Drilling down to your unique value offering can be daunting. It may feel like we may close the door to other opportunities. Why? Delivering that unique offering requires a high level of dedication.
I was struggling with getting business leads for my coaching and consulting business. In frustration, I watched as my peers continued to grow their businesses day after day. It wasn’t that they had a head start or unfair advantage. We had more or less similar training and work experience. Yet I was struggling.
Then something changed. As I redesigning my business website, I paused and pondered. “Why do we exist? What is it that we will do to make a difference?” It occurred to me that defining a mission can be hard work. After numerous iterations, I came up with this mission: “To help create a culture of excellence for leadership, communication and branding to thrive by providing coaching, training and execution that drives authentic engagement.”
However, a silver bullet it was not! More questions mushroomed. The one that gave me sleepless nights was who our unique client was. In other words, if we were at a shooting range, which target would we shoot at? It was then that I realized a unique value proposition was needed. This would articulate who we desired to work with, why we chose them and how we would help them to resolve their pain point.
“We engage with motivated but overwhelmed individuals, businesses and organizations regain their purpose to lead their brands so they can focus on building their growth and legacy.”
And it worked! No sooner had I posted it on Facebook than I received a private message: “Happy New Year. Need to have a chat when are you at the coffee shop next.” “Excellent!” I thought to myself. Finally, there was light at the end of the tunnel. And it wasn’t that of an oncoming train!
Fast forward a few months later. We are now discussing a multi-pronged engagement with this new client.
So, what does this value proposition have to do with anything? I still had a problem. My thinking was that my unique value proposition to sell everything I offered. Wrong move! It is Laurel Staples’ article “Do THIS to make your coaching business stand out…” that opened an exciting paradigm for me.
It has helped me to develop our unique selling position (USP) for each of our brands. For example, here is my USP as a certified professional coach: “If you are a motivated but overwhelmed leader or corporate executive, we will coach you to maximize your personal and professional potential so you can focus on building your growth and legacy.”
Clarity in my USP further narrowed down my desired client. It gave me the confidence I needed to stand out of the crowd. I didn’t need to have a catch-all. With a sharpened focus and growing confidence, I can clearly articulate myself to prospective clients and explain the specific value of what I do as a coach without being too general.
And this leads me to wonder. Could it be that we struggle to respond to our calling because we don’t understand our personal unique value proposition is? Without this, it is nearly impossible to craft what we can offer the world. We end up working our socks off in jobs we don’t love to serve people we don’t like.
Q: What is that unique value you bring to the table that enriches the conversation? You can leave a comment by clicking here.
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