What really sets your business apart? Every business needs a unique value proposition (UVP)—that special combination of qualities that makes your company stand out. Business leaders may be mystified by the UVP, as though getting it right happens by accident or is as simple as a summation of solution features. It is not luck or happenstance. You can nail your company’s value proposition, and articulate it clearly, by following a simple process.
But have you?
Many companies rush through defining their UVP or skip it entirely. They’ve built their offer, and it’s great, so why stop to define the UVP when they should just be selling?
Your UVP isn’t about you; it’s about your customers. You should know with a high degree of certainty why prospects value your offer. If your UVP is unclear, you may join the ranks of many companies whose marketing continues to struggle.
Determine Your Positioning
Where does your solution sit relative to competitors and your prospect’s needs?
There are many ways to look at positioning, but the simplest way is to use a quadrant. Because you are working on UVP, build the analysis around value-based differentiation. Choose the axes for the quadrant based on what’s important to your target market. Determine how to encapsulate your position based on what prospective customers value, what competitors offer and how what you are doing will set you apart.
This process requires data gathering (think customer interviews, competitor reviews), internal brainstorming, 360-degree thinking and a critical eye for synthesizing the findings into something that can be mapped to the quadrant model.
As you plot yourself and competitors along the axes of your quadrant, ask yourself: Where do you fit in? Is there white space that represents your unique “play”? Positioning helps you identify where you are now relative to competitors, but it can also help you determine where you want to be in the future.
Remember, none of this is static. The needs of your ideal customers will change over time—so will your offer—and you will have to adapt accordingly. Your competitors will shift as they look to gain an advantage over you. Periodically revisit your positioning to stay updated on the competitive landscape and help your company meet the moment.
Hone Articulation Of Your Differentiators
Once you understand your position in the market, highlight your differentiators. Why should customers choose you over the competition? How does what you do relate to the target market’s needs and the value they will derive? Positioning work informs your differentiators, but the two are not the same.
As a guideline, your differentiators should be two to three concise but hard-hitting statements that offer value to your customers and make you stand out from the competition. A competitor may be able to claim one or two of your differentiators, but not all three. Remember that it doesn’t have to all be “feature-based.” Perhaps your methodology or process is superior, or specific aspects of your customer service make you stand out.
To hone your differentiators, dig into feedback from the market and your current customers:
• Why did current customers choose you?
• Why have they stayed with you?
• Why do prospects choose your competitors? What specifically are they saying?
You’ll then need to articulate those differentiators clearly and succinctly. A marketer who has a way with words and knows your market can be especially useful in helping you refine your differentiating statements.
Once you’ve developed your differentiators, think about how to reinforce them in the market. You’ll want to do more than say you’re different; you’ll want to prove it. Use case studies, customer testimonials and customer data to develop qualitative and quantitative proof points that can show, not just tell, how you’re different.
Finding your true differentiators takes more than just a whiteboard session—it requires brutal objectivity. If your internal team is too close to the product to see the white space, you are likely playing it too safe. Get the exact frameworks we use to help SMBs break out of the commodity trap, sent straight to your inbox.
Craft Your Unique Value Proposition
You’re now ready to fuse your positioning and differentiators into a unique value proposition (UVP) that highlights what your product or service brings to the table.
Your UVP should follow this formula: “We are the X for Y.” (X and Y are variables that flow directly from your positioning and differentiation insights.)
Here are some examples of how UVPs for these well-known companies might read:
• Apple: “We are the premium, innovative technology company for discerning consumers who value design and user experience.”
• HubSpot: “We are the inbound marketing and sales platform for growing companies seeking to attract, engage and delight customers.”
• Amazon Web Services: “We are the cloud services provider for businesses that require robust, scalable and comprehensive cloud infrastructure.”
A great UVP seems almost obvious once it’s been created, but it’s the result of research, insights and thoughtfulness. It’s no coincidence that these companies are industry leaders. They’ve worked to understand what makes them unique—and they reinforce this value in everything they do.
Your UVP Sets You Up For Success
When developing a UVP, don’t guess what will work. Doing so will waste your marketing dollars, inhibit your ability to meet growth targets and push your customers to the competition. Great value propositions aren’t based on gut instinct; they’re developed through a research-backed methodology, which should give you confidence.
So, once you develop your UVP, how do you generate impact? Eventually, you want to weave it tightly into the fabric of your organization. Start with an internal rollout to ensure every team member can communicate your UVP. Embed it in your sales and marketing materials. Build campaigns highlighting different aspects of the UVP and test them in competitive situations like trade shows and sales pitches. The sooner you get your UVP into the market, the sooner you’ll learn how it resonates.
You might be surprised by how quickly you can see wins from updating your positioning, differentiators and UVP. Even a tiny adjustment might improve your deal win rate or shorten the length of your sales cycle. Commit to this process, and you’ll have the agility to respond to your audience and stay ahead of the competition today, tomorrow and beyond.
Originally posted on Forbes
A bulletproof UVP is useless if it’s just sitting on a slide deck. The real challenge is weaving it into a go-to-market strategy that actually drives pipeline. Stop guessing what works. Tap into the ongoing insights successful SMB leaders use to build high-performing marketing engines—and learn exactly when to keep it in-house versus when to bring in the heavy hitters.