Get your marketing materials and develop a Unique Selling Proposition

One of the first things you should do to streamline the marketing in your business is to make sure you have all the marketing materials in place. It still amazes me the number of new businesses start and not have the materials they need! Your business cards, letterhead, brochures, magnets, thank you cards, corporate gifts, promotional products, flyers - anything that a customer or potential customer sees should have a common theme and style. There are many graphics programs out there that you can use to design your own, or you can hire a graphic designer to design for you at a nominal cost.

Do you have a USP? USP means Unique Selling Proposition - the phrase or slogan that sets you apart from the competition and uniquely identifies your business. An example of this is "Fresh, Hot Pizza in 30 minutes, or It's Free." You can identify the company that once belonged to? Of course, you can - it's Domino Pizza. This particular slogan is probably one of the most memorable unique selling propositions in the story, and there is no reason why you can not develop one for your business that works for you.

To develop your USP, you need to determine things about your business that sets you apart from the competition. The phrases "We have the best service" or "We have the lowest price" are common places that people do not believe anyway, so do not use them. Find other things that can be quantified, such as "Your oil changed in 30 minutes or less - guaranteed". "Call a plumber for 24 hours a day" or

If you have an ad in the yellow pages, look at all the others in your category. If you cut out the names of all the ads, you would be able to tell which ad belongs to which company? Or are all more or less say the same thing? Spend some 'time and develop a way to differentiate your company from the rest.

If you really have the best service, then I say it, but it is better to be able to quantify it! They are your working hours longer than everyone else? Do you have more technical? They are all more qualified or certified? Do you have the latest whiz-bang equipment? Telling people why the service is better, not just what it is.

You should do some research on the competition, but the result will be worth it. You will know, and you will be able to tell your customers, what are the advantages of doing business with you are. Quantify, and then promote. Give people a specific reason to choose your company to someone else.

Develop your USP, and make sure you use it on all marketing materials in a consistent manner .......