Unique selling propositions

Why should customers buy from you instead of your competition?

by Howard Coleman

One of the keys to successful marketing is identifying what makes your business unique and letting everyone know about it. This allows prospects to understand why they should buy from you and reaffirms to customers why they should continue to do business with you. This is often called a Unique Selling Proposition (USP).

This article explains how to develop a unique selling proposition for your business. It explains what a unique selling proposition is and how to use it. It takes you through a process to clearly gain an understanding of what differentiates your business from the competitors in the eyes of your current and potential customers.

An often used, but excellent example to illustrate the impact of a USP is Domino’s Pizza. You know the message: “Fresh hot pizza delivered in 30 minutes or less – guaranteed.” What is the message? It’s how Domino’s stands out from the competition. It makes them unique and distinctive. It is how Domino’s took over the delivered pizza market. It clearly differentiates the pizza chain in the eyes of their potential customers and keeps current customers coming back for more. Notice though, Domino’s did not promise the pizza would taste good! What Domino’s did was develop and unify the company systems to ensure meeting the stated USP, regardless of how many fender benders the pizza delivery guy happens to get into!

Another similar example might be “Your parcel delivered the very next day – or it costs you nothing!”

Both of these USPs are powerful. The customer can actually measure what is promised.

Well-developed USPs can clearly answer the questions your prospects and customers may have about why they should do business with you instead of someone else. It can also help you answer some important internal questions:

• What positively differentiates my business from the competition? What is, or can be, distinct or unique about my business?

• What are the focal points around which the success of my business and profitability is built?

• What do I need to focus my management and employees on to deliver the promise(s) of the USPs and improve my internal company performance?

• How do I communicate my USP(s) to my marketplace and then connect it to my business performance?

Think benefits first
A USP is always stated in terms of the benefit(s) it delivers to your prospects or customers. You must be able to state it clearly and then fulfill it effectively. It is not me-tooism or a gimmick. You are making a promise to a prospect or customer that you do things a certain way, and that they will get certain results. It must be credible, not just words or puffery.

How many USPs do you have? One? Two? Three? What are they? How do they work? How are they used? If you have competitors (and I’m sure you do), you should have at least one USP. Remember, a USP is one or more reasons why prospects or customers should buy from you, instead of your competitors. Ultimately, your USP(s) will need to be in front of your prospects and customers at every possible opportunity – part of your sales pitch – for both inside and outside sales, brochures, advertisements, invoices, fax sheets, catalogs, newsletters, your Web site, delivery vehicles, walls, etc.

The concept is relatively easy to understand. The task of coming up with a USP can sometimes be tough, because it must truly be unique and set you apart from your competitors. It must be perceived as an advantage and a benefit to prospects and customers, and significantly different from what your competitors offer. Some of our clients have expressed it as a matter of value and a level of customer intimacy their competitors don’t have.

I said this was tough – so don’t make price your only USP! Have a basis for competing that goes beyond price. Combine it, if necessary, with more value – something your competition doesn’t do, doesn’t offer, or would find difficult to do – or can’t duplicate. It is important that the USP(s) not be easily copied.

First, know what your competitors offer. This is not a new concept. You can’t compete if you don’t know what you’re up against. So, take some time and check out what they offer. Perform some competitive research and a customer satisfaction survey or competitive analysis. You’d be surprised what you might find.

The object is to determine:

• Which benefits are most important to your prospects and customers.

• Which benefits are most difficult for your competition to duplicate.

To develop a meaningful USP, think about answering the following three questions:

• What is it that your customers seek? What are their needs – both MET and UNMET?

• What does the competition offer or promote as unique and distinctive to them?

• What can your company promote as your USP(s), which you could realistically and consistently execute and take pride in?

By understanding the needs of the customer and what the competition provides and promotes, your company can identify a gap in the marketplace that isn’t being filled. Think of it as identifying the UNMET need – what do your customers want that is not being provided by the competition, or if it is being provided, the competition does not do well? Think of it in simple terms: Go where the competition is not!

The following exercises will help you get the ball rolling and begin to think about why prospects and customers choose to buy from you.

