How To Easily Strengthen Your Unique Value Proposition in 4 Steps

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Why Your UVP Is Important

Have you ever had the experience of trying on a variety of the same thing in a store and feeling confused because you couldn’t tell which one was right for you? This often happens when people are looking for products or services that can help them achieve their dreams.

So, for example, a customer might ask: Which of these are the best headphones? Price? Design? Color?

Whereas a business owner might ask: How do I position my product on the shelf? The brand recognition or loyalty of my product? Its freshness?

Knowing what appeals to your customers and making sure they can find it and trust it are keys to a thriving business.

Your Unique Value Proposition is the key to your success. It’s what makes your product stand out from all the other products in your industry.

Your UVP answers questions in your customer’s mind: Why is your product or service better?

Your product or service is different because it’s yours. It has no other company logo or logo that’s similar to it. It isn’t a knockoff or imitation, but a brand new, unique product.

How To Create Your UVP

UVP stands for Unique Value Proposition. A good UVP will set you apart from the competition.

Make sure your product or service tells a story so people will engage with it and more readily share it with others.

In the following 4 steps, I’ll show you how to clearly and effectively explain to people what your product or service is, and tell them why they should buy it.

Step 1 – Identify Your Target Market

One of the main functions of the UVP is to identify your target market. This level of connection can only be achieved if you know your target market. To find out who is buying your product or service, you need to ask some questions.

Who is (and isn’t) buying my product or service?
Why are they buying (or not buying) my product or service?
What do people like about my product or service?
What don’t people like about my product or service?

Spending time to find out who your target market is is a worthwhile endeavor. Instead of assuming everyone can be a customer, focus on individuals who are like your current customers. It’s possible to present your product or service in a more effective way once you understand your target audience’s needs.

Step 2 – Define What Makes You Different

You will always have competitors as you do business. It doesn’t matter what you do, someone else will provide the same solution. To stay ahead of them or to carve out your own path, study your competitors and try to identify a gap or difference in their product or service offering.

What do my competitors offer to customers?
Is my competitor’s product or service good?
What do I do differently?
Why should customers buy from my competitor?
What could I do differently to set myself apart from my competitor?

You could find that your competitor’s product is better than yours. Afterall, not everyone can be the best of the best. It doesn’t mean you can’t have good fans! What makes you unique? What makes you so great? When presenting your product or service, make that your launchpad.

Step 3 – Describe The Pain Point That Your Product Or Service Solves

Once you know the unique characteristics of your customers, you can use them to highlight the problem that your product or service is meant to solve.

It’s not enough to say that you’re making their lives easier. You need to be specific.

Exactly how is your product or service solving a problem?
Who do you think will benefit the most from your product or service?

It is possible that your product or service is addressing more than one issue for your customer. The pain points should be the center of your Unique Value Proposition.

A great way to do this is to spin the pain point on its head. Show the destination of where you are taking them using words that are uplifting and inspiring, a destination that shows the opposite of the paint point they have.

If you can help your audience to know that their problem will be solved when they use your product or service, then you’ve succeeded.

Step 4 – Consider What You Stand For As A Company

If you are going to make a promise based on who you are as a brand, you need to think through what you stand for as a company and include it with your Unique Value Proposition.

What does my company stand for?
What is my company’s vision?
Who is this company? (a look at your company from the outside)
What do we want to do with the company?
How do we want customers to remember us?

Polish Your Unique Value Proposition

Your UVP is an outward looking strategy that clearly defines the value your business creates for your customers.

It needs to capture who you are as a company, what problem you can solve for your customers, and why you are different than your competitors. It’s important that your company’s story is told clearly in the few words that make up your value proposition.

It’s a process to develop your UVP. To get the message right, you need to dig deep.

If it doesn’t feel right or if it’s not inspiring your audience to buy, polish it again and again. It may take some trial and error before you find the right voice, tone, and messaging for your brand.

Don’t feel discouraged if it takes time. Once you are focused on your vision, there’s no telling where you’ll end up.

About Christy Kiltz

Christy Kiltz is the owner of Design! by Kiltz Internet Solutions and has been taking care of business owners online since 2001. Her high-touch digital agency is located in Southern Oregon and provides comprehensive online marketing services and technology solutions that free up business owners to focus on what they love to do instead.

According to Christy, “Service-based business clients come to us spinning their wheels trying to make money online. We form a partnership to turn their websites into lead-generating machines. Our White Glove Growth program is designed to help you get more leads and grow your business.”

In addition to building websites and offering technical support, Christy’s primary focus is education and empowerment. By toning down the “geek” and offering practical tools easily understood by non-technical folks, Christy opens the black box of technology with classes, webinars, and web tips developed to demystify digital marketing. With ease and a bit of humor, she reminds us that while technology continues to move forward at warp speed, many foundational marketing principles remain.

Christy Kiltz joins us as a regular contributor to share her digital marketing expertise with our business community. Enjoy her articles and commentaries!

Find out more about how Christy can help your business improve your online world. Want to book a “20” with Christy for a focused Q/A? It’s free with no sales pitch.