The first step to developing a marketing strategy is determining why your business is relevant and what sets it apart from the competition — in other words, your unique selling proposition, or USP for short.
But to make it in the cutthroat world of digital marketing, having just any unique selling position won’t cut it.
The key to developing a killer USP — one you’ll never have doubts about and the competition won’t be able to touch — is actually fairly simple: be remarkable.
“Remarkable,” as in people can’t help but remember it.
“Remarkable,” as in people voluntarily tell their friends about it.
“Remarkable,” as in people use it as a signpost, a guiding landmark, point of reference in their thinking or behavior.
In the realm of digital marketing, developing a truly remarkable USP gives you a position in the online market space that’s nearly impossible to assault. It allows you to truly “own” your unique niche of the market, ensuring people will associate it with you and only you.
In other words, when it comes to digital marketing, figuring out how to be remarkable is the difference between going online and going broke online.
1. Solve a Problem
To be remarkable, your business needs to be solving an actual problem your customers have.
When you think about it, it’s pretty obvious: no one is going to spend their hard-earned cash to buy a “solution” to a non-problem. You can have a unique business idea that’s never been done before — but if no one wants it, it’s a novel talking point, not a selling proposition.
Finding your selling point doesn’t necessarily need to involve completely overhauling your business. Instead, it’s about defining the core problem your customers have that your business can solve.
Take Rocket Clicks, for example (yep, we’re making it about us).
We’re a digital marketing agency specializing in search engine optimization and paid advertising.
There are plenty of companies out there that need help building an online presence and getting people’s attention online, so we’re definitely solving a problem that actually exists.
But we’re far from the only agency out there that offers SEO and PPC services, so being able to solve that problem isn’t enough. In order to stand out online and convince potential customers to hire us over the competition, we also prove that we’re uniquely equipped to solve that problem better than anyone else.
2. Be Unique
The second key to developing a great USP is even trickier to accomplish than the first: to be remarkable, your unique selling proposition needs to be uniquely equipped to solve your customer’s problem.
After all, even if there are only 15 other companies in the world that can do what you do, you and your competitors will still have filled two pages of Google’s AdWords display slots.
That being said, don’t let the fact that other companies offer similar products or services to yours overwhelm you. It’s always possible to distinguish yourself, especially in the realm of Internet marketing.
Again, take Rocket Clicks as an example — obviously, we’re far from the only digital marketing agency out there. But there are the three elements of our company that, when taken together, make us completely unique from the competition in a way that stands out.
First, our low client-to-analyst ratio allows us to provide clients with a more hands-on, customized approach. Our clients never feel like we don’t have time for them, or that they’re nothing more than a number — instead, they truly feel like our team is their team.
Speaking of teams, the second thing that makes us special is the way we’ve purposely structured our organization to guarantee that we take a collaborative approach to each and every project. Rather than assigning a single analyst to a given client, each of our clients has an entire team of digital marketing experts working on their account, maximizing accountability and quality execution.
Last, but certainly not least, we sit on the same time of the table as our clients do. We truly care about their customers, their budget, and their business like they’re our very own. This might seem like a given, but — as many of our clients who’ve worked with other agencies in the past can readily attest to — not every digital marketing agency can truthfully make this claim.
Sitting on the same side of the table means more than simply being polite. It means rather than trying to take as much as we can from the relationship, while giving back the least, we provide mutual support and accountability as we work toward a common goal. We’re honest and transparent, even when the truth isn’t what the client wants to hear, or when embellishing the facts would be an easy way to boost our profits in the short term. When things go wrong, we don’t point fingers – we lock arms. In short, sitting on the same side of the table means we are on the same team.
Granted, other agencies may possess one or two of these qualities. But we believe having all three truly sets us apart from the pack — and all the glowing testimonials we’ve earned back that claim up.
So, ask yourself:
- What kind of value can you add to your offering to make it your own?
- What relevant, authoritative, and unique content can you offer?
- What kind of information or special packaging can you add that will raise the barrier to entry to your competitor?
- What can you do to separate your core offering from every other company out there?
3. Create a Wow Factor
So, you’ve honed in on the specific problem your business solves. And you’ve found a way to demonstrate that your business is the very best one to solve it.
You’re already in a better position than most. But there’s one more key to a truly remarkable USP. You’ll need a wow factor — that little something extra that people won’t forget, even when competitors copy your marketing strategy or offer lower prices.
So, what can you do that’s big and bold? What can you do that they’ll want to tell their friends about?
At Rocket Clicks, just about all of our internal policies are designed to create that wow factor — for example, we always respond to emails within four business hours so our clients know we prioritize them and value their time.
Even more importantly, though, we’re constantly looking for new ways to think outside the box, reaching to wow both potential and existing clients.
The takeaway? Being remarkable is a project that’s never complete.
Wow, well said.
Forget being Unique, be Remarkable. Go above and beyond. Don’t just stand out, set a new standard. I like that and will use it to inspire clients in my consulting practice.