(key to differentiation)

Please…Please…ask yourself this question on a regular basis? “Do I have, or can I create, a situation which cannot be matched by my competition?”

Answer “Yes”-you have an ‘unfair advantage’/your ‘unique selling proposition’ (usp).

If you have a monopoly, then this is arguably the best usp of all. Just remember that monopolies do not last forever.

By definition a usp is: ‘The combination of your product/service PLUS the way in which you do business that cannot be matched, right now, by your competition’

When creating a usp, here are some of the key elements to be considered:

• Product Benefits
• Skills Inventory
• Pricing
• Special Offers
• Terms of Payment
• Money Back Guarantee
• Availability/Investment in Inventory
• Delivery
• Installation
• Product Support/Maintenance
• Verifiable Testimonies

Note:

1. You may believe that you know all of the benefits your product has to offer. We recommend that you speak to a number of your key customers and ask them about the benefits they derive from using your product. You may be pleasantly surprised!

2. Where you are offering exactly the same product as a number of other online marketers, developing your usp will result by emphasizing the way in which you do business. However, it may be worth taking some space to relate key product benefits, because your competitors may not bother do so.

3. A usp is not normally contained in a single ‘benefit’ statement. Work with an experienced and competent (do your due diligence) online marketing consultant, preferably one who either is, or works with, competent search engine optimizers (SEO).

Your competition will respond. Talk to your search engine optimizer (SEO)/online marketing consultant about how best to incorporate dynamic changes so that you can stay a step ahead.

• Why People Buy (Your product solves a problem) - By Leo Talbot
• Why people buy - The lifestyle factor - By Leo Talbot
• Analyzing your competition - By Leo Talbot

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 18th, 2005 at 9:25 pm and is filed under Ecommerce. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.