Your USP (Unique Selling
Proposition) is the
absolute foundation of your entire business. Without a solid USP, you
will end up with confused customers, a shotgun-approached marketing
plan and a business that lacks in direction. There are good USPs and
bad ones, but those that have it figured out can really bring in the
business no matter what shape the economy is in. Read on to find out
how you can develop your business around a solid unique selling
proposition.
If you do anything to
improve your business this
year, it should be to go back to the basics and develop a USP for your
business that really explains why your customers should do business
with you instead of anyone else in your industry. Your business does
not have to be completely unique. That is nearly impossible and
eventually the copycats always catch up. Instead, find your unique
approach to the same industry that everyone else is in. For example,
you may be the dry cleaner of the millionaires, or the oil change place
for school teachers. In fact I just saw an oil change place the other
day that said it was the local oil change headquarters for Harley
Davidson. People will now have their cars changed there too, just
because they will feel more macho.
The key is how you
position
your business in the market and secure that position so that no one can
take it away from you even when times get tough. You allow your USP to
permeate your business so that no matter which angle your customer
notices your business from, you will be giving off the exact same
marketing message.
Do you homework before
you start the process.
You want your unique selling proposition to last for years, if not
decades, just look at M and M's (...melt in your mouth, not in your
hand). That has been around over 50 years and still applies today and
will still apply in 50 more. They never have to change it and no
company can ever take that position away from them.
The longer
you keep your USP, the longer you keep the position in the marketplace
and the harder it will be for your competition to get anywhere close to
it. The smartest business owners use this little-known secret and so
should you. The USP can be a goldmine for you if you use it correctly,
bringing in customers that have no other option, because you have
positioned yourself as the cornerstone for that market.
