What Is A Unique Selling Proposition? How To Create One (Plus 5 Examples To Inspire You)

Key Takeaways

there are so many brands out there online and customers right now are overwhelmed with options so how do you differentiate yourself well knowing the best way to position your business and your products can be the difference between blending in and making that sale and this is why it's so important for you to create a unique selling proposition that can help guide your branding and marketing choices so keep watching i'm about to tell you how to come up with a truly compelling unique selling proposition and that's going to help you stand out against your competitors [Music] welcome back and if you're new welcome to learn with shopify my name is michelle valley and i am your host so on this channel we are constantly creating content that's going to help you start and grow your online business so if you're a small business owner or maybe you're looking to become one then you're going to want to make sure that you are subscribed to this channel but without further ado let's just hop right into it so what's a unique selling proposition a unique selling proposition is the one thing that makes your businesses better than the competition it's basically that specific benefit that makes your business stand out while the others are blending in so how do you find your competitive edge and how do you make customers choose you well the first thing that we have to understand is that in the age of the internet customers are drowning in a sea of options so they really just want to quickly understand what makes one product better than another so as brand owners we need to respond to that by coming up with our own unique selling propositions and that's actually usp for short just for your reference so a usp should quickly answer a potential customer's most immediate question and that is what makes you different from the competition so how do we answer this question well your usp is going to play to your strengths and it should be based on what makes your brand or your product valuable to your customers a compelling usp would be assertive defensible and specific we make 100 scratch proof glasses that is definitely assertive specific and defensible we sell high quality products not so much so hopefully you can see the difference like i said before it should also be focused on what your customers value the unique and unique selling proposition won't really be counting for much if your target audience doesn't really care about your proposition right so you got to make sure that your proposition is targeted your usp needs to be more than just a slogan so in essence you should be able to talk the talk and walk the walk right it should be that meeting point between what your customers want what your customers need and then what your business does well all right here's a secret what you sell actually doesn't have to be unique but the message that you choose to focus on that should be unique so in other words you could be selling the same product as your competition but if you have a different angle then your unique selling proposition is what's doing all that heavy lifting here's what a unique selling proposition is not so it's not a specific offer like 10 off or 24 7 customer service these definitely are convincing and they're definitely effective but they're not unique and they're not positions that are easy to defend because any of your competitors can just copy them a usp is also not just the header copy on your home page it's a position that your business takes as a whole that can be incorporated into the products and the overall experience that you provide and basically any touch point that your customer has with your business it's more holistic all right super quick break here i want to ask you something is your website content costing you sales learn how to improve your website copy with our free curated list of high impact articles so i'll leave a link for you guys in the description box below to get a free reading list on copywriting tactics for entrepreneurs all right back to it i feel like the best way to understand what makes a powerful usp is by looking at some examples so i've actually created a list of five examples of unique selling propositions that are just getting it right so let's take a look at these all right so let's take a look at nyx nyx's unique selling proposition is that they are the most comfortable intimate brand on the market and they're actually able to back that usp up by selling innovative products like period underwear so these intimates replace pads with leak proof protection and they make your monthly cycle more comfortable and more convenient so they have other products like wireless bras for example and that just further enforces their claims so for you and your brand you can think about how your products can innovate to be able to make bold claims like nyx death wish coffee so a lot of coffee brands out there are claiming to have either the smoothest or the richest cup of coffee but deathwish is doing something different they chose to brand themselves as the world's strongest cup of coffee and they're basically just catering to those people that just need that extra kick death wish coffee is a great example of developing a product based on a unique selling proposition that other brands aren't already doing and they truly make this messaging visible everywhere they have it on their site they have it on their packaging and they even have full refunds for anyone who says that their coffee isn't bold enough so for you and your brand you can look at what they're doing and really just emulate that you can consider including your usp at multiple touch points just like death wish coffee is doing muse muse is a perfect example of why you would still need a usp even if your products are truly unique so the product that they make provides information about your brain's activity as you meditate and as it stands they actually have no competition there is no comparable consumer product out there but actually in this case their biggest competitor would be the status quo so that would just be you know regular meditation without a tool so naturally their usp is around using their product to get the most out of meditation and they definitely build a strong case for this all over their product pages on their about us page and just all over their site so what that means for you is if your business and your product offering is truly unique it is definitely still important to have your usp taylor stitch okay so taylor switch is an interesting one they are a clothing company that uses crowdfunding to develop their new products some consumers actually frown upon established brands that use crowdfunding but that definitely isn't the case here just because of the way that they make it a part of their usp they immediately let customers know that with crowdfunding they're saving 20 off and by pre-ordering they're actually making it better for the environment so taylor stitch is just a great example of successfully turning an unconventional business model into a competitive edge so for you you should be narrating your story in a way that is positive and valuable now whether that applies to your supply chain or other areas of your business your usp should be supported by positive storytelling inkbox tattoos many temporary tattoos are really intended for kids and they have childish designs but inkbox definitely takes a bit of a different approach they offer designs for people of all ages their unique selling proposition is that customers can express themselves without the commitment and without the high cost of permanent tattoos so i love this because this really breaks through that stigma so as it applies to your business if you're selling a product that has certain connotations then you can use your unique selling proposition to tackle stigmas and change consumer viewpoints now that we've looked at some examples of strong usps from other businesses you might be wondering how you can go about creating your own every usp is going to be unique but that doesn't mean that there isn't a process that you can't use to put yourself on the right track so here's how you can write yours first make a list of all the potential differentiators of your brand and what it is that you're selling and also get specific if you want to make breakout products or memorable marketing messages you're going to need to be specific this is because breakout ideas solve the exact right problem and communicate that benefit to their customers in their own words next research the competition who are your competitors and what are their usps and then look for gaps where you could potentially introduce your brand differently keep in mind that products in the same category can be positioned in wildly different ways so even two identical products can be positioned very differently once you have some angles in mind compare your most unique angles against your audience's needs maybe your customers needs aren't being met and if not how can you meet them do your customers have any pain points that maybe you can solve after you've settled on your usp you're going to want to think about ways that you can apply it across your business from your brand name to your return policy you can really reinforce your usp and just weave it right into your business and it might also help to express it in a statement so that you can just get it down on paper and understand it fully so use this formula your brand offers product or service for target market to value proposition unlike the alternative we key differentiator so that's a bit abstract so let's just try one for fun go fetch offers the lightest frisbees ever made for over energetic dogs who want to go further faster this won't be exactly what you advertise on your website you know you're going to want to finesse that copy but it should definitely help you clarify your usp unique selling propositions defining your competitive edge a usp isn't just a persuasive line of copy on your home page it really is how you position your products or even your entire brand to the world so don't forget your products don't have to be completely unique in order to have a strong unique selling proposition so don't let that daunt you instead what you can do is look for a spot in the market that's more or less untouched by the competition coming up with your unique selling proposition is definitely an exciting time at this stage you get to think about how you can dominate a corner of your niche and really flex your creative muscles so that about covers it for today's video today you've just learned how to create a unique selling proposition that will take your ideas to the next level if you're looking to start and grow your online business shopify is offering a free 14-day trial and there's no credit card required all you have to do is click the link in the description box to get your store set up in minutes and bring your beautiful brand to life if you haven't already subscribed make sure that you are doing so also if you found this video helpful make sure that you're giving it a thumbs up so that i know what kind of content you guys like also if there is some sort of a topic that you want me to cover in the next one make sure that you're leaving it in the comments section so that i can check that out other than that hopefully you found this video helpful thank you so much for watching i'm your host michelle valley and i will see you in the next one you