Successful business owners identify their competitive advantage and their “unique selling proposition,” or USP. Their USP is what distinguishes their business in the marketplace and separates it from competitors.

What’s your business’s unique selling proposition? What’s special about your product? How does your product or service solve a specific problem or fill a critical need or gap in the marketplace?

If you’re not sure, start by documenting all of your competitive advantages over each specific competitor and then elaborate on how your services, products, and approach align and differ from theirs.

A Case Study: The Furniture Manufacturing Industry

To illustrate how to uncover your USP, let’s consider the furniture manufacturing industry. Pretend that you manufacture high-quality handmade furniture and would like to know what differentiates your product from the competition. Start by identifying your target customer and uncover what they value and expect when looking to purchase furniture.

Identify the elements of your manufacturing process and product features that set you apart from the competition:

Are your products priced in the low, medium, or high range?

How would you describe your product design?

Will it last a lifetime, or do customers purchase it because it’s more functional or portable?

Do you use high or medium quality or eco-friendly material?

Is your manufacturing process made-to-order, mass production, or handmade?

In this example, you can see what differentiates one furniture company from its competition.

At one end of the spectrum is Stickley, which produces expensive high-quality made-to-order furniture that will last a lifetime. “Made-to-order” furniture is not the same as “handmade.” This furniture is finished at the factory with the wood finish or color requested by the customer.

At the other end is IKEA, which produces low-cost, eco-friendly, mass-produced portable furniture that can easily be replaced. Thomasville is somewhere between Stickley and IKEA.

Based on this competitive analysis, your USP is high-quality handmade furniture offered at a reasonable price.

 

Uncover your competitive advantage. Start by identifying your unique selling proposition.