Like rabbits reproducing, the marketing arena can be viewed as an ever-increasing choice of categories. The computer started as a single category but over time, has split into mainframes, minicomputers, workstations, personal computers, laptops, notebooks and handheld.

One of the biggest changes in Hudson Valley businesses is the amazing proliferation of product choices in every category. There are one million SKU’s, or “stock keeping units,” in America. An average supermarket displays 40,000 with an average family filling 80 percent to 85 percent of its needs from 150.

All of this has led to an entire industry dedicated to helping people with their choices. Someone is always offering advice on which of the 11,000 mutual Funds to buy or how to select the right MBA program from among hundreds of business schools.

Hudson Valley business markets are driven by choice. The consumer has so many good alternatives that the only way to win their business is to present your uniqueness. Trying to be everything for everybody, quickly undermines what makes you different.

How can Hudson Valley businesses establish a USP? Ordinary bananas became “better bananas” by sticking on a small “Chiquita” label. Sometimes a little personality is all it takes to set an otherwise anonymous product apart. Frank Perdue became the “tough man behind tender chicken.”

The cantaloupe people wanted to differentiate a special big cantaloupe. Rather than just calling them big, they introduced a new category called “Crenshaw Melons.” The Chinese gooseberry didn’t sound appetizing. By changing its’ name to “Kiwi” fruit, consumers were willing to give it a try.

Hudson Valley companies must USP their products and services. For many years pork meant pig’s meat. Pork producers jumped on the chicken bandwagon and became the “other white meat.”

If people can come up with ways to differentiate between pork and bananas, differentiating your company’s products should be easy by comparison.

Quality matters and it matters so much that it is a given these days, not a difference. During the 1990’s, companies raised their level of customer service to such a high degree that nowadays knock-your-socks-off doesn’t get you the business; it just keeps you in business.

Cutting prices is usually insanity if the competition can go as low as you can. Charles Schwab was the nations first major discount broker. His price approach broke the grip that big full service brokerage firms had on the market.

An army of other discount brokers followed Schwab and were more recently followed by another army of even cheaper brokers …on the Internet. In the last several years, Schwab has moved to the higher ground offering more consulting and service. At some point, almost every company that starts out differentiating itself on price finds that it has to compete differently.

Remember what advertising guru David Ogilvy had to say about pricing: “Any damn fool can put on a deal, but it takes genius, faith and perseverance to create a brand.” What’s your brand…your USP?

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