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Quality Is Not Your USP
Market is like a jungle of products with a minimum of 3 to 4 options in every category. Even a commodity like dairy milk has a host of brand choices available to consumers these days. Monopoly has become a subject of history. Fierce competition is the in-thing where the only rule that makes any sense is the “The Jungle Rule”. Only the strongest survives. But what is the strength of the strongest? Is it only Quality? If it is the strength of your competitor, it certainly can’t be yours. And why is it so tough to sell even if your product is better than your competitor’s?
Every product claims to be of superior “Quality”. Every marketer wants to associate this magical word with his product in the bid to sell more. “Quality of Product” seems to be the Unique Selling Proposition (USP) for every brand in every product category. But would it be fair to identify “Quality” as a USP when it is not unique at all? How can “Quality” be unique for one brand when it is claimed by every single brand in every single product category in the market?
If still you have the desire to own the word “Quality”, here are few more questions for you to analyze. Well, they will at least confuse you if they fail to convince you.
1. What’s the USP of Wai Wai on which it still outsells Mayos despite the latter’s huge media spending? Certainly not only Quality.
2. Why is the case similar if we compare Himal Steel and Jagdamba Steel? Needless to say Himal Steel outsells Jagdamba Steels. I am dead sure it’s certainly not because of “Quality” only.
3. And are we sure Colgate makes better quality toothpaste than Pepsodent? I doubt it.
In every brand meeting that I attend, my client gives the following logic to me: “My product is at par to my competitors. I will give ‘Quality’ product to my consumer, so there would be no reason for my prospective consumer to reject it.” Especially when a New Product is briefed to us, I always end up asking the same question over and over again to my clients, though I know the answer. My question is: “What is in your product that you offer to the consumer?” Guess the answer. You are right. “Quality”, “Quality” and “Quality”. Have I bored you with this word by now? If yes, think about the consumer who has to see, read and listen this word in every advertisement, directly or indirectly.
Sometimes I think about what will happen if we remove this word from advertising dictionary. What happens if we stop rocking on this USP and find some other USP to ride our product, which would be the USP in true sense? What happens if we stop concentrating on quality while developing the creative? Will consumer stop buying the product if we don’t harp on “Quality”? Or can they differentiate the quality between Wai Wai & Mayos, Himal Steel & Jagdamba Steel or between Colgate & Pepsodent. Like rice is commodity for lunch and dinner, Quality is commodity for every brand. You are providing nothing new to the consumer if you are providing only Quality. Consumers are already surrounded by an array of Good Quality Brands.
It is a good strategy to design the communication based upon the USP. But a serious study is required before determining an indeed unique USP for your product while ensuring that consumers are not being lured with a similar USP by your competitors. Things get worse when you are launching a new brand with the same offering as your competitor. After all, every other competitor brand has to satisfy the same consumer with the same quality product. These days, even consumers know this. Quality is no more a USP for your consumer; it has become a mandatory for every brand.
Having said that, I don’t mean to say that inferior quality product can be sold to those smart consumers who think twice before spending. All I mean to say is that Quality is taken for granted by consumers these days. They think quality is a commodity for a brand and every brand has it. The silent question consumers ask when you offer quality products to them is, “So you too have a quality product to offer, and what else can you offer?” At that time make sure you have a Unique Answer to that question. That Unique Answer can be your USP.
(Ojha is an advertisement professional)
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