Distinguishing Your Unique Sales Proposition (USP)

No matter what kind of business you are in, you will want to distinguish your Unique Sales Proposition or USP. This is true whether you have a number of competitors, or none. (In which case your USP would be that you are the only source.)

Essentially, your USP is an answer to the customer questions, "Why should I do business with you? What makes you so special?"

Sometimes your USP seems fairly obvious, but even when it seems that way, you might be overlooking something, so it is a good idea to ask existing customers why they come to you in particular. Corey Rudl polled his existing customers to discover what they liked about his eBook and discovered that people's favorite chapter was "How To Buy Or Lease Any Car At $50 Over True Dealer Cost." Consequently, he made it part of his sales copy and sold more books.

I have done this for my sideline business as a massage therapist. I asked my clients why they come to me and discovered that unlike many massage therapists who simply give a standard massage, I ask people what specific areas they want worked on and approach it like a mechanic. They like this, so I started using "The Mechanic" by my name on my business cards. People take notice and when I explain why I use the term, they instantly understand that I do remedial massage.

So the point is: Your existing happy customers probably have a better idea than you do about what your USP is. For this reason it is a good idea to ask them why they come to you and then use the answers to find a way to stand out in your particular field.

Next Installment: Presenting Your Credentials