What Is a Unique Selling Proposition?  
Unique Selling Proposition is a reason, or a series of reasons why your customers want to buy your products and services. Some people call it “unique selling points”, or “USP” for short. No need to overcomplicate things here. USP is the first step in branding. “But why do we need it?”, you might ask. Because if we want our business to grow, we will need packaging, websites, advertisements, social media posts, sales decks, recruitments, promo campaigns, merchandise, live events, and much more. Our selling points are the building blocks in doing all kinds of marketing and sales. 

 

The 4 Types of USPs

There are two ways to discover your USP. First of all, you can (and you should) ask your customers this simple question: “what makes you buy from us?”, and their answers might surprise you. Some people have specific reasons, some could be out-of-the-box, and some may have no particular reason for buying things from you. These are, roughly, your selling points.  
The second way is to ask yourself (or the founder): why did you build the company? Why did you create your products and services? What do you think of your own company, and what it does? How did you manage to persuade your first customers into buying? Bear in mind that some of your selling points can be unique, but most of them will not. In my humble experience, selling points can be put into 4 categories.  
 

Scenario 1: No Unique Selling Point

You may find out that you have been selling products without any real unique selling proposition. That is completely okay, but you can improve your sales so much by developing your brand. For example, let’s say that you are selling a cashier (point of sale) software for small shops. Business owners might subscribe to your services just because you are the first they found in town. You are closing deals because there is more demand than supply.   
Under this scenario, you will face troubles when your customers find slightly better, or slightly cheaper alternatives, especially when switching is technically easy. As time goes by, competition gets tougher.  
 

Scenario 2: Price as A Selling Point

You may get ahead of your competitors by delivering similar quality and service for a lower price. Probably because you have the advantage in hard skills, logistics, or connections. This is one step ahead, and you will (in theory) stay in business much longer.   
Under this scenario, your competitors can try stealing your customers by lowering their price, or increasing their output quality at a similar price.   
 

Scenario 3: Quality as A Selling Point

You can win by selling the absolute best product, period. If you make the best software with exclusive functional features that no one can replicate, then you have the absolute advantage. Unfortunately, this rarely happens. There is nothing new under the sun; knowledge and technology will finally allow others to replicate whatever we are making.   
 

Scenario 4: Identity as A Selling Point

Finally, the best way to sell: your customers buy from you because of what your company is, and because of who you are. Think about it.  
Say, you have a story on why you started developing a cashier software. Your sibling started a pet shop, and needed a simple cash registry software that runs on cheap tablets and phones. There were no real affordable options on the market, and you tried developing your very own. Other small shops in town started using your software, and you started charging them a small fee to update the software every now and then.  
 Here, you have a story that became the identity of your company. You were a one-man software startup who helped local small businesses make their dreams come true. When you put this story on social media, a small business owner who sees it will think: “this is for me”.   
Sometimes, a simple identity will sell by itself. “Swiss-made watch”, “Paris-made fragrance”, or “authentic Italian pizza” will usually win the competition quite easily, unless of course you happen to be in Zurich, Paris, or Milan. The winning brands usually have Identity+Quality combo as their selling points.  
   
   
 

## How To Develop Your USP

Now, we dig into the second way of finding your USP. After talking to your customers, you should interview yourself (or the founder, if it was not you), to develop a story. Where did you come from? What is your life story? What are you passionate about? Who are your customers, and how did you meet them? What are their life stories? You will find that there must be touchpoints between your company values and your customer identity, and that is where your selling points are to be found.  
   
![][image1]  
   
Let’s use our previous example. If you are a one-man company that sells software, and your customers are mostly small shop owners, then you are really close to getting your USP. Basically, you can say that you understand the struggle of starting a business from scratch, having no one to help, and needing a simple solution that makes your day at the shop easier. Your software will suit small businesses, because you and them are the same. Also, take a look at these other examples:  
   
“We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen” → Ritz-Carlton (luxury hotel chain)  
“Made by nature, from nature” → Allbird (footwears)  
“From the people, for the people” → Democracy (political concept)  
   
Those USPs might sound cliché, but it works. Those are propositions that directly connect the companies to the identities of their customers. When someone buys a product from a good brand, he or she will feel proud of that decision. They believe that they made the right choice, and they will defend that choice just like they defend their favorite presidential candidate. It becomes a part of who they are; it breeds loyalty.  
   
Now, to make things easier, I suggest using my one-sentence USP formula. This allows you to start with the basics, and develop it later.  
   
“We are a (\[adjective\]+\[product\]) company, built by \[identity\] for \[identity\]”  
   
Using the previous example, we will get something like this:  
   
“We are a small software company, built by one programmer for small shop owners”  
   
Notice how the word “small” here needs to be translated into practical benefits for the customer. A small software company usually means that the product will be simple and easy to use, aftersales will be personal, the cost will be affordable and so on. In contrast, if we try forming a USP for brands like Rolex, it will be something like this:  
   
“We are a luxury watch company, built by marketing experts for status seekers”  
   
Hence, it is clear that a luxury watch company is not selling watches; it is selling luxury, exclusivity, and status symbols for those who want to be acknowledged. You get the idea. Watch how Rolex uses its selling point when making advertisements:  
   
![][image2]

 Notice how there is nothing told about the features. There is only one message: if you wear this, you will be seen as important. Surely, this kind of writing will look tacky if your company has no reputation yet. That is precisely why you have to know your unique selling points as a brand. But, how “unique” should a selling point be? Interestingly, it depends on the size of the market, and how tight the competition is. You want to be different from the rest of the field, so people can see you as attractive.

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### What If My Business is Too “Ordinary”?

What if your company simply make foods, repair cars, or sell other non-extravagant things? Let’s say, you are also an ordinary person, with ordinary customers. Then, you should start by picking an *adjective*. Are you tough, or friendly? Are you premium, or affordable? Are you simple, or detailed? Are you a pioneer, or a new blood? Look for a trait that you and your company have, and look hard.

Some of the most successful selling points are not glamorous. Starbucks simply marketed themselves as “The Third Place”, which means a place to hang out besides home and work (Oldenburg, 1989). The selling point is crystal clear: their employees will not ask you to leave even if you don’t order, because Starbucks wants to take care of you when parks and other public places aren’t convenient enough. Their coffee is not the best, but the marketing was great.

If it feels a bit too niche or complicated for you, Domino’s had a simple “Fresh Pizza in 30 Minutes, or Free” as their main thing for years. You don’t have to be fancy. Even if you are ‘only’ a distributor and not a producer of goods, there must be something interesting in the way you interact with buyers. You can start really small and simple. If you sell cars and your competitors serve free water, you may want to give candies instead.

 

## Closer

Unique selling propositions are the main ingredients of your marketing and sales strategy. It will guide you whenever you need an idea, and it will help you answer questions from potential customers whenever they need to be convinced. It helps you write consistent and interesting messages through all types of advertising. Make sure that you spend time and effort in researching the market and defining your selling points. Let us know if you need any help.