|
|  |
| |
|
| | The Marketing, Channels/Partnership & Sales Execs Network is not currently active and cannot accept new posts | | re: re: Unique selling propositions are not strategic | Views: 886 | | Dec 13, 2004 11:34 pm | | re: re: Unique selling propositions are not strategic | # | 
Chen Sun | | Nancy-- “Brand is the personality of a business.” “They will be able to list FEATURES of your personal brand …”
Thank you for your response. Please notice that the responses further suggest that USPs are not a strategy.
If people’s branding, as described above, is multi-featured, then, by analogy used, company’s brands should also. My friends don’t list one feature for me—usually they’ll list three or more. If a USP is akin to a feature, then perhaps a better selling concept is multi-SPs?
It is, though, expensive to communicate the multiple features, and many people’s minds like to file away information in singular “containers”. This is not true for all people. An unique selling proposition mentions just one because it’s essentially a money conservation promotions measure, not a marketing strategy in itself. I think marketers are themselves creating too many acroynisms to simplify. How can a selling proposition be a strategy?
Also, my opinion is that a brand is usually an overall “feel” that conveys multiple messages. Consider “Sony”’s logo. I feel—high quality, advanced electronics, excellent warranty, long-lasting. There is not a single USP—it’s a series of messages building up to a brand.
If we accept that a brand carries multiple messages and a person’s personality has multiple features, where then does this idea of USP fit in? It fits in because there isn’t enough advertising to communicate others. Again, USP is merely an advertising tactic that conserves money—not a strategic component. It’s frequently used in advertising to conserve advertising funds, and as a result, has become important. But, again, a tactic, not a strategy.
Nancy--I'm tough talking to add spice to the postings--in actuality, I appreciated your diplomatic answers.
Sincerely,
Chen Sun
www.WebAndNet.com,
a Web Inventions eNterprise, WINning Solutions TM
> Nancy Fraser wrote:
> Chen,
>You are right when you say that USP is usually not very strategic, but that is not do with USP, it's due to the person behind the decision of what the USP is and how that message will be conveyed.
>
>That's an interesting perspective, to consider USP a cost saving measure to create branding.
>
>Brand is the personality of a business. If you consider, for example, your own personality, and look at it from the perspective of your friends. They will be able to list features of your personal brand that they like and don't like but generally there is one positive characteristic of your personality that each and every one of your friends mentions near the top of their list. People who don't know you well, may not even be aware of this unique facet of the brand of "you". If you want to grow your group of friends doesn't it make sense to highlight that overriding positive about yourself to attract other people who are going to like you?
>Then it comes down to, how do you convey that facet of "you" so that people see it and it's memorable.
>
>USP is about standing out from the crowd; cost saving on what...on the fact that your investment in your business will be lost if people can't figure out why they should deal with you? You have to get the money before you can think about cost saving measures.
>
>The development of a strong USP requires the identification of the core target. Many businesses, when asked, will say that everyone is their target market. These are the businesses that will never develop a strong USP because they are so afraid of losing a customer by excluding them, they are bland through their generalization.
>
>No one forms a strong emotional connection with bland...better to be controversial than bland, and boring.
>
>Nancy
>Nota Bene Consulting
>www.notable-marketing.com
>
>> Chen Sun wrote:
>> Unique selling proposition is not very strategic. Almost any product and its associated services has an unique selling proposition, or one can be effectively created for it. That’s not to say some selling propositions aren’t more valuable than others.
>>
>>Unique selling proposition is basically a cost-saving measure to create branding. It is too expensive to make sure that a consumer remembers the multiple selling propositions, so one is selected and promoted. If one had the advertising budget, why not promote more than one? It causes some confusion, but I believe that promoting more than one—it’ll work. So, the prior postings regarding unique selling proposition having strategic value—I think it’s primarily a cost saving value.
>>
>>Chen Sun
>>www.WebAndNet.com,
>>a Web Inventions eNterprise, WINning Solutions TM
>> Private Reply to Chen Sun | | Dec 14, 2004 12:44 am | | re: re: re: Unique selling propositions are not strategic | # | 
Barry Densa | | From the perspective of a copywriter, the USP is a slant, an angle, a benefit to be promoted and exploited. It's the theme of the copy to be written. Of course, there may exist many, but there should only be one per "copy" if the "copy," be it salesletter, website or other, is to be tightly focused and motivating. Too many in the same "copy" would be distracting, confusing, and a cause for procrastination on the part of the targeted audience.
In essence, a USP is a strategic choice within a tactical perspective (how's that for copyspeak?)
And, if the USP need compliment the recognized and promoted "brand," then the choice of available USP's will probably be narrowed, unless every discernable USP is the natural compliment of the other -- no mean feat.
--Barry
Private Reply to Barry Densa | | |
| |
| |
