Melanie
Welcome to the Monday Morning Marketing Podcast for all decision makers and action takers. Take it away, Esther.
Esther
Good morning and welcome to the Monday Morning Marketing Podcast. Today we're talking about your USP, your Unique Selling Proposition, Position, Proposal. Lots of people change the last point. It's a good point. Lots of people change the last letter to be what they want it to be or what they understand it better to be. But at the end of the day, it is what makes you unique to you and to your business. So that is what we're talking about today. But why is it important?
Melanie
Why is your USP important? Because you need to have a way of standing out from the audience, from the crowd. And if there's something that you do better that resonates better or closer to your ideal customer, which is a whole other podcast, then this is something that you need to understand and push out there because it makes you stand out against your competitors?
Esther
True. And just like last week, we talked about what's your why and why your why is important, your USP is also important because it is something that no one else has. So you may think, oh, but what I sell is very similar or exactly the same as what my competitors sell. But that's where your USP comes in and that's what makes you stand out from the crowd. So I'll give you an example. In my case, I am fully bilingual, speak English and Spanish perfectly fine, both of them. I think some days I speak better Spanish than English, but that's another issue. So that is one of my USPs in that I can help my clients in both of those languages without having to go through translators or using AI to do any work like that. And I can help them because I know the audiences in English-speaking countries and in Spanish-speaking countries.
Melanie
And my USP is I have the patience of a saint.
Esther
She really does. She really does. I mean, yeah. We'll not even talk about her putting up with me. I mean, that's over five years, and she's still here. So we know that one's true.
Melanie
You see, I find it personally very difficult because I don't have something as special as your multidingle experience and knowledge. And there is a lot of me, even in a small country like the Republic of Ireland, there's a lot of social media trainers. I guess one of my USPs would be, is I don't try to take over your social media. I try to empower you and advocate for you to learn it and do it better. But there's no real true USP, other than me.
Esther
Yes. There is only one Melanie Boylan that we know and love. There is only one Esther Ocampo that we know. Don't know if yous loved me or not. No, you love Melanie. But yes, being you makes you unique. So don't try to be somebody else. Don't try to imitate other people. Don't try to be like other people or emulate other people or pretend to be other people. Nobody can be you quite like you.
Melanie
Can you imagine somebody being like us?
Esther
Please don't. There's enough. One of each of us is more than enough. More than enough. But it's important to embrace yourself and your uniqueness, because some people may feel that they have, whether it be a physical or mental disability, that that is something that could work against them. It's not. It could be your superpower. It could be what makes people remember you. We have friends in wheelchairs, and people automatically can spot them and go, oh, that's so and so. That's that person. When I was at social media marketing world, I have a dodgy knee and my knee was playing up and I used the stick a lot. And I am convinced that that is how people started recognizing me because I was walking around with a stick. So standing out, there was a lady at social media marketing world wearing purple, and she had purple hair, purple nails, everywhere purple. I mean, you couldn't help but notice her because she was embracing that as as part of her USP, as part of her uniqueness, her love of purple and her expression of using it. Previous guests that we've had on Charelle, yellow. You'll see her wearing yellow all the time.
Christine Gritmon wears red. You associate these people with their unique style or their unique hair or their unique nails or physical capabilities. And you'd automatically go, yeah, they're top of mind because they stand out.
Melanie
But you don't have to. Some of you will be introverts out there, and I can imagine you'll go, oh, no, I'm not putting on wild colors and wearing paisley and that stuff. Where did I get paisley from?
Esther
Well, there was another guy with wild shirts on, remember?
Melanie
Oh, yeah.
Esther
But you don't have to. You can also be the one standing with your own brand on you. As I point to my Monday morning marketing T-shirt, you could be the one that is always standing in the corner. That could be your unique spot. You always sit in the back row or you always sit in the front row. There's always something that you can embrace, even if you are an introvert, quiet, feeling isolated, or even if you never go out to events, you can show up online and be the different one in the room.
Melanie
And sometimes it doesn't It can't have to be something that you say. It can be something that you do. It could be something that you wear. It could just be the way you present yourself. So when you're doing maybe a talk or a workshop or a webinar or something like that, you may be, I don't know, doing some weird and wonderful way to do an icebreaker with the group that you've got in front of you. It's whatever makes you memorable at the end of the day.
Esther
Exactly. And it could be something as simple as a catchphrase. It could be, for those of you who are in Ireland or on TikTok, probably anywhere in the world by this point, there is a TikToker called Garron Noone, who is Irish, and his phrase is-.
Melanie
I'm delicious.
Esther
I'm delicious. And we know that by now. Everybody expects him to say it now, and that has made him unique, apart from his wild out there personality as well. But he uses a catchphrase, and there's another guy who's in the hibernation station, and there's another guy with the... It's just left me, just brain fog.
Melanie
Let's think of the boys. Let's think of the boys.
Esther
Yeah, Andrew and Pete. Okay, so, Whoop, whoop.
Melanie
And let's do this.
Esther
Let's do this. It's one I love those things. I now see, because the boys Andrew and Pete are the AtomaCon clan. You have a clan with two? It's not a cult because we're part of it. But they are the organizers of AtomaCon, that's the word. And they have pink. I mean, they're two males.
Melanie
Pink and pineapples.
Esther
They're pink and pineapples. So now every time I see pineapples, I'm like, oh, AtomaCon. It's something memorable I mean, Apple. You see an apple and you think of the brand Apple. You see a window and you think of Windows, Microsoft Windows. It can be the swoosh for Nike. I mean, things like that that just make you memorable, make you stand out.
Melanie
What makes you memorable then, visually?
Esther
My wild curly hair, my exotic accent.
