What's Your USP?

Not long ago I was speaking with a very smart, successful client and I mentioned that an action she was contemplating didn’t seem to fit within her USP.  She gave me a strange look and I quickly determined that she had no idea of what I was talking about.

How about you?  If I mentioned your USP would you know what I was talking about or would you give me the confused look I’ve just described?

USP is an abbreviation for your “unique selling proposition.”  It is the thing or things about you and your business that make you different.  It’s what sets you apart from your competition and should be the reason people want to work with you vs. anyone else. 

As such, your unique selling propostion should be evident in any copywriting or marketing activites that are done on your behalf.

As an example, I’ll tell you a few things that are included in the USP for GCD Writing and Marketing:

-  thorough knowledge of and years of experience marketing health products and information

- direct mail expert

-  sensitive to the needs of small and women-owned businesses

-  very approachable, interested in educating clients

Your USP is not your tagline.  For example, “when you care enough to send the very best” is not Hallmark’s USP, it is their tagline.  Their USP may be that Hallmark provides one-stop shopping for all card and gift-giving needs.

Please send me a note at gail@gcdwritingandmarketing to let me know what you think is your USP.  And if you don’t know, you really need to get in touch with me.  Mention this blog posting and we can talk about that, for 30 minutes, for FREE.

Dealing With Mr. Know-It-All

Let’s call him “Tom.”

Tom is that customer that you want to work with, but whose ego is so large that even carrying on a simple conversation with him is difficult.  You can hardly get a word in.

Most psychologists would suggest that behind every big head is a small frightened man or woman struggling to be recognized.  Could be, but that’s a topic for another blog.  Rather than try to heal Tom today, let’s look at three things you can do to successfully use his ego to your own advantage.

1.  Silently thank him.  In a strange way, Tom has handed you a gift.  Rather than spending days, weeks, even months trying to figure out what makes him tick, Tom has made it clear that he’s motivated by what others think of him.  Why else would he spend so much time trying to impress you and everyone else with all that he knows? 

Based upon this valuable knowledge he’s handed you, you know that you need to position your product or service as something that will make Tom look great, even superior, in the eyes of others.

2.  Make him feel smart.  No, I don’t want you to kiss him where the sun doesn’t shine, but I do want you to applaud Tom’s past decisions.  And I want you to suggest that because he’s a person who makes wise decisions, it is obvious to you that he’ll be interested in what you have to offer.  

This tactic is often successfully used in direct mail pieces and other copy platforms.  For example, in copy selling a health product or information, I might write something like like this:  “The offer I’m making available to you today, dear friend, isn’t for everyone.  But based upon your previous buying experience, it is clear to me that you’re serious about your health and are ready to do what’s necessary to turn your life around.”  Get it?  In essence I’m saying that the offer I’m sharing with you today is only for the “smart people”, all others need not apply.

Another example revolves around a conversation you might have with a customer who is using an old, outdated version of a computer software program.  In order to get your Mr. Know-It-All to buy the upgrade you’re selling, you may have to say something like this:  “You know, the version you’re using was once top-of-the-line, and was exactly what all of the experts were suggesting. But now there’s something even better and because you’re someone who has always been on the cutting edge, I know you’ll want to be among the first to have it.  It will certainly keep your competitors’ eyes on you and help you maintain your status as a highly-regarded leader in your field.” 

3.  Make him feel special.  It would kill Mr. Know-It-All to know that what you’re offering him is the same product or the same deal that you’re offering everyone else.  So, do what you can to make him feel that what you’re offering him is somehow unique, simply because of how important and how special he is to you.  

One way of doing this is in conversation is to lean in when talking to him and lower your voice to just above a whisper.  This will give the impression that what you’re saying is for his ears only and is different from what you tell everyone else.

In copy, liberally use words like “exclusive” and ”special” to suggest to Mr. Know-It-All that the information you’re sharing isn’t being shared with the masses.  

Something as simple as personlization in a direct mail piece goes a long way toward making people feel special.

4.  Never try to compete with Mr. Know-It-All.  Doing so will only make matters more difficult.  Just state your case, using a tone and mannerisms that clearly convey your confidence and the fact that you know what you’re talking about.  A smart Mr. Know-It-All will recognize your authority and be open to working with you.

Don’t be a Know-It-All!  While it is a lot easier to talk about the other guy, please take just a few moments to take the “know-it-all” quiz:

-  Do you cringe when a business advisor suggests that you do something you’ve never tried?

-  Do you pretend to be an expert in areas of your business where you need help?

-  Do you reject ideas you don’t understand rather than ask questions?

