We present instructions on developing a unique selling proposition (USP) from an expert, Deputy General Director of Marketing at the Aktion Group, Anton Kapaev.
There are plenty of useful products in the markets where our company is represented. Competitors, along with us, promise solutions to any professional tasks. In order for clients to buy from us, we need to come to them with a unique selling (value) proposition (USP). To do this, we need to analyze real audience requests based on reports and select “keys” to satisfy client needs.
We have standardized the process of creating a USP and identified the following steps :
Working with portraits and motifs
If a company’s marketers define only one library shop portrait of the target audience (TA), they get an average, non-existent person . The audience responds reluctantly to messages sent to such an average person. The output from such marketing activities is close to zero.
Different portraits can be identified from a homogeneous audience. Thus, one of the target audiences of the Aktion Group is accountants of organizations and individual entrepreneurs.
But there are variations there too:
chief accountants who have been working at a medium-sized enterprise for 20 years are conservative, executive, and meticulous;
young accountants “in the know”, who read a lot, are aware of the latest changes in the law and are in every way concerned about the business in which they work – they optimize expenses and fight for every penny with the tax authorities;
specialists with ambitions – they try to achieve success in their profession and gain recognition, they perceive work in a company as a “springboard” into a large organization or dream of opening their own business.
These are all different psychotypes. And you need to talk to them differently
o sell them products, you need to press different points.
The first are anxious people, they are very afraid of making a mistake, running into fines, they value stability. They can be offered a guarantee of safety: impeccable reporting, insurance in case of an error.
Among the latter, for example, a system of normative acts with comments from market experts is in demand. Legislation changes daily and young accountants need to study expert materials with the application of standards in practice.
Others strive for independence; they respond to offers of events and franchise businesses.
Akcion identified seven such types of accountants. Each has their own story, interests, fears – and even names.
Thus, target audience portraits are the result
So much marketing research as psychological research.
It is important not to overdo it when dividing the audience into types. One or two portraits is not enough, you need to dig deeper. But more than seven to ten is already too much, developing strategies in this case is difficult. Usually three to seven are enough.
We highlight the motivating motives for each portrait . What does a person live by, what is their goal? What do they really want: to avoid something, to strive for something, to do something, etc. Ideally, there should be: one portrait – one motivating (the strongest) motive.
