Do You Know Your Unique Selling Proposition?


	Do You Know Your Unique Selling Proposition?	Search BWA Web Pages

By: Kelly Robbins

I work with many small and home-based businesses to either develop and/or improve their marketing materials. Over and over again, business owners ask me to improve the sales letter they are working on, or they ask for advice on their Web site that is not meeting their sales expectations. Oftentimes what I find is that there is no strategy behind the medium. They want to send out a promotional piece just because they think they should. Sometimes they don't even know what they want to say, they just want to send out a letter to increase sales. However, you can't write a phenomenal sales letter without a sound marketing strategy behind it. You need to lay a solid foundation, and then build from there.

As I work with customers and delve deeper into what they are trying to accomplish, I realize we need to back up and start with some marketing basics. What makes your company better than the rest? How do you stand apart? Why should people choose your company over your competitors? Answers to these questions define your unique selling proposition, or USP. Do you know your unique selling proposition?

You may offer the best value for the price, or be the only company in the area that offers this service. Will this stop a competitor from coming in and taking a piece of our pie? One of the easiest ways to learn about USP is to think about some of the places you frequent and guess what their USP is. What is it for McDonalds? Nordstroms? The dry cleaners you use? How about the coffee or cereal you buy? Why do you shop where you shop? An even more important question to ask yourself is; why do your customers shop with you?

Most business owners don't have a USP. Many of you know what it is, but have never put it into words. Take the time to make it physical and put it down on paper. Busy as you are, it's important to take the time to do this for yourself. Your USP needs to be a distinct, achievable idea that sets you and your business apart from your everyday, generic competitors. Look at what other companies, in different industries, have used for their USP. You can certainly copy someone else's. Ideas for a USP are limitless, however it's best to adopt a dynamic that fills an obvious void in the marketplace. And make sure you can honestly fill it. If you can't actually be the fastest, don't claim you can be. Consumers will verify your USP is accurate, and base future purchases on your ability to fulfill that promise.

How do you know if you have a USP and it's working? Take a look at your Web site. Will someone who knows nothing about your company understand your USP immediately when first visiting the site? Knowing you have less than five seconds to grab their attention, it better be crystal clear right away. If visitors don't know exactly what you do and what you stand for quickly, they're gone. The same holds true for your print materials.

Here are some steps you can take to begin defining your USP

Sit down and write what you believe your USP is. It may take you several paragraphs to boil down to the essence of this thought, but keep writing until you have said everything you can think of about you or your company that makes you unique.
Start editing. Edit your paragraph until you can boil the essence of what you are saying to one sentence. This may take a while, but it's important you get it down to one sentence. This is your elevator pitch.
Talk with your employees. Make sure they understand this is what your company stands for and that they communicate this in everything they do, including phone conversations with customers and vendors. You need to exude your unique selling proposition in everything you do. As the business owner, you set the example for the rest of the company, and everybody is watching you!
Communicate this sentence in everything you do. This should not only be in your marketing materials, but in your conversations with customers as well. Do you have guarantees to back up your USP? Do you discipline employees who do not follow this philosophy to the letter?

If the reason is location, or I dare say even the price, you better watch out. Someone else may come along and steal your customers. Finding your unique selling proposition may not be easy, but understanding what it is builds your company's foundation for the future. You need to define it in order to ensure it happens. Once you know it, or have defined it, ensure your staff, vendors, and most importantly your customers know it. It's what separates you from the rest. It's what makes you unique and it's why customers continue to do business with you.

About the Author

Kelly Robbins is a copywriter/marketing consultant. She currently writes the home-based business column for the Denver Business Journal and is a board member for the Colorado Business Marketing Association (BMA). Kelly helps clients increase sales through effective communication to both internal and external customers. Visit our web site at www.KellyRobbinsLLC.com or call 303-460-0285 for more information.

Š2003, Kelly Robbins LLC