Freelancers are no longer a rare breed, more and more employees are turning freelance everyday and competition is growing fast. In these competitive times it is important to stand out from the crowd and embrace your individuality.
In order to do this it is useful to identify a unique selling point which will differentiate your services from those of your competitors. A unique selling point (USP) not only helps you stand out but will provide you with key communication messages.
Identifying your unique traits is no easy task, you need to analyse your key features, distinctive attributes and your customer appeal. It is also important to take the time to understand your competitors and what they are offering. Remember to be objective!
A USP could be related to satisfying customer needs or simply filling a gap in the marketplace. Whatever it is, you need your potential clients to understand what it is – you should aim to be able to summarise it in just a few sentences!
Whether your USP is your customer service, value for money, business approach or a particular service or product, once you have defined the USP it is important to embrace your uniqueness in everything you do.
Let’s say you are a freelance designer and your USP is your friendly and laid back approach, you need to integrate this into any marketing material, social media, interaction and branding. You need to celebrate your USP – it is the reason why you should be considered above competitors!
One of the benefits to being a freelancer is that we all have our own individual traits and idiosyncrasies. It is just a case of identifying that uniqueness and marketing it as a selling point.
Eventually your unique selling point will become more than just a hazy definition but will develop into a core quality of your brand, product or service.
Photo by Suvodeb Banerjee – CC
