InsureMe Agent Blog: Unique Selling Proposition

No, we're not referring to the 80s classic, Risky Business. The unique selling proposition is a suggested sales technique from Small Business CEO, a blog aimed at helping small businesses flourish.

One of the key things that must be identified for effective marketing and sales is your USP or Unique Selling Proposition.
The USP is the thing that sets you, your products and services or your business apart from every other competitor in a favorable way.

The USP is something our creative marketing team has been spending a lot of time on as we prepare materials for prospective agents. We've scheduled meetings, had impromptu brainstorms and concocted lists to determine our USP. Because there are a handful of online lead aggregators in our sandbox. Our USP is our edge, so to speak. Therefore, the idea is to find the USP that appeals to our audience—and hammer that point home.

Small Business CEO blogger Steve Rucinski makes a couple suggestions for productive hammering.

Numero uno:

"One way to develop a USP is by starting with the words, 'Unlike most of our competitors...,' then filling in the blanks about what differentiates you."

Personally, I'm not a big proponent of this one. I'm wary of people, especially those I'm thinking of doing business with, who are quick to pooh-pooh their competition. I also find this to be a slippery slope in terms of marketing hyperbole—remember: you want to focus on what you can do for the prospect, not how great the company is.

So unless you can spin it more positive (say, "We were actually the first in the industry to bring insurance sales to the web), I'd go with strategy numero dos:

"Another way to develop a USP is to highlight a feature or benefit that only your product or service contains or features."

When it comes to sales and marketing, you seldom go wrong by telling people what you can do for them. Aptly demonstrating the features and benefits of your products and relating them to the prospects personal situation is a surefire way to make a new sale.

For example, if I was an Allstate agent reviewing a quote for a 20-something male who has been in three car accidents, I'd probably push the accident forgiveness feature and find a way to demonstrate how that feature can benefit the accident-prone driver. I'd give him numbers; give him a visual of the amount his premiums would increase with another insurer given the same circumstances. I would hammer home that for his personal situation, I would give the best there was to offer.

So what's your USP?

(That's more of a rhetorical question—I don't expect anyone to blow their competitive advantages via our blog, but just the same, I'm looking forward to seeing some feedback on the topic!)

[Hat Tip]: Seeds of Growth