The world of business is cruel and ferociously competitive. So you need to stand out. In this article, we’ll take a look at unique selling points, a fundamental part of any business strategy. If you can identify and push a genuine USP, then the chances of success are far greater than if you can’t. Below, we’ll help you figure out how to do that.
What Is a Unique Selling Point (USP)?
USP most commonly stands for unique selling point, but in marketing it can also mean “unique selling proposition”. Unique selling propositions are the one thing that makes a business stand out. Whether this be a product, service, price, quality, or something else—it’s all about what makes a business unique.
For some, such as Guinness, the USP is the flavour of the drink, and also the unique two-part pour (rumour has it that this does nothing to improve the quality, but that it was just invented for marketing purposes). Amazon nailed the online marketplace model by having, among others, a USP revolving around the rapid delivery of a huge number of products.
A USP isn’t just what’s good about your business and products; it’s what stands out from the competition. What can you offer that absolutely no competitors can? This is a USP.
A USP is what is unique about your business; the thing that makes it stand out from all competitors that customers cannot get elsewhere.
Why Are Unique Selling Points Important?
A unique selling point or proposition is crucial, as it is what draws customers to your products or services instead of those of your competitors. So if they want something specific, then they have to come to you.
In a world of millions of businesses, competition is fierce and most will fail. Having a USP that genuinely sets you apart from the rest can make all the difference. In fact, if you’re entering a saturated market, such as e-commerce, then a USP is essential to getting noticed at all.
A USP is essential as it makes you stand out in the saturated business world. Without one, most businesses will go unnoticed and eventually fail.
Unique Selling Point Examples
Generally, USPs fall into three main categories:
- Quality: Products that are particularly good and outshine the competition.
- Price: If you can offer the cheapest versions of your products or services, chances are you’ll do well (as long as the quality is still sufficient).
- Service: If you have the friendliest helplines, the easiest return service, or something else that makes interacting with your business especially easy, then this tends to help a business succeed. Or perhaps your business makes a point to do as little damage to the environment as possible—this is becoming increasingly important as a USP.
TOMS
For every pair of shoes bought, TOMS shoes donates a pair to children who otherwise couldn’t afford them. This is an example of a USP that doesn’t directly benefit the customer, but rather reaches out to the customer’s sense of generosity and charity. Essentially, by buying a pair of TOMS shoes, a customer is able to help someone by buying something for themselves.
Nike
The unique selling point of Nike is that they make very high-quality sportswear. They advertise this by sponsoring and pairing with famous athletes from all disciplines, and then legitimise their brand and drive home their USP by associating their products with successful sports people.
Toyota
Toyota actually has several USPs. However, one of their main ones is the longevity and durability of their cars. For instance, 80% of cars sold 20 years ago are still on the road. This has made them the world’s leading car manufacturer. If people want to buy reliable cars that will, quite literally, go the extra mile, then Toyota has cemented itself as the manufacturer to go for.
Adidas
Adidas is the second largest sportswear retailer in the world. Their USP is that they blend cutting-edge technology with light, comfortable, and stylish sportswear.
Apple
Apple’s USP is that they combine innovation, design, and useability into sleek, powerful, and highly effective products. There are plenty of competitors out there, but few will disagree that Apple simultaneously makes some of the most powerful hardware and that it is slicker and easier to use than that of any other manufacturer.
USPs generally focus on quality, price, and/or service. As the above-mentioned successful brands showcase, a USP needn’t be complicated—only effective.
What Is Your Unique Selling Point?
Finding out how to identify your unique selling point can be challenging, and requires answering several questions. Moreover, you need to determine if you want to identify a USP that hasn’t been covered, and create something to fill that gap, or whether you want to identify and amplify an already existing USP. Often, a hybrid of the two is best.
1. Delve Into Different Categories and Templates
First, take a general look at different business models within each category. What do shipping costs look like? How do you set up an effective helpline? What do you actually need in order to produce the desired products at the right cost and standard of quality?
To discover your USP, you must first have a very good understanding of the market you’re trying to enter; otherwise, you’ll be flailing around in the dark. The better you know your market, your products, and your services, the easier it will be to carve out a niche.
2. Get a Clear Picture of Your Customers
Know your customers! This is crucial, because if you don’t understand your target audience, you can’t know what they want, and certainly won’t be able to identify a USP that strikes a chord.
Use focus groups and surveys, explore relevant hashtags and influencers on social media, Google questions surrounding the product or service you offer: all of these steps will bring you closer to your customers, which in turn will help you to identify the proper USP to keep them coming back.
3. Connect Your Customer’s Needs With Your Mission
Once you know your customers, you need to connect their needs with what you have on offer. Do your customers want to save money? Do they want the highest-quality goods? Would they prefer brilliant service, or just pure simplicity?
Essentially—what do they actually want, and how can you offer this to them? Now, this has to be genuine; you can’t fool people for long. Moreover, you shouldn’t strive too hard to make your products or services fit a USP that doesn’t come naturally. Instead, you should attempt to parlay what you already offer into a USP that fits, and then tailor this until you carve out a unique position for yourself.
4. Identify Your Strengths
Following on from this, play to your strengths. If you make the best products in your class, then don’t try to make your USP that you sell the cheapest products in your class. Instead, accept that your product is going to be expensive, and find out how to make that appealing to people (tip: it has to be the best).
Or maybe you don’t have the best products, but you have identified a nifty way to streamline shipping or access, and so you’re able to set yourself apart with this. In this case, if you don’t have the best or the cheapest products, it’s okay, because you still have your USP, and this will appeal to a group of potential customers.
Identifying and using your strengths is truly key. A genuine USP can only come from your strengths; it could be said that your greatest strengths will be your USPs, and vice versa. So find out what those are!
5. Examine Your Competition
You need to know what your competition is up to, and what their USPs are. Unfortunately, there’s little reason to pour all of your energy into creating something that already exists. Of course, if you can do it better, then go for it. But if you can’t do it better, you’ll have to find some way to make your product or service unique if it’s going to survive against established competition.
The better you know your enemy, the easier it is to defeat them. So research your competition. Know their strengths and weaknesses. Perhaps you’ll realise that all of your competition share a similar weakness. Maybe this could become your very own USP?
6. Communicate Your Unique Selling Point
You’ll need to communicate your USP, at least at first. Tell people exactly why you’re the best, and what you offer that nobody else does. It’s business, so don’t be shy. Shout it from the rooftops.
And the more niche your USP is, the louder you’ll need to let people know.
Eventually, as you garner more success, the USP may start to speak for itself.
7. Periodically Reevaluate Your USP
Reassess and potentially adapt your USP over time. Perhaps let customers know about any changes through email marketing. Reevaluating your USP involves looking at your own performance, but also researching that of your competitors, and keeping tabs on whether they threaten to snatch your USP away from you. A good idea won’t remain just yours for long, so you’ll need to continually adapt and improve it if you’re to stay ahead.
Identifying your own USP is challenging, but it mainly requires you to understand the market, your customers, your own business, and your competition.
What Makes Your Business Unique?
A USP is pretty much essential if your business is going to be successful. But don’t think too hard; the simpler the better. Maybe your USP is as simple as being the only shop in town that sells the goods you sell. Or maybe you stock a particularly rare or high-quality product. Sometimes, the product or service is enough. Other times, it’s about how you offer your product to people, or the service around it.
Regardless, this article should provide a foundation upon which you can hone in on your USP. Doing so will bring you great success.