If you answered yes to two or more of these questions, you just may be a Know-It-All! 

While this short quiz is done in jest to help ensure that you smile today, I hope you get the serious thought behind it.

Growth for the Know-It-All is hindered because he knows too much to learn anything new.  Don’t let a “know-it-all” attitude limit your ability to reach your full business potential.

Do you have a “know-it-all” story to share?  If so, I invite you to respond here or send me a private email at gail@gcdwritingandmarketing.com.

Marketing vs. Public Relations

I was recently asked the difference between marketing and public relations and thought I would address it here.

According to the American Marketing Association, marketing is “the set of institutions and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.”  It is suggested that the term derived from the original meaning of going to “market” to shop for goods and services.

On the other hand, public relations is a lot more about perceptions and building relationships.  In fact, the Public Relations Society of America describes it as “helping an organization and its publics adapt mutally to each other.”  In other words, it is about enhancing your “public face” so that your publics have a favorable impression of you and what you have to offer.

Who are your “publics?”  Your publics are anyone who has an interest in your company and may include employees, stock holders, current clients, potential customers, the list goes on.

A simple way to look at it is to consider the intended end results.  At the end of a successful marketing campaign you want to have generated sales, site visits, some specific action.  At the end of a successful public relations campaign, however, you want to have generated goodwill and a positive reputation.

For example…

The public service announcment that plays on your local radio station is a public relations effort because it likely highlights a non-profit venture and does not try to sell anything.  But the radio advertisement that encourages listeners to purchase specific goods and services is marketing.

The speech you gave at a Chamber of Commerce event is public relations because it may have served to position you (and your company) as a trusted community leader, yet didn’t boldly sell your products.  On the other hand, the sales presentation you gave to potential clients is marketing because the end result you hoped for was a sale and not just an enhanced reputation.

Every business, no matter how young or how established, needs good marketing and good public relations.  They work hand-in-hand and at GCD, we can help with both.

When "Bad Writing" is Good

For over 20 years I’ve been writing professional sales, editorial, and promotional copy and I’m good!

But when I started writing for the Web, I quickly learned that this medium involved a whole new way of working with words and that some of my good English writing skills had to be thrown out of the window.  This realization nearly killed me!

OK, not literally, but you know what I mean.  It came as a real shock.

So I spent some time working with and learning from some of the most knowledgeable online writers and search engine optimization pros in the country.  They instilled within me an understanding of this interesting new world and I’m happy to share a few of the most critical things I learned with you today:

#1:  Write to be read now.  Unlike a printed piece that might be put down and picked up at a later date, if a person is going to read your Web copy, they’re most likely to read it now — or never.

So the Web is not the place for overly expressive language or poetic prose.  And, because research suggests that people spend only a few short minutes on each site they visit, the smart Web writer will get to the point quickly and will commuinicate in short, easy-to-understand sentences.

In artist terms, it means that you should draw a stick man and not a detailed portrait.  Do you get the picture?  (Pun intended!)

As I write online copy, I try to always keep in mind that the reader’s next web site is a mere click away and I recognize that “clicking away” is the right Web readers use quite liberally.

#2.  Write as if you know your reader.  Web writing should be as warm and personal as possible.  Use the word “you” as much as possible, and craft a message that meets the readers’ needs and solves their problems.  This certainly applies to offline writing as well, but on the web it is even more important because the immediate competition is fiercer.

#3. Write to be found.  In the beginning, it was somewhat difficult for me to grasp this concept, but it is absolutely critical if you are to write effectively for the Web.

The way I look at it, I’m writing for the search engines (Google, Yahoo, Ask, etc) almost as much as I’m writing for my human audience.  Let me explain…

Once you establish your list of key words, it is extremely important that you use them as often as possible and that you place them in strategic positions on our web page.  Doing so will maximize your chances of being recognized by search engines and, in turn, found by your prospective customers.

This vital requirement sometimes overrides my desire to write a certain way and I find myself re-writing what I think is great copy to appease these invisible, but oh-so-powerful search engine audiences.  Said another way — sometimes “bad writing” is good.  

But the flip side is that here’s where you can write “differently!”  Because the Web is such a fluid method of communication, it provides the perfect environment for crawling out of your box and doing something daring.  Feel free to take a chance to write about something controversial or use a style you’d never put in print or test a new, unproven offer.  And do so freely, realizing that if your audience doesn’t like it you can quickly replace what you have with something else.

In closing…

Today, most businesses have some sort of Web presence and that’s great.  But unless you’re carefully selecting the words you use and how you use them, you may not be getting your money’s worth.   Read the research or partner with a professional who can help ensure that your Web words work hard for you.

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