Entrepreneur.com defines a unique selling proposition as “the factor or consideration presented by a seller as the reason that one product or service is different from and better than that of the competition.” In other words, a unique selling proposition is the reason why somebody should buy from you and not your competition - the unique benefits that your product or service offers consumers.
Upstart senator and democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has seemingly come out of nowhere to emerge as the front-runner against the powerful political brand known as Hillary Rodham Clinton. So how did he do it?
Barack Obama brilliantly positioned himself as the “candidate of change.” And even though he continues to be crticized by both democrats and republicans as being “all rhetoric and no substance,” he has never deviated from his message. He has never faltered. He has never changed his theme. His message has been consistent throughout. In fact, the theme of his website is all about change. Here’s a quote from his website:
“I’M ASKING YOU TO BELIEVE. Not just in my ability to bring about real change in Washington… I’m asking you to believe in yours.” Wow… that’s a pretty powerful statement. And he doesn’t just ask you to make a donation to his campaign either. He asks you to “make a difference.” But it goes even deeper than that. Obama is not only selling change, he’s also selling hope - the hope of a brighter future. And his inspirational message is resonating with voters all across America.
Charles Revson, founder of cosmetics giant, Revlon, always used to say he sold hope, not makeup. Obviously that USP turned out pretty well for Revlon.
* According to Entrepreneur.com, “Pinpointing your USP requires some hard soul-searching and creativity. One way to start is to analyze how other companies use their USPs to their advantage. This requires careful analysis of other companies’ ads and marketing messages. If you analyze what they say they sell, not just their product or service characteristics, you can learn a great deal about how companies distinguish themselves from competitors.
* Remember, price is never the only reason people buy. If your competition is beating you on pricing because they are larger, you have to find another sales feature that addresses the customer’s needs and then build your sales and promotional efforts around that feature.
* Effective marketing requires you to be an amateur psychologist. You need to know what drives and motivates customers. Go beyond the traditional customer demographics, such as age, gender, race, income and geographic location, that most businesses collect to analyze their sales trends.” (Source: Entrepreneur.com)
The most effective USP’s are short and sweet and easy to remember - the kind that customers can immediately grasp, comprehend and appreciate. For example, “Barack Obama’s USP is “Change we can believe in.”
Obama’s campaign is a current example of a brilliantly conceived marketing and positioning strategy. Being a marketer myself, I appreciate what he’s doing.
The fact of the matter is you can have the greatest product in the world, but if you don’t market it effectively, no one will ever know about it. Conversely, Hillary Rodham Clinton has all the advantages of a powerful political name and brand recognition, but her marketing strategy has been flawed and incompetent at best. No one really knows what her message is, and that’s a problem. As a result, her campaign is on life-support.
Make no mistake, politics or otherwise, marketing makes all the difference in the world. The Obama, Clinton campaigns are perfect examples of that. As a marketer, I am personally inspired by Barack Obama’s brilliant marketing strategy. It’s a reminder to us all that with good marketing, anything is possible. A year ago, he was a complete unknown to most of the country. Now he has the whole world talking about his presidential campaign. Even with all the money his campaign has raised, you simply can’t buy that kind of publicity and excitement. His marketing message is resonating in a big way.
That being said, while having a strong USP is important, at the end of the day you’d better have the ability to deliver what your marketing message has promised. Or the consequences will be totally counterproductive to what you’re trying to achieve. And that holds true whether you’re a politician or pretzel maker!
Dale King is the owner of GuruKnowledge.org - The Ultimate Marketing Resource!
If you’re tired of all the money-making hype, lies and scams…read this!
http://guruknowledge.org/pages/The-Super-Affiliate-Handbook
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