It’s a tough old business world out there, especially in light of recent news that we could be about to hit a double dip recession. So you might be asking yourself what you can do to make your business stand out in these difficult times where everybody is clamouring for business in an ever decreasing market.

As you already know Vision and Goal setting is crucial to a successful business and this month I have been talking predominantly about Unique Selling Propositions – USP. When anybody starts their own venture they have a vision that their business is going to be unique and the service or product that they are offering is going to be far superior than what is being offered by the competition. And that may be true, but the trick is to let your potential customers know that. In this busy world of ours people want to know who and what you are at a glance. You might have the best, most up to date name around for your business but if you don’t have a USP, customers will pass you by.

One of the biggest advantages of USP’s is that it is a very easy concept to understand. You just need to concentrate on making it work for you and your business. The basic idea is to come up with a few words (a phrase) which suggests to the customer that if they buy this product they will receive this specific benefit. It needs to be unique to your product; something the competitors do not offer. It must say something strong enough to attract attention and pull new customers. Make the phrase revolve around the main benefit of your business. It also has to be something you know your customers are going to care about. Of course, just having any old USP is not enough. It has to be a good one!

You may ask why is it so critical to have a unique selling proposition (USP)? Well actually, this is one of the more important elements to a successful business. Let’s face it, unless you have invented something completely unique you will have business competitors. So it stands to reason that when you are marketing your company you need to make it stand out, to make it memorable and to distance yourself from the competition.

Of course nothing that is worth doing is ever easy. The task of coming up with your own USP can be tough and time consuming but it’s well worth the work. Your business vision is a good place to start, you can use it to help find your USP. By creating a USP, you will be offering something to your target market that will stay in their minds. It can then be used alongside your company name, on all of your sales and marketing literature.

To make life a little easier for you, this month’s planner contains a full explanation and work sheet on how to create your own USP. So if you haven’t already, you might want to start focusing on your marketing by finding your Unique Selling Proposition. Let this be your vision and goal this month.

For more information on finding your Unique Selling Proposition just follow the link www.thegembank.com/yearplanner and sign up to start realising your dreams of business success for 2012!