Sometimes I wonder if the tried and true foundations of effective marketing and selling are still valid in a business environment in a constant state of change. The advances in marketing technology, and the range of sales methodologies available now – does it render the concept of a value proposition kind of “old school”? After doing primary research on buyer decision-makers – I concluded that it’s actually more important – but it needs to evolve. The pithy one sentence value proposition that is only product- or service-focused just does not work as well in our current business environment. Or, should we be focusing instead on delivering “disruptors” or “insights” to a prospect, as some of the current sales methodologies advise?
Hold on a minute. Let’s not panic. In some ways, there is more value in a well-crafted, buyer-centric value proposition today than ever before. The reason? Buyers are much savvier these days, simply because we live in the Information Age, and they can find out the nuts and bolts about anything we want to sell them, before we even get a chance to speak with them.
This “hidden sales cycle” has been much talked about and is still something we have to deal with, as we know buyers can and do access a vast amount of easily-available information. The thing is, we honestly have no idea which bits of that information matter the most to them, and if they understand the full story. Yet oftentimes, the buyer has already made a short list of vendors before ever actually speaking to anyone. This is where that well-crafted, buyer-centric value prop comes in very handy.
If you are lucky enough to have made your prospect’s short list, consider a couple of things. First, you can’t afford to insult prospective buyers by assuming they have not done any research prior to your meeting, as you deliver that good ol’ fashioned elevator-pitchy cavalcade of features & benefits that passes for a value statement. They may already know this stuff, and you could be wasting their time. But secondly, and more importantly, you also can’t assume that this buyer has already gathered and digested all the correct information needed to inform the buying decision. And this is your opportunity.
Your mission is to create a better value proposition, one that views the buying decision through the eyes of the buyer. This will immediately allow you to distinguish yourself from the features & benefits brigade of competitors. The best way to do this is to demonstrate a clear understanding of the specific business pain your prospect is feeling – and