Canadian Small Business Women

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What’s YOUR Unique Value Proposition?

When was the last time you reviewed your Unique Value Proposition, or made sure it applied to your new products or service? Now is a good time to make sure your proposition speaks to the audience you intend to serve.

It’s tough to experience the success you’ve looking for if you don’t have something that sets you apart from your competitors. In case you’re new to this concept, we are referring to your unique value proposition (UVP), also called your unique selling proposition. Why should someone buy from you vs. anyone else? What’s the extra value can you offer? Take a close look at what you want to offer to people as part of your business model, then be prepared to answer the following questions from the start of your business, and continuously thereafter. These seemingly easy questions need to be answered:

1.     What do you offer?

Lay out the details of the product or service you plan to sell. What are its features? What does it do and what does it look like? For example, is it a 7-day e-course on how to set up a WordPress blog? Is it a 6-month coaching program that gives people direct access via email and Skype to you personally? Be very specific.

 

2. How does it solve customers’ problems?

How does your product offering solve your customers’ problems? State the problems your customer is facing, which you know from doing your market research. Describe how each feature of your product or service solves those problems. Think about how your customer would see your solution, not knowing you at all. If you can answer the question “What’s in it for me?” (WIIFM) from the customer’s point of view, you’re already halfway there.

 

3. What’s different about it?

You must create a product or service that is distinct from your competitors. While it is possible to be successful by creating a “me-too” business, it will be much more difficult. How is your solution different from other people’s solutions? Are you offering something extra, such as training or additional services? Do you offer your product in multiple formats, such as audio and video? Do you provide extra tools to make your solution easier to use? If you can’t identify any features that are different about your product, now is the time to go back and create something.

 

4. Why should someone buy from you versus your competitors?

This will be one of the most important parts of your sales copy. It will also be the toughest part of creating your UVP, by far. Connect the problems your potential customers are facing, the features of your product, and how they solve those problems. Then pull in your extra “proof” of why people should buy from you.

Your testimonials of how well your solution works is great social proof. You might have a track record of experience in your industry. You could also have great examples of your solution in action. Which of these are most important to your market? Pick one or use them all depending on what you think your prospects need to hear.

If you really understand what your target customers want, and what your competitors are already offering, you’ll be able to identify just what you can add remarkable value, because you took the time to do your market research. When you put these pieces together, you’ll have your Unique Value Proposition. What’s Your Unique Value Proposition?

 

 

Barbara Jemmott is the founder and business strategist at Your Entrepreneurial Spirit. Her 4-point YES to Customer Acquisition Program (C.A.P.) allows her to work her passion which is helping entrepreneurial women grow their audiences and income, online. She got here through her 20+ years of experience helping businesses understand and implement systems, strategies and procedures to increase productivity as well implement change and streamline operations. With experience and responsibilities to design, develop and deliver training for small to large technology training initiatives for Fortune 100 companies, she brings “Big Business” expertise to the small business space. Learn more about Your Entrepreneurial Spirit and the YES to Customer Acquisition Program at www.yourentrepreneurialspirit.com

 

“I need a social media person” – Do you really need a social media person? – Part 1

Karima

After reading the recent article “Is Social Media Worth It For Small Businesses?” on Forbes.com, I realized that one of the reasons small businesses are disappointed with their social media hires is because they don’t know the roles and skills required to set themselves up for success on social media.

In the 15 years I have been dedicating my practice to helping businesses expand their online presence and (in the last 6 years) growth utilizing social media, I have heard business owners and top-level executives say “I need a social media person”. To me, this affirmation equates to saying “I need doctor” and once you’ve said it, chances are you will need a specialist. It’s the same with social media.

Social Media as a tool for growth

Unlike large organizations who typically have a social media (senior) manager and 1) with multiple direct reports or 2) agencies who manage specific areas of social media, small and medium organization are left to hire a jack-of-all trades who scramble to do EVERYTHING on social media.

Let me back up a little… Although a lot of young people hold Social Media positions, the top level positions are usually given to more seasoned marketing or digital professionals because although social media is about Facebook and Twitter, and blogs and Instagram, it’s also and primarily about business and strategic thinking. Now that the wonders of social media have spread to the world of business, engaging on social media has become a necessity for survival. And your business needs to jump on that bandwagon before your competitors overtake you!

Social media allows you to respond to your customers’ wants and needs immediately. You can boost sales, and people will be more receptive to your message. And let’s not leave out the most important fact of all: your competition is already there.

So, how do you build a solid team while maintaining cost-effectiveness?

You must have a business-focused social media professional come and do a diagnostic of your needs. Whether your company is just launching or is already in business, our program is designed to support you and help grow your online presence.

Identify and define roles

By identifying the roles and skills it takes to make your business successful, you will better reach out to the right people and organize their time based on needs and objectives. Below are some of the primary social media roles and skills that will get you going fast.

