money back guarantee, and then not actually going through with it. Number 2) use your USP in every aspect of your marketing material ? literally scream it from the rafters. Include your USP in your brochures, direct mail, emails, website etc. It's surprising how many business owners will spend more time (and money) deciding how their company logo should look, as opposed to working on something as crucial as their Unique Selling Point. Put it this way, when did a company logo last sell a service? Or put it another way, how much will it cost you to develop a Unique Selling Point? NOTHING. And how much income could this one concept generate for you? Maybe? TENS of THOUSANDS. Andrew Ludlam is a client attraction expert, and Director of Maverick Marketing Solutions. If you're deadly serious about maximising the potential of your business, then I urge you to visit http://www.maverickmarketingltd.com and sign up for the monthly 'Maverick Marketing Solutions Newsletter'... where you'll also receive the FREE white paper "Six Magnetic Ways To Attract More Clients To Your Business In The Next 90 Days..!" (Value $37) Warning! This could be the last business marketing website you ever need to see...
Related News
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Fundraisers - How to Raise Twice the Money With Half the Sweat
If your members, parents or donors wear clothes, watch t.v. or read books you have the beginning ingredients to a sweet recipe for a great year-round fundraiser.
How to Turn More Referrals Into Paying Clients
60% of all small business owners, sales and solo-professionals claim that more than half of their new business comes from referrals. Yet when asked about the process they so successfully use to get those referrals and turn them into paying clients, most will have a puzzled, deer-in-the-headlights, stupefied look on their face, and keep quiet.
Only a handful of professionals can clearly articulate where their referrals consistently come from and how they turn them into a new business.
Getting Into Marketing Momentum ... The Accelerated Way
GETTING INTO MARKETING MOMENTUM: The 5 Power Principles for Getting Your Business into High Gear
Writing Business Newsletters: Avoid the ?Me, Me, Me? Mistake
Effective customer newsletters find the right mix of promotional and 'real' content to maximize readership.
A Guide to Brochure Printing
Brochure printing can be easy if you first identify your needs and have a clear sense of your budget. Whether it is for is a real estate listing, a trade show handout, a data sheet, or another application, brochures are a great promotional tool.
Trigger Button Marketing
Sometimes, experiencing bleak sales is a matter of failing to find your prospective customers' trigger buttons.
Collecting Customer Data The Easy Way
Market research is a critical component of any marketing strategy. There are many expensive sources of customer information available today. But, if you don't have a large marketing budget for market research, what can you do? There a four easy and inexpensive ways to gather marketing data by using your existing customer base.
Joint Venture: 50 Power Secrets Of Joint Venture Marketing, Exposed
What is a Joint Venture?
Top Five Tips For Designing Marketing Strategies That Get Results
"But this won't work" said Steve. "I've tried it in the past and had no response." Does this sound familiar? My newer clients often resist implementing certain strategies based on past experiences. However, I usually find out that it wasn't the strategy itself ? but how it was implemented that caused the dismal results.
Listen To What The Marketing Experts Say
But more importantly, watch what they do. If you do much online shopping, you're sure to have seen some great, and not so great, sales letters urging you to get that oh-so-fabulous product that will solve all your problems right now.
Attract Your Dream Customer
Have you clearly defined your target audience? These are the prime buyers of your products or services. It is the people or organizations you are pursuing actively as customers. You don't need every customer in the world! You need the ones who are a good match for YOU. The more specific you are, the more effective your marketing campaign will be.
Guerrilla Marketing in Action
Guerrilla Marketing is using time, energy and imagination to market a product, business or person without spending massive amounts of hard earned profit dollars. It also has been defined as non-traditional marketing, something unusual, unexpected and designed to be noticed. Of course all marketing is designed to be notice. Its just that some isn't, believe it or not.
To Be Successful Sell to Wants not Needs
My mother used to tell me, tongue in cheek, that I never wanted anything in my life- everything I asked for was something I needed!! Think about it. We say, "I need a new car." "I need to go on vacation." "I need someone to clean my house." When was the last time you heard someone say, "I want a new pair of shoes." I bet even Amelda Marcos said, "I need a new pair of shoes."
Don?t Put All Of Your Eggs Into One Basket
I vaguely remember a particular story from my childhood. It had something to do with transporting eggs to market. The main character, a little girl who thought she knew more than she really did, put all of the day's eggs into one basket, and when she tripped and fell on the way into town to sell the eggs, all of the eggs broke. It seems that her grandmother (the voice of experience and wisdom) tried to tell her not to do that, but she wouldn't listen. If she had divided them up into several means of transportation some would have been lost, but not all of them. It was a difficult lesson to learn.
How Gratitude Works
Want to know what the highest-impact, lowest-cost tool is in your marketing toolkit? First, here are ten reasons to start using this tool right away:
Everything Youve Ever Learned About Marketing Is Wrong
Everything you've ever learned about marketing and advertising is WRONG. Everything you've ever heard everything you've ever tried, everything you've ever done, it's all WRONG.
Utilizing Your Best Hidden Asset To Increase Sales
You probably already have in your possession one of the most valuable
and powerful assets you can possibly own. But if you're like most
business people you probably aren't using it to its full potential.
Marketing Effectively to More Than One Audience
What's a small business owner to do if they have more than one audience to market to? Perhaps they need to attract clients but they also need to recruit business partners or vendors. Do they need two marketing plans or can they use one plan that tries to address both aspects?
6 MUST Have Strategies To Make Big Bucks with Big Ticket Items
Strategy #1: Change Your Mindset
Out of Sight, But Not Out of Mind
What's black and white and read all over? A newsletter of course! And while there are perhaps hundreds of ways to market your business and increase your bottom line, one of the singlemost effective tools in marketing is your own business-building newsletter.
|
