It can be so frustrating to pour time and money into your website and not get results. Why bother with a costly, time-consuming website if you don’t seem to get business from it? If you’re experiencing this frustration, your site could probably benefit from a unique value proposition.
What is a Unique Value Proposition?
If you have never heard of a Unique Value Proposition (UVP), you’re not alone by any means! It’s a marketing term and technique, but it has really caught on, especially in the world of digital marketing. This is true for good reason – we already know that you have a very short timespan to capture your audience’s attention when it comes to your website. If they don’t immediately find something that catches their eye, they’re likely to leave and never come back. UVP’s are designed to give your business rapid and sustained appeal.
A UVP is a short statement meant to quickly indicate the problem-solving power of your product or business. This is more than a gimmick – they’re becoming increasingly popular because they work. Go ahead, put in a visit to the website of the first big business that comes to mind. Odds are they have an eye-catching UVP at the top of their homepage.
For many service-based business models, these unique value propositions are very consistent over time. For product-based businesses, UVP’s may change with the season or product line. For example, as I’m writing this, TurboTax’s homepage reads “We’ll get your maximum refund, guaranteed. Real tax experts are ready to help, or even do it all for you if you need it.” Nike is gearing up for the spring fitness boom with a homepage headline reading “New Season, New Energy. Take on anything spring throws your way in these functional styles.”
How do I create a Unique Value Proposition?
Alright, so using a UVP to promote your business is all well and good. But how do you go about it? When you’re creating a statement, keep these guidelines in mind:
- Actually unique: This may be the hardest part of creating a really great UVP. It has to actually be specific to your business and provide a value that your competitors can’t or don’t. Using superlatives like “best in the industry” or “world-class” isn’t going to cut it. Think about how your business or product is actually different from others in your field. Is your monthly price lower for the same set of services? Is your clothing line made of a sustainable fabric or hand-produced? Does your software provide an integration that other solutions don’t? In order to build an effective UVP, you have to consider the things that set your business apart.
- Addresses a customer pain point: Unfortunately, all the theoretical value in the world won’t help a client if that value doesn’t help solve their problems. A UVP has to be written from the perspective of your ideal customer, not from your own as the marketer or business owner. Why is your customer seeking out your product or service? What is your unique value within that pain point?
- Keeps it brief: If you need a paragraph for your UVP, it’s too long. Most unique value propositions should fit in a single sentence. Remember, you need to grab your audience’s attention right off the bat so they remain on your site.
- Points to a call to action: Ideally, once your ideal client has finished reading your UVP, they are interested in learning more. That’s why you need to give them something to interact with right away. This might look like a shop now button, a link to a pricing page, or a short and simple contact form. This should be tailored to your funnel and the level of commitment you require. Regardless, the UVP should basically be the arrow pointing to a (figurative or literal) big red button that your potential customer will click on to guide them to the next step in the funnel.
Has your business developed a unique value proposition? What other questions do you have?