Your company’s ideal customer profile
EXERCISE No. 1
Think of your 10 best customers and list those characteristics that you feel make them your best customers. You will gain insights into what needs you are fulfilling for your customers.

EXERCISE No. 2
Identify your 10 worst customers, including those that may no longer be active customers, and list those characteristics that make them your worst customers. You will gain insights into those customer needs, or demands, which you might NOT want to meet, and therefore NOT have as your USP.

EXERCISE No. 3
List what you believe to be (or could be) all of your company’s unique and distinctive strengths.

Work hard to identify what it is about your company that sets you apart from the competition and makes you truly unique.

This exercise is usually difficult, so spend some time and give honest thought to the ways you feel your company is unique. The key to this exercise is for you to think about your company in terms of what it does or could stand for that is truly different from other companies in your marketplace.

Once you know these unique characteristics, you can begin to identify only those customers who truly appreciate and value what you uniquely offer.

Write down every idea your team comes up with. Don’t worry about how silly they might seem (at this early stage in the process), just brainstorm with the data you have. The reason I would include silly ideas is because sometimes ideas that made you laugh can actually be morphed to create your USP. No thought is too far-fetched at this point, and usually the ideas you laughed at are, in fact, things your competitors don’t offer.

The next step is to nail down your list. Get creative and really think. That alone will make you more competitive even if others use the same approach. Why? You are now more competitive within your industry because you now offer things that possibly some other competitors do not.

One way of forcing you to think about what is truly unique about your company is to test what you think is a unique strength by finishing the following sentences. Please note there is a similarity in each of the incomplete sentences listed below. They’re designed that way to help stimulate and prompt your immediate and first-in-mind thought. Pick whichever sentences work best for you.

My company is the ONLY wholesale-distributor in my competitive selling area that:
____________________________________________.

My company is UNIQUE and DISTINCTIVE from other wholesale-distributors, in my competitive selling area, because:
____________________________________________.

After every strength you listed above, ask “SO WHAT?” In other words, why is the strength you listed important? Is it truly unique and distinctive? Prove to yourself that the strength you listed is unique and distinctive by starting each sentence with:

We are the only ones who ____________________________________________.

We are different because
____________________________________________.

Completing the statements above does not have to be just a phrase. It could be a set of performance standards, although we prefer only one sentence – clearly written. Don’t get too caught up or worry about that now. Just get some honest thoughts down on paper.

The lifespan of a USP can be limited. They will not last forever. A competitor could eventually duplicate, or even better your advantage. USPs need to be reviewed at least every two years. That is the further value of a periodic customer satisfaction survey and/or competitive analysis.

Unify your systems to execute the “USP”
Earlier we stated that Domino’s Pizza had to develop and unify its company systems to ensure that it consistently met its stated USP. What did we mean by that?

Domino’s made sure that a system – organizationally, procedurally, and from a technology perspective – was in place to support the execution of the USP 100 percent of the time. Its continuous improvement focus was to squeeze out all the waste in processes that did not provide value to the customer and support the proclaimed USP.

Some examples of USPs
Finally, here is a sampling of USPs that some of our clients have successfully implemented.

These may whet your appetite.

• Daily truck deliveries within a specified and consistent 15-minute window – every day

• Daily express delivery prior to the beginning of the workday

• Electronic inventory management at the customer’s job site or stockroom

• Guaranteed delivery within one-hour – within a 15-mile radius (fee-based)

• Business management services to contractors, including:
Bidding and quotation software education
Accounting systems, collections and cash flow management education taught by an accountant

Now, get started and gain your competitive advantage.

Howard Coleman is a principal of MCA Associates, a management consulting firm that works primarily with wholesale-distributors. MCA Associates provides idea leadership and implements continuous improvement solutions focused on business process re-engineering, supply chain management, sales development and processes, information systems and technology, organizational assessment and development, and succession planning. E-mail hcoleman@mcaassociates.com or visit www.mcaassociates.com.

This article originally appeared in the January/February 2007 issue of Progressive Distributor. Copyright 2007.

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