This is the one thing companies really struggle with. But without it - you could be missing out on loads of business. Creating a USP need not be difficult. Here is a fairly quick three step approach you can try for yourself. Discover your USP is three (fairly easy) steps:

1. What do your customers value?
Write down, mindmap or brainstorm all the things you think your customers value about your service or product and your competitors products and services. Look for the reasons people decide to buy.

What’s in it for them?
What makes your offer unique?
Which of these are important to your prospective customers?
What is difficult for your competitors to imitate?

Don’t do this on your own - involve everyone who has a vested interest! Including your customers!

2. Rank yourself and your competitors
A spreadsheet works best - make a list of your top competitors on one axis and the reasons customers buy on the second. Then, give yourself and your competitors a score out of ten against each. To get value out of the exercise, you need to be totally honest and objective!

3. Work out your ranking
Plot these points on a graph to see your strengths and weaknesses in comparison with your competitors. You should now be able to write a simple statement that communicates your USP. Now use your USP in everything - your bids and tenders, corporate literature, website, sales tools, eCommunications.

USPs aren’t just for companies - why not create your own personal USP!