Differentiate or Die: Your Unique Selling Proposition

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~~ DAVID FREY'S ~~

~~ MARKETING BEST PRACTICES NEWSLETTER ~~

'The Web's Leading Small Business Marketing Newsletter'

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This is the SECOND installment of the 'Six Deadly
Small Business Marketing Mistakes' mini-course.

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Differentiate or Die: Your Unique Selling Proposition
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Avis Rent a Car 'We're number two. We try harder.'

Federal Express 'When it absolutely, positively has to be there.'

Dominos Pizza 'Fresh, hot pizza in 30 minutes or less'

What do all three of these slogans have in common? They
are powerful statements of uniqueness that helped to propel
their respective companies to success.

Avis Car Rental knew that Hertz, the number one car rental
company, was so much bigger than them that they couldn't
compete head on so they positioned themselves as the number
two car company that worked harder for the customer.

Federal Express based their slogan on a promise of delivery
reliability. Dominos based their slogan on the fact that most
pizza eaters don't car how much stuff is on it but that it was
hot, fresh, and delivered fast.

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Your Unique Selling Proposition
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Each of these slogans is their respective company's unique
selling proposition (USP). A USP is something that differentiates
you from all your competitors both local and industry-wide. It's
what makes you so unique that people will choose to do business
with you over any of your competitors. Your USP states your
distinct advantage.

One of the deadliest mistakes small businesses make is not
being unique. Now more than ever you must differentiate your small
business. Today there is an explosion of choices for consumers.
During slow times the same amount of small businesses will be
vying for a diminishing amount of prospects. When this happens
the competitive landscape gets tougher and choices for consumers
gets more difficult.

If you want to survive during the slow economy you must
differentiate yourself in the eyes of your prospect. Your USP is
what states to the world why you are different.

*Factoid*: The origin of USP comes from a man named Rosser Reeves
who was considered the 'high priest of hard sell.' He was an
advertising agency chairman back in the 60's. He wrote a book
titled, 'Reality in Advertising' that became very popular. It was
translated into 28 languages. He introduced and defined the
concept called Unique Selling Proposition.

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Why is Your USP so Important
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To be successful in small business you don't have to be the best,
you just have to be unique. Identifying, developing, and
incorporating your USP into everything you do is challenging.
But the reward is worth every effort. It will differentiate you,
distinguish you, and give you an advantage over everyone in your
marketplace.

'Me to' businesses rarely survive. They usually end up in price
wars because they don't have anything unique about them to
establish value in the minds of their prospects. They are left
with only one weapon with which to compete, price. And unless
you have a significant cost advantage over your other small
business competitors, you will lose.
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Make Your USP Crystal Clear
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The more clearly you announce your USP, the more often they'll
choose you over your competition. You must use your USP to
dominate your local market. When a consumer thinks of buying
a product in your industry, your name must be the first one that
pops into their mind.

Your USP must create a real and perceived advantage in your
prospect's mind. For example, Dominos made a very bold
guarantee that if they didn't deliver your pizza within 30
minutes of ordering, it would be free of charge. Dominos put
their USP into action.

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Be Specific
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How many small businesses do you hear saying, 'The Best Selection
in Town' or 'Service with a Smile.' I have to tell you that these
phrases are worn-out, tired renditions of a 'me too' business.
Be specific with your USP. When Domino's stated that your pizza
would be, (1) fresh, (2) hot, and (3) delivered within 30 minutes,
it was specific and measurable. 'Buy it today and install it
tonight,' that's specific and measurable.

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How to Identify and Develop Your USP
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You shouldn't rush or hurry the decision of your USP. You will
spend thousands of dollars on advertising and promoting your USP.
Once you've made your impression and then decide to change it you
begin to confuse your prospect and it will cost you even more
money to re-implement a different USP.

If your USP is a promise or guaranteed you must make sure that you
can fulfill your USP promise. Domino's had a very bold USP. To get
a pizza to anyone's house in their marketplace within 30 minutes
was sometimes a difficult feat to consistently accomplish. But
the rewards were fantastic.

How do you pick a USP? You need to first identify which needs are
going unfulfilled within either your industry or your local
market. These are called 'performance gaps.' Many businesses that
base their USP on industry performance gaps are successful.

Here are some examples in different small business industries:

* Example #1 - Auto Repair Industry *

(problem)
- Performance Gap = Auto repair establishments have a
reputation of being dishonest.

(solution)
- Potential USP = 'If It Ain't Broke, We Won't Fix It!'

* Example #2 - Dental Industry *

(problem)
- Performance Gap = No one likes to go to the dentist because
it's such a painful experience.

(solution)
- Potential USP = 'Sedation Dentistry, The Safe, Pain Free
Way to Healthy Teeth'

* Example #3 - Real Estate Industry *

(problem)
- Performance Gap = People are wary of letting real estate
agents sell their homes because they don't believe they will
aggressively try to sell them fast enough.

(solution)
- Potential USP = 'Our 20 Point Power Marketing Plan
Gets Your House Sold in 30 Days or Less'

You can see how a performance gap can lead to a powerful USP.
You can also have local performance gaps that will give you a
great USP as well. For instance, if you are an electronics outlet
and you have more inventory than anyone else in town your USP
could be, 'We Have 10 Times the Selection than Any Store In Town.
Go Visit the Rest, Then Come Shop at the Best.'

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Your USP Doesn't Have to be Unique
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Although a USP is a statement of your uniqueness it doesn't always
have to be something that is only unique to you... if you
proclaim it first!

For instance, if you were a furniture retailer and you proclaimed
your USP to be 'Buy today, we'll deliver it tonight.' Most other
competitors can do that too, but because you were the first to
proclaim it, it is yours exclusively.

This is sometimes called 'preemptive marketing.' You can preempt
your competitors if you take a strong benefit, whether or not
it's unique, and put your stamp on it first. All others who come
after you will just be strengthening an advantage that you have
already placed in the minds of your prospects.

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Live Up To Your USP
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Be bold when developing your USP but be careful to ensure that you
can live up to your USP. Your USP should have promises,
guarantees, policies and procedures, employee evaluations and
other reinforcing processes to make each USP come alive.

Having a strong USP can make your business super successful, on
the other hand, having a USP that you can't live up to is suicide.
I'm sure that Domino's had to eat the cost of a lot of pizzas
when they didn't arrive within 30 minutes, but they developed a
system that allowed them to deliver on their promise consistently.

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Integrate Your USP into Everything You Do
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Once you have put some careful thought to your USP and have
developed it, you need to integrate it into everything you do.
Your USP should be found somewhere in your headlines, body
copy of ads, direct-mail, and yellow pages. You should repeat
clearly and consistently in every one of your radio and
television commercials.

You should include it in your sales presentation, on the walls
of your business and even on your business card. You can't over
do or wear out your USP, especially if it's powerful.

The nation's most successful furniture dealer is based here in
Houston, Texas. You can't turn on a radio or television without
hearing the furniture store's USP, 'Saves You Money!' across the
airwaves. It's everywhere.

If you stopped someone on the street here in Houston and said two
words, 'Gallery Furniture' and asked them to finish the sentence,
nine out of ten people would say, 'Saves You Money!' That's why
it's the most successful furniture store in the United States.

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Referral Madness
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Hang on for the THIRD installment of 'The Six Deadly Small
Business Marketing Mistakes.' You'll learn how to make it rain
referrals. (Oops, I let the cat out of the bag.) Not having a
'systematic' method for generating referrals is the third small
business marketing mistake.

See you in four days!

David Frey

http://www.MarketingBestPractices.com
Mailto:David@MarketingBestPractices.com

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