Maybe you have actually heard these different marketing terms, perhaps you have not. In either case, let me help to clarify the difference between them, due to the fact that you need to have all three if you want to market successfully. And understanding what they are might be your initial step to achieving all 3 for your company.

Unique Offering Proposal

A distinct selling proposition, in some cases described as a USP, is the something that is special and important about your company, service or product? And it needs to be unique and valuable to your prospects or ideal clients, not just to you.

It may be an inherent quality of your product and services (it’s the only blue widget readily available and blue is the color your ideal clients choose) or it may be something you develop. I created the USP for my service, 10stepmarketing.

There are many marketing training programs and instructional products available. But there were none I might find that taught small business owners how to create and execute their own marketing plan utilizing a simple, detailed, question-and-answer method.

I produced my marketing training program (name and all) to fill this void in the marketplace. And it became my “produced” USP. It didn’t exist when I first began training 5 years back– I produced it and built my company around it.

Your USP is an idea or an idea. It is not the precise words you include in your marketing. You will nevertheless utilize it to write and create your marketing messages.

Single Message

This is what you say about your organisation, service or product when you market. It is the one essential idea or message you include in all of your marketing. It might be very closely related to your USP, however it might not be exactly the same.

You will identify your single message AFTER you determine your USP. In addition, look at your single message as the one thing you could inform your prospects to change their frame of mind about your product or service, from what they currently believe to what you DESIRE them to believe.

It is usually written in the form of a short declaration or sentence. Its job is to take your potential customers from what they believe now to what you desire them to believe. Probably you will NOT feature your single message in your marketing products exactly as you have composed it in your marketing plan.

The idea will be communicated, but you will likely use different words in your real marketing products. For 10stepmarketing, my single message is “If you can respond to 10 concerns, you can effectively market your business.” (In my case, I turned my single message into a tagline due to the fact that it was succinct, it interacted exactly what I desired, and frankly, it simply WORKED!).

Tagline.

Your tagline is an actual line of marketing copy you write to summarize what you do, or what you desire your potential customers to understand about your service or product, or a key advantage they will gain if they buy. You will make use of your USP and your Single Message to help you craft your tagline.

This is the only one of all 3 (USP, Single Message, Tagline) your potential customers will see exactly as you have written it in your marketing strategy. As specified above, my tagline for 10stepmarketing came straight from my single message. This is not generally the case, but it simply happened to exercise that way.

You might have the same scenario. Your USP or your Single Message might be so spot-on you select to utilize it as your tagline. As long as your tagline communicates a customer-focused message that’s great.

Always ask yourself the question “What’s so fantastic about that?” when you are considering putting a tagline or any other message or copy in front of your potential customers. If “what’s so terrific” is obvious, your copy or tagline is most likely already really customer-focused.

If you can even more drill down to a more particular client advantage when asking this concern, then you are still in business-owner “feature-land” and you will want to keep asking “What’s so terrific about that?” till you can’t drill down any even more.

I produced my marketing training program (name and all) to fill this void in the marketplace. You will however utilize it to compose and create your marketing messages.

It is the one key concept or message you consist of in all of your marketing. Most likely you will NOT feature your single message in your marketing materials precisely as you have actually written it in your marketing strategy.

The idea will be communicated, but you will really likely utilize various words in your actual marketing materials.