Your Best Business Characteristics Can Be Personal Traits

When creating value propositions for small companies, we like to focus on traits or characteristics of the owner that carry over into the business. These traits feel more authentic, and potential customers will naturally be more attracted to genuine points instead of exaggerated or boastful ones.  

Here are some key areas to focus on when identifying your unique value propositions:

Experience – This is important because it distinguishes you from your competitors and helps demonstrate your authority. And it can cover many different types of expertise.

Education: Formal education can be critical, depending on your business. If where you went to school or the degree you achieved matters in your specific industry and sets you apart from your primary competitors, include it when distinguishing yourself as an authority.

Certifications: Certain industries, such as IT and social media, are constantly evolving. And while your degree may be from a top university, information learned two years ago is quickly considered obsolete. Recent certifications from highly respected leaders in a space (AWS, Google, Meta Blueprint) are important to demonstrate being up to date in your particular area of expertise.

Past Work Experience: This is especially important if you are starting a new business and don’t have a deep list of past clients for reference. The work you’ve done in a corporate environment can quickly translate to a startup business. And chances are, the clients you worked with during your corporate tenure have name recognition.

Client Results: How you’ve helped past clients is always valuable! Remember, people don’t buy products or services. They buy solutions to their problems. So if you can demonstrate the success you’ve brought others, future clients will buy in much more quickly.

Good Communication -  Every successful relationship depends on good communication. This includes listening to your clients to ensure you understand their problems and deliver the right solution. But confirming the scope of work, providing regular status updates, addressing their questions quickly, and highlighting issues as they arise is always appreciated. One motto I use in my own business is that if a client has to reach out to me for a status update first, I’ve failed at communicating.

Reliability - These days, it can be challenging to find someone who will do what they say they will do. Deliver on your promises and show up when you say you will, and chances are you’ll be leaps ahead of several of your competitors. This includes responding to client texts and calls quickly, showing up on time, and finishing work on schedule. All of these things can be verified by client testimonials and reviews. Or from data sources like FB messenger that notes how quickly you respond to messages.

Honesty and Integrity – Both are very important in business but can be harder to prove. Client testimonials are of particular value if you’re in a space where honesty is highly valued, such as accounting or financial services. Also, do you have a client story or past experience that demonstrates an example of being honest or showing a high degree of integrity?

UVPs to AVOID

We’ve said this before, but it’s worth repeating… avoid basing value propositions on things like being “the best” or “the cheapest .” Being the best is very subjective, and with online reviews everywhere, it just takes one negative review (that might not even be legit) to convince potential clients otherwise. Even data and statistics don’t always guarantee being the best. Data can be cut and interpreted in many different ways. Often the story is in how the data is positioned. And savvy (and distrustful) clients could see right through it.  

And being the cheapest isn’t a value position. Or unique. It’s a price point. And being the lowest is often temporary because a competitor can lower their prices as easily if they want the business. So winning business based on price alone does nothing more than undermining your value and experience. And in many cases has earned you a customer that likely isn’t loyal.

Unique value propositions help distinguish you from your competition. But even more important, they will attract your ideal customer. Because when you’re genuine and highlight the things that make you unique, the people you want to work with most will find these same traits highly desirable.