March 12 - by Andreas Breitfuss
To survive in the competitive world of hospitality you need to make sure that you are different from the rest. In order for you to accomplish this you need to develop something that you can use that will set you apart from the herd. This something extra can be referred to your USP.
Firstly what is a USP and why does your business need one? Well quite simply your USP (unique selling proposition) is your statement to the market explaining why you are different to your competitors.
To develop your USP you will need to go through 3 steps, these steps includes gathering information and some writing and a little creative juices.
STEP 1 TO DETERMINE YOUR USP
You need to find out what in your business is different to the rest of your competitors, what is it that truly makes your venue different and why customers will buy off you instead of your competitors. When determining your USP take the following points into consideration, the value and quality of your business, you must be original. Do you offer a guarantee this could be a point of difference so you should seriously consider it. Is it the décor, fixtures and fittings or it maybe the food or one type on menu item that could become the USP eg the freshest salad or the biggest pasta or a famous family recipe. Is it the location of the business you know the famous words location, location, location. Write down a number of unique points about your business move to step 2.
STEP 2 TO DETERMINE YOUR USP
Ask your best resource your customers…. You may know most of your customers anyway so it will be easy. All you need to do is sit down with them for five minutes and ask them the question “Why do you come to my restaurant?”. You will soon find out some relevant information of what your USP could be. Ask between 10 – 20 customers to get a broad range of ideas.
STEP 3 TO DETERMINE YOUR USP
The next step is to ask your team. Ask them the same question you asked yourself what’s good about us, what’s not good about us, comment about the décor, food, service, beverages and location.
Once you have all the information in front of you try and find some common themes and statement from yourself, customers and your team. Write the top 5 down and then try and combine them into one short sentence or phrase. Make the sentence no more then 10 – 15 words. This will become your USP.
You are probably thinking right now…..What do you use the USP for?
Your USP will differentiate you from your competitors it will be your tag line on all your marketing, letterhead and business cards. This will underpin all your future marketing for your business. The tag line that you will be formulating will at a quick glance tell your customers what and who you are. So you understand what I am talking about some of the bigger companies that use USP’s include KFC “finger licking good”, Big W “We sell for less” see what I mean.
Source: Restaurant Management |