The Unique Selling Proposition is a marketing concept that was first proposed as a theory to explain a pattern among successful advertising campaigns of the early 1940s. It states that such campaigns made unique propositions to the customer and that this convinced them to switch brand. Wikibooks has more about this subject: Marketing Marketing is a social and managerial function that attempts to create, expand and maintain a collection of customers. ...

Today, a number of businesses and corporations currently use USPs as a basis for their marketing campaigns.

Origin

In the early 1940s, Ted Bates & Company carried out extensive market research on successful advertising campaigns. In particular they identified two desirable attributes: the penetration and the usage pull. - - The pattern they found among campaigns that produced a high usage pull was the basis for the theory of the USP. It may also be known as the unique selling point.

Definition

In his book Reality in Advertising, Rosser Reeves (Chairman of the Board at Ted Bates & Company) gives the precise definition as it was understood at his company: Rosser Reeves (1910-1984) was an early pioneer of television advertising. ...

1. Each advertisement must make a proposition to the customer: "buy this product, and you will get this specific benefit."
2. The proposition itself must be unique - something that competitors do not, or will not, offer.
3. The proposition must be strong enough to pull new customers to the product.

Reeves also wrote that a USP does not necessarily have to be a verbal message. It can be communicated both verbally and visually. For example, a classic Clairol advertisement showing a picture of a model and just the headline, "Does she or doesn't she?" implied the USP, "If you use Clairol products, people won't even notice that you dyed your hair." Clairol is a personal care products division of Procter and Gamble and was formerly the largest independent hair products company in the world. ...

However, Reeves warns against forming a USP based on what he calls "The Deceptive Differential" - a uniqueness that is too small or too technical that customers cannot observe the differences in actual practice.

Examples

Some good current examples of products with a clear USP are:

• Head & Shoulders: "You get rid of dandruff"
• Olay: "You get younger-looking skin"
• Red Bull: "You get stimulation of body and mind"
• Ronseal: "You get exactly what it says on the tin"

Some unique propositions that were pioneers when they were introduced: Head & Shoulders is a famous brand of anti-dandruff shampoo produced by Procter & Gamble. ... Olay is a Procter & Gamble brand, based around a facial moisturizer skin care product. ... Red Bull is the brand name of a soft drink that originated in Thailand and is now popular throughout the world. ... Ronseal is the name of a British wood-dye and preservative manufacturer, responsible for the Does exactly what it says on the tin phrase, an advertising slogan which has since entered popular culture. ... [It] does exactly what it says on the tin is a popular phrase in the United Kingdom, which originated in a series of television commercials by the woodstain and wood-dye manufacturer Ronseal, initiated in the late 1980s and still running as of 2005. ...

• Domino's Pizza: "You get fresh, hot pizza delivered to your door in 30 minutes or less."
• FedEx: "Your package absolutely, positively has to get there overnight"
• M&M's: "The milk chocolate melts in your mouth, not in your hand"
• Wonder Bread: "It helps build strong bones 12 ways"

// World locations Dominos Pizza (NYSE: DPZ ASX: DMP) is an international pizza delivery franchise headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. ... FedEx (NYSE: FDX), properly FedEx Corporation, is a company that offers overnight courier, ground, heavy freight, document copying and logistics services. ... Milk Chocolate M&Ms M&Ms are small, sugar-coated, milk chocolate candy pieces popular in many countries around the world. ... Products with the new Wonder Bread logo Old Wonder Bread Logo Wonder Bread (Canadian packaging) Wonder Bread slices (Canadian packaging) Wonder Bread is a North American brand of extremely soft white bread. ...

External links

• How To Develop A Powerful USP