PrintEmail

TD HTML 3.2//EN">

The term Unique Selling Proposition (USP) was first coined by Rosser Reeves back in the early 60s and misused ever since. It’s now common business jargon thrown around by many and truly understood by few. In recent times the USP has gotten a bad rap due to its constant misuse… so let's take a closer look.

What is a Unique Selling Proposition (USP)?
Here is Reeves 3 part definition from Reality in Advertising (1961):
1. Each advertisement must make a proposition to the consumer. Not just words, not just product puffery, not just show-window advertising. Each advertisement must say to each reader: "Buy this product, and you will get this specific benefit."
2. The proposition must be one that the competition either cannot, or does not, offer. It must be unique—either a uniqueness of the brand or a claim not otherwise made in that particular field of advertising.
3. The proposition must be so strong that it can move the mass millions, i.e. pull over new customers to your product.

And to be a little clearer, some good examples are:

Domino's Pizza: "You get fresh, hot pizza delivered to your door in 30 minutes or less — or it’s free."
FedEx: "When your package absolutely, positively has to get there overnight"
Dove: "Won’t dry your skin like soap can."

Tom Monaghan created a USP for Domino’s Pizza that revolutionised an industry. Now, we take for granted fast pizza delivery but Domino’s Pizza used this one consumer frustration to grow its business for about a decade. The story is quite fascinating but since I only have anecdotal info on it we’ll leave it for another day when I can do some more research.

Bad USPs are everywhere
Most businesses don’t have a USP… the owner’s haven’t sat down and figured out why they're in business and why clients would want to buy from them. Just because you’re a plumber… why should you fix my plumbing?

The second biggest problem is the business owner doesn't put their USP out front for everyone to see. I constantly find this with clients and the first question I always ask is Dan Kennedy’s classic copyright protected question of the ages:

"Why should I choose to do business with you versus every other competitive option available, including doing nothing at all or whatever I am doing now?"

And the strange thing is… most clients have really good answers. But the problem is they don't state it anywhere in their marketing or on their website.

Sometimes I'm given a bland answer like "we have the best service." Compared to what? How? And can you prove it? Then they’ll tell me their story and they really do have great service… but they haven’t spelled it out.

It’s easy to say you have "great service" - and most businesses say they do - but until you prove it your words are meaningless. That's why I'd like to rework the USP concept a little.

Introducing the Unique Sales Promise
Now I hate to be a creator of new jargon and management speak but to me this wording is a lot clearer to understand. For every sale you make you are promising to deliver something that is unique to your business. This steps it up a notch… because you must always keep your promises.