What is a Unique Selling Proposition?

I’ve been thinking recently of this concept that I learned of several years ago in a marketing program. It’s been a while since I considered it so I thought I should revisit it. So what is a Unique Selling Proposition (USP)? If you Google it, you will find many sites explaining what a USP is, like this one from the BDC. Basically, it’s what makes your business different? Why should people hire you over your equally qualified competitor?

Do you need a USP?

You might ask your self this question. The answer is simple. Yes. The Unique Selling Proposition is critical to your brand. Do you want to be competitive? Of course you do! Why else would you be in business? You can be the best in the business but unless you have a USP to present to potential customers, being the best is a moot point.

How do you create a USP?

Good question. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

• Your USP should be customer – centric. It should be rooted in the needs and wants of your target audience. If you don’t know your target audience there are plenty of articles on line about how to find it. But that is not the scope of this post. What do you do that differs from your competitors and that your target audience needs?
• Focus on solutions. What pain is your potential customer experiencing that you can solve better than your competitors?
• Be clear. Don’t use jargon and keep it concise. You don’t want to lose your customer before you even get started.
• Consider your business core values and mission statement.
• Be unique. That is, after all, what this is all about!

Need some examples? Here’s a website with plenty. Take some time to think about what makes you, you.

Time for the pitch

You had to know it was coming. It actually took me many years of being in business to really realize what our USP is. Ready for it? Quite simply, ‘We’re listening’. That’s it. That’s what we do differently. A good percentage of business owners come to us having tried to do their own bookkeeping or come to us in a panic because previous providers have failed them for one reason or another. Or, they have never done their bookkeeping and now the big, bad CRA is after them. Regardless, business owners and entrepreneurs have a story to tell and we are here to listen to that story so we can figure out how to best help them. If we don’t get to the bottom of the problem, how can we possibly solve any issues? The result is that we get a solid understanding of the clients’ needs and tailor our solutions to those needs. Your business is not the same as the next, so your bookkeeping shouldn’t be the same either.

Finally

Being a business owner or entrepreneur is a taxing job. There are so many things to think about but branding should be one of the first and biggest issues to figure out. Your Unique Selling Proposition is a small, but mighty, part of your branding and, ultimately, your success.