Melanie
No, I'm not talking about your exotic accent. I'm talking about IPA group.
Esther
Oh, IPA group. Well, the red. Our logo is red. I usually turn up wearing red in to events and stuff.
Melanie
That also means the Monday morning as well.
Esther
Yes. So it works for both.
Melanie
Okay, so what about me? What makes me memorable? Visually-wise.
Esther
Visually, your T-shirts. You've got the T-shirts with the slogans and with the... What was the one about YouTube, I'm not an expert, but I... She's as if... I'm not an expert, but I watch so many YouTube videos. We did not practice that, I can promise you. We didn't practice that. But it's one that I know she'll be wearing. And there's other ones that my husband doesn't have to ask Google because I know everything, that stuff. You know, funny T-shirts that make you memorable and make you stand out when you're in a sea of other people. Imagine everybody turns up to a business conference in their shirt and tie and in their blazers and their jackets and their dresses and skirts and everything.
Melanie
And I don't.
Esther
And you don't. And that's fine. There doesn't have to be... I mean, should we talk... There's an elephant in the room right now when I've talked about dress code. And there was a recent funeral where the dress code was dark.
Melanie
Black.
Esther
No.
Melanie
No, it was black.
Esther
No, it was dark. No. No, the black tie. It was supposed to be the tie was black.
Melanie
Okay.
Esther
Right. So people are focusing in on a certain individual turning up in blue with a blue tie. But if you zoom out, lots of other people were wearing blue, including Prince William from England, United Kingdom. I suppose he's Prince of Wales. So Prince William of Wheel was also wearing blue, but he had the black tie. So whether it was didn't stand out as much or... But the media perception would make you think that one person did not read the Inlet code.
Melanie
At all, yes.
Esther
But when you take a broader look, if you're at something that does have a strict dress code, try to adhere to that dress code, but add your own personality. So maybe add a little flower, or a brooch, or something in your hair, or-.
Melanie
We've seen people wearing hats before at certain events, haven't we?
Esther
Yeah.
Melanie
Or like the girls, the flower girls.
Esther
Yes, They always turn up in pink. In pink, always. They're fabulous. Fabulous dress, since from Jeanette and Deirdre.
Melanie
Deirdre O'Sullivan.
Esther
From Kay's Flower School. Yes, shout out to them. We are an envy of your dress, since.
Melanie
And they look amazing as well. They're just so perfectly coordinated. They have an absolute gift.
Esther
Oh, absolutely. But being sisters, maybe that helps as well. But find a way to put your own stamp on it is what we're saying. So whether that is handing out a business card, physical business card, instead of going the digital route, that's different, that's unique. Or handing out a piece of candy or a sweet or a piece of chocolate. It's something that will just people remember you by. Because if you're exactly the same and doing exactly the same as everybody else, you won't be remembered. I mean, even if it's as silly as not drinking tea or coffee or hot drinks, people will remember that and go, oh, yeah, that's the one that... You're in a country... Well, here in the United Kingdom and Ireland, it's a cup of tea. It's always offered. And when you say no, they'll remember you said no.
Melanie
Do you know the other thing I noticed over here, because in case you can't tell, I'm English, but I live in the Republic of Ireland. Nobody has sugar over here. I am weird having sugar with my drinks.
Esther
Yes, you are.
Melanie
Yeah.
Esther
You are.
Melanie
It's very strange.
Esther
Yeah. But makes you different, makes you stand out. Yeah, because you'll be the one at the event asking if anybody has sugar.
Melanie
Yeah. All of my friends and the work colleagues and that stuff, I'm responsible for them robbing sugar sachets from every restaurant and café they go to. So they've got sugar in the house.
Esther
It's not called robbing. Don't. No. No thievery, please. But you get the gist, okay? So be unique in a way that doesn't give you the ick and doesn't make you want to curl up in a ball.
Melanie
That's something you can replicate regularly.
Esther
Yeah. And don't make it be forced because then it's not you. Okay. So me starting up and going, Good morning and welcome to the Monday Morning Marketing podcast. That's come naturally to me now after five years. I even did it at an event last year.
Melanie
I remember.
Esther
Because it's just we were asked to talk about the podcast. I just stood up and welcomed Come on to the podcast. It was one of those things and made it memorable. I spoke at a recent event, too, and I sat down. I was the only speaker to sit down for the presentation. And I told a story. Again, memorable. Make it different. Don't just have the same death by PowerPoint in your slides. Find a way that works for you, that shows your personality, that shows who you are, what you do, why you do it, all in one simple thing. Like I said, color, a style, a physical handout, things like that. Somebody at social media marketing stood up and started singing from stage. Yeah, I remember that. Molly Mahoney. So that's memorable. Things like that. Just find your unique voice, your unique style, or your unique style or your unique color or slogan, whatever it is.
Melanie
Well, I hope you have come to understand what we mean by your USP now. I hope it's something you can spend some time working on and honing on. And maybe, just maybe, just like your Y from last week, your unique selling proposition, selling point, or whatever your P is has changed. And that's fine, too. You're allowed to do that. So if your audience changes, then your USP usually changes as well.
Esther
And even if it doesn't, we grow and mature and develop, that maybe dying our hair purple is no longer an option. You know? If you're a man and your hair all falls out, then it's not really an option.
Melanie
No. So consider what you need to do with your USP. Embrace it, use it as part of your marketing strategy, and don't be afraid to step out of the shadows and be seen for who you are.
Esther
Exactly.
Melanie
So that's all we have time for today. But thank you so much for listening, and we'll be back next week with another podcast. Bye for now.
Esther
Bye-bye.
You wave of every time.
