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Hello, <<First Name>>,
Do you know what your value proposition or your USP is? Wait, do you know what USP even means?
In the last month or so I saw multiple blogs attempting to tell me how to figure out my value proposition. Some even told me USP and value proposition is the same thing (which it isn’t). But it seems to me most, if not all of them didn’t quite know what “value” means in the realm of freelancing.
I won’t lie to you – I won’t tell you right now what your USP or value proposition is either. This is such a huge topic that it deserves its own category on the blog. I will definitely blog more about it but until then, let me tell you what each of them is.
Your unique selling proposition (USP) is what differentiates you from your competition – that single thing that nobody else offers; or that single thing that nobody else does as good as you do!
And your value proposition is what’s in it for your client; what your client gets out of hiring you (and from your unique selling proposition in particular).
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You can have a very strong USP but if your value proposition is weak, then your product or service will be weak, too.
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How this translates in the realm of your freelance practice.
You write great blog posts with high quality, deliver them on time, work openly with editors and gladly do edits when requested. And so do 19678 other freelance bloggers. Why hire you?
Because of your USP and more importantly, because of your value proposition.
In the above examples, your USP can be your expertise like no other in writing SEO friendly blog posts on print advertising topics.
Your value proposition on the other hand would be 500 targeted visitors within the first 3 days of publishing your post for a highly competitive keyword because of your SEO expertise and established authority as an author in the print advertising niche.
See the difference now?
Here are a few other examples of possible USPs and value propositions, regardless your profession:
| USP |
Value Proposition |
Preliminary 30 min. free call to discuss with your prospect their target audience profile and their value proposition
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They don’t start paying you until you have the big picture and confirm you can do the job with the required quality, within said time frame and within budget. |
Asking the right questions at the right time
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They are sure that you will always work in the right direction because you never assume anything – you work only when you know what is required of you and why |
| Preliminary research and get acquainted with all existing marketing materials to make sure your materials (content, design, etc.) deliver the same message everything else does |
They feel confident your materials will be consistent with everything else the company already has in place and actively uses. Branding is everything. |
I know these are pretty vague – but that’s because I am “generally speaking”. Add your own profession and skills to put some context and you will narrow them down and make them specific.
The bottom line is: every USP can and should be translated into a value proposition. If you have an excellent USP but the client doesn't care for it, your value proposition will be weak and they will still not hire you…
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Remember: Clients don’t hire you for your skills – they hire you for the benefits they will get from your skills.
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Come visit on Monday to see what I've been up to the last couple of weeks…
(Spoiler alert: my mom and dad were visiting and I got to show them around to some of my favorite cities in Spain!)
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And until then, time to catch up with the blog posts I published during the past month ✌
Cheers,
Diana ツ
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If you enjoyed this bit of wisdom, forward it to a friend in need!
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New posts since the last newsletter:
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Dormant oDesk Contracts – How Long Should You Wait?
A reader once asked me how long she should wait for a freelance client to give her work again before ending their oDesk contract. As you probably would guess, there isn’t a right answer. It depends on the freelance client, on the type of project and what’s your agreement with that particular client. Read more.
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Being a Freelancer – for Life or…?
If you read the blog regularly, you already know that freelance for me is not just a job or a career path; it’s a way of life. So you can imagine how I felt when a reader sent me a note not long ago stating it’s not true being a freelance brings you freedom. I paused – did she really call me a liar?  Read more.
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How to Say NO to a Freelance Client When You Are Too Busy
Sooner or later every freelancer faces the problem of having too much on their plate and not being able to take on new work. And sadly, majority of freelancers cannot say NO to prospects, terrified they will lose them as clients forever. As a result, we see plenty of burnout freelancers who lack work-life balance. Today, I’ll help you learn how to say NO to clients and still keep them  Read on.
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What to Do When a Freelance Client Isn’t a Good Fit
We have all had clients (or prospects) who don’t know what they want, what the purpose of their project is or why they need a freelancer at all. But they have requirements, and a lot of them! Those requirements may be vague or very specific… although out of context. The question is – how do we work with such a freelance client? Read on.
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Thank you for being a subscriber and loyal reader of my blog!
Feel free to reply to this email if you ever need to get in touch :)
Diana
P.S. You receive this email because you subscribed to updates from Diana's Freelance Marketing Blog. Although I enjoy having you on my list, you can always unsubscribe by clicking the link in the footer of this email.
P.P.S. There's a slight chance you got this email because someone forward it to you - if this is the case and like what you see, please subscribe and get your own copies of the newsletter ;-)
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