Do all companies need a USP?

One of our active members here at The Business Club, David Berkoff asks this very question on his own unique blogging site:

Berkoff Design may not have a USP, but maybe having one is a bit of an assumption that you are "unique" or "the best" in your field. I am quite happy in my ability to produce excellence, but I also aspire to and acknowledge great designers and marketers of our time like Saatchi and Saatchi and Sir Terence Conran. Do you agree?

This was the question I posted on Linkedin Q&A section.

Firstly, thank you, to all who so eloquently replied to the above on Linkedin - your comments certainly got me thinking further into the subject of USPs.

Ok, so it appears that the marketing world consensus is a definite “yes” and in favour of companies to having a USP. And who am I to disagree?

So what is Berkoff Designs USP?

With literally thousands of Design and Advertising Agencies in London what makes each of them different? And what do they claim to be their USP?

Being in a creative industry surely they can't be contrite or bland. Surely they wouldn't make a claim they can't substantiate such as Avis the Car rental company who try harder?

Let us take a look at that claim “We may not be number one but we try harder”. At first reading this seems a very clever copy slogan but I would ask the following questions about this claim?

Who are they working harder than? Can they prove that they work harder? And If they work harder now, weren't they working hard before?

And hey, they can't be trying very hard because they still aren't number 1 (the best) are they? So Avis, what are you saying?

This illustrates the dangers of contrite advertising propositions that are impossible to prove and there are many other examples of this type of statement in advertising to be sure.

Back to Berkoff Design. We help SMEs to look strategically at there marketing and communications. We can produce a one or two year marketing plan on how best to spend a marketing budget and avoid what I call “Ad hoc Advertising”. (see my blog on Ad hoc Advertising)

As you will see from my web site propositions I encourage companies to
B proud, of their product or services. B different, from their competitors and through this they will B noticed and with Berkoff Design they can B assured of the highest quality of work and service.

These are my values in creating excellence. I'm not using advertising talk like “Brand personality” or creating a "Mission Statement" or USP because isn't that what all marketing agencies do?

Thinking this through it then dawned on me. Berkoff Design does have a USP and it’s me!

No one thinks the same as me, no one has the same creative style as me, or had the same experiences in their career as me, in fact no one else in my profession is called David Berkoff.

I am totally unique - a one off. Does this count?