  • Strategist: A strategist, pretty much like all strategists in every industry, researches, benchmarks, and creates a plan and tactics. The strategy, when done well, identifies opportunities for growth and for It also determines how and where to invest to meet business objectives. A social media strategist is no different.
  • Project coordinator/manager: A project coordinator is someone who will keep you on budget, on time, and within scope. A fabulous project manager will also identify opportunities along the way and allow you to expand your reach and objectives. Hiring a part-time social media project manager is the key to your success.
  • Content producer: Online content can be blogs, videos, Facebook updates, Tweets, Instagram and Pinterest pictures or even YouTube videos. There is a plethora of types of content and platforms ranging from real-time to scheduled, from on the go to scripted, and from organic to paid. The importance of content is to identify your objectives and build a strategy around them.
  • Community manager: A true community manager builds and grows online An online community is a virtual community whose members interact with each other primarily via the Internet (Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, Forums, etc.). Those who wish to be a part of an online community usually have to become a member via a specific site and necessarily need an internet connection.

I will explore other roles and skills in an upcoming blog post.

Why are online communities important for businesses?

Being a member of online communities for businesses and continually establishing and maintaining online relationships is critical to the success of your business. With the extreme popularity of social media, many people are excited about interacting and developing relationships with others whom they feel they can trust and who they consider experts in their industry.

At the heart of your success is the human element. Once people get to know you, and you get to know them, they will want what you are offering and will gladly tell others about what you are offering too.

Karima-Catherine is the co-founder of Red Dot Digital, a digital agency that strives to deliver top-notch solutions to various clients.  Red Dot Digital drives real, meaningful, quantifiable business outcomes for companies. Karima-Catherine is also the co-moderator of #MMchat, a Twitter weekly forum which focuses on business, marketing and social media.  

Connect with Karima-Catherine:

karima@reddotdigital.net

Website, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest

 

Business Research Demystified…New vs. Existing Business. What You Need To Do (Part 2)

yvonne

New Business Start-up Research

Using an analogy from the bible; when God was giving the children of Israel the land of Canaan, he asked Moses to send out men to spy out the land… whether the people who dwelt in it were strong or weak, whether the land was good or bad, rich or poor etc.

Same principle applies to when you have a great business idea, you need to research; research yourself, research your potential business partner, research the market you plan on entering, research who the players, and research the types of finances available. By researching yourself, you are able to establish whether or not you have the skills and experience required to start and run your own business successfully and the gaps you need to fill. By researching your potential partner(s), you determine what skills and experience they bring to the table, how it complements you bring, and most importantly whether you are able to work together in the short and long term.

Your Market (Industry) research is one of the most important and not to be compromised research that needs to be done. Omitting to carry out this research, even if it is minimal to start with, could lead to challenges in your business. During your research, you have the potential to discover anything, you could find the intended market is on a decline or that the potential for growth is phenomenal. By undertaking this research you are able to determine market growth potential, trends, receptiveness of the market, who the key players are such as vendors and competitors, and potential partnership opportunities.

Existing Business Research

For existing businesses, the focus is usually on growing the business an d increasing profits; better serving the needs of customers; being ahead or keeping pace with competitors; keeping abreast of the evolving economic and environmental factors; and taking advantage of emerging trends and technologies. To do this successfully starts with research, and continues with keeping abreast with the news. Research would include; competitor analysis, customer surveys, market trends, employee surveys etc.

Market trends and well as keep abreast of what your competitors are doing can be vital information that enables you be relevant. Remember, if your target market is not buying from you, they are buying from someone else. With competitor analysis you are able to identify who your competitors are; their products/services, pricing, distribution etc. Armed with some of this information you are able to make better business decisions, fine-tune your competitive advantage, and strategically position your business succeed.

Customer surveys (and feedback) will enable you gather information about the needs and opinions of your customers. Customers’ needs are constantly changing, therefore we need to be keep up with these changes and trends in order develop products and/or services to be relevant and appeal to the needs of your target market.

In general, undertaking the required research may or may not be easy depending on you familiarity with the process, knack for finding information, experience etc. It can also be very time-consuming and complex depending on the type of business or research required. With the internet and social media, research and information has become more easily available, however, it is important that you have clear objectives on what you are looking to achieve so as not to get overwhelmed. If you are finding it difficult to undertake the research yourself or do not have the time, it is worthwhile outsourcing or delegating the process.

Once your research is completed, you are now in a better position to know if and how to proceed; you have better understanding of the market you operate within and able to respond to the needs of the market; you know what your customers want; you are in a position to develop your competitive advantage; and armed with the knowledge to make better decisions and planning on the strategic development of your business.

While some businesses may have started out successfully without any research, a time comes when they have to pause and research to maintain their strategic advantage or they become irrelevant.

Get a free eBook to get started on your goals: http://eepurl.com/xeDrf

Yvonne is a Change Consultant, Coach and Speaker who is passionate about working with Individuals, Entrepreneurs and Organisations to implement change, drive results and achieve their goals.   She can be reached at:   www.facebook.com/oliveblueinc, www.twitter.com/oliveblueinc, www.oliveblue.com

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