If I Were Buying What You Are Selling, Would I Buy It From You?

         Rosser Reeves coined the phrase "unique selling point" back in the 1940s when researching why some advertising campaigns worked better than others. Since then, it has been used by various marketers and has morphed into "unique selling proposition," which is the term more commonly used. Ogilvy said you need a "big idea." Trout says you need to "differentiate or die." Others talk about your value proposition or competitive advantage.

     Regardless of how you phrase it, the meaning is the same: What's the single most compelling reason why a prospect should buy from YOU over all the other options, vendors and choices they have? The key word in unique selling proposition is, of course, unique. The answer should be unique to you and dependent on your company's abilities, systems, niche and offering. Here are some guidelines that we have used:

     First, your services have to be FOR somebody specifically, not the masses. When I ask many local companies "What's your target audience," I'll often hear, "Anyone in the such-and-such area." Consider this, however: a family of four is different than a five-person company and is an entirely different animal than a 100-person company. Totally different situations, needs, budgets, etc. You can't niche the phone book. That doesn't mean you must have a particular vertical to be successful. You can certainly have a variety of people as clients; but I would urge you to find the commonality of those clients, be it size, income, pace of growth, or consumer versus business.

     Second,

If you're struggling to figure out what your USP is or what it SHOULD BE, find out what the top pet peeves are for prospects in your niche. What, on an everyday basis, are they trying to get rid of? Once you know that, make it your personal mission to eliminate those irritants or solve those problems better than anyone else. Then you can back your claims up with facts and statistics, client case studies and guarantees. That's how we started out, and it's working pretty well for us so far. This process is really never done, but we're confident that for now we know who we serve and what we do best to serve them.

Are You Getting "Scroogled" By Google?

   If you use Google for search, Gmail for e-mail, or an Android phone as your smart phone, then, according to Microsoft, you're getting "scroogled" daily! What exactly does that mean? Well, according to www.scroogled.com, it means that Google systematically uses your private information that it collects online through your search, emails, and Android app store purchases to sell more ads. And, there's no way to opt out.

   Let me explain further how they do it with a few examples:

•  Gmail: Google's systems go through all of your personal Gmail emails ever sent and received looking for keywords they can use to target you with paid ads. So that email you just sent to your spouse, your child or whomever you just sent it to... Google is looking to see how they can use that to target you with advertisements. And 46% of users of the e-mail service don't even know it. Great for advertisers. Not so great for your privacy.
•  Google Android App Store: When you buy an Android app from the Google App Store, they give your full name, e-mail address and the neighborhood where you live to the app maker. This occurs without clear warning to you every time that you buy an app. That might be OK in a handful of instances, but it's impossible to tell what the app maker might do with that information. App makers are spread all around the world and not all app makers are trustworthy.

   Consumer Privacy Groups are up in arms about this blatant sharing of your personal information. A Consumer Watchdog Complaint to the Federal Trade Commission on Feb 25, 2013 said "The various applicable Google privacy policies promise not to share user information collected by Google outside of the company. The policies contain no exceptions that would justify Google's disclosure to app developers of confidential user information."

   In full disclosure, the term "Scroogled" has recently been hyped up in a series of big marketing campaigns bashing Google's services. So are these privacy concerns a bunch of marketing hype or real concerns to act on? That answer is really up to you.

   So, what to do now? Only you can determine how much you want to risk your own personal information in the hands of Google. The online world has an increasing number of security risks to consider these days and most of them don't have anything to do with Google. How do you respond? Hopefully, by being informed and making decisions based on real information and not because you didn't know any better.

I'm Just A [Insert Your Title Here] Who Can't Say No

By Dave Crenshaw

Whether or not you're familiar with the song from the classic musical Oklahoma, I find that this is an applicable title in the world of today's entrepreneur and busy executive. Macro-multitasking is just as significant a problem as the garden-variety, moment-by-moment multitasking. Macro-multitasking is the splitting of one's attention across many different projects, businesses, ventures, causes, and even careers.

No matter how talented a person is, he or she will always be constrained by the truth of time. The truth of time is that there are only 24 hours in a day. When those 24 hours are filled up with too many different activities, these activities always end up competing against each other, no matter how worthy they may be. People fail to understand that by saying "yes" to one thing, they are by default saying "no" in a small degree to every other activity in their life.

Let me offer two main categories of people who can't say no and one suggestion to help those in each of those categories:

1. Can't say no to others - Some of the nicest and most selfless people that I've met are successful business owners and executives. People often approach these business leaders and ask for help. And, more often than not, they selflessly donate their time. However, when business leaders spread themselves across too many causes, they fragment their attention in every other area of their life. Instead of being of service, they end up shortchanging themselves and others. Maintaining focus often requires the skill of saying "no" in a polite and diplomatic manner.

Option: Ask for requests via e-mail. There are two main reasons why e-mail is such an effective tool to protect the person who can't say no to others. It is too easy for someone to make a verbal request of the business leader in the spur of the moment. The leader who wants to be everyone's friend has difficulty saying no, face to face, even when they know that they probably shouldn't get involved. Asking for an e-mail puts responsibility on the person asking for help. When someone sends you an e-mail, it allows you to consider the request in a calm environment away from the individual.

2. Can't say no to yourself - The classic serial entrepreneur has great difficulty limiting himself or herself to the project at hand. These business leaders are constantly spinning new ideas and new ventures and seeing opportunities around every corner. While these opportunities may be valid, they are not valid all at the same time. The truth of time limits their ability to act on all of their desires. The entrepreneurial type has to recognize that they are causing these problems for themselves when they undertake too many projects simultaneously.

Option: Store ideas away for review. When new ideas come to mind, ignoring them is neither practical nor profitable. However, neither is taking immediate action on every single "next big idea." Instead, store those ideas away in a specific location set aside for just those ideas. But storing them away isn't enough. By implementing a system of regular review, you allow yourself to put off but not forget great ideas. Set a recurring appointment with yourself to review the list and decide if now is the right time to embark on a new adventure.

---

Dave Crenshaw is an author, speaker and CEO coach. He has appeared in TIME magazine, Forbes, SIRIUS XM Radio, and the BBC News. His first book, The Myth of Multitasking: How 'Doing It All' Gets Nothing Done, has been published in six languages and is a time management best seller. His latest book, Invaluable: The Secret to Becoming Irreplaceable, is also an organizational behavior and motivational bestseller. For videos and articles from Dave, visit www.DaveCrenshaw.com

Shiny New Gadget of the Month

The Flip Pal  

Have you ever come across a picture that you wanted to scan but were afraid to take it out of the album because it was stuck? With the Flip Pal, you can leave it in the album and place the scanner right over the picture and get the scan without having to disturb anything.

The scanner has a built in screen so that you can see the scan before you are done.

The Flip Pal Mobile scanner has no wires and scans directly to a SD Card (just like a camera).

The Flip Pal is battery powered, compact and lightweight. It produces high quality digital scans in 300 or 600 dpi and can scan in color. The scanner only weighs 1.5 pounds, so it's easy to carry around.

The software that comes with the Flip Pal allows you to take a number of scans and digitally stitch them together into one large picture.

The Flip-Pal retails for $149.99.

For more information, go to: www.flip-pal.com

Office Notes

Dylan's home!

Our own Lori Hardy's son, Dylan Robert Lewis, finally came home from the hospital... and paid a visit to Groff NetWorks! For pictures and updates, go to facebook.com/groffnetworks

Welcome to our newest client...!

Refer your friends and business associates to us for their IT needs. If we get an appointment with them, we will give you $25. If they become a client, we will give you an additional $50 and we will give them $100 off their first month's service!

For more information, call Chad at: 518-320-8906 x100 or email: clinen@groffnetworks.com

The Lighter Side:

How's Your Job?

 Q. How's your job at the banana company?
A. I keep slipping up.

Q. How's your job on the new highway?
A. I'm so busy I don't know which way to turn.

Q. How's your job at the travel agency?
A. I'm going nowhere.

Q. How's your job at the swivel chair company?
A. It makes my head spin!

Q. How's your job at the lemon juice company?
A. I've had bitter jobs.

Q. How's your job at the pie company?
A. It didn't pan out.

Q. How's your job at the balloon factory?
A. We can't keep up with inflation.

Q. How's your job at the crystal ball company?
A. I'm making a fortune.

Q. How's your job at the history book company?
A. There's no future in it.

Q. How's your job on the farm?
A. Problems keep cropping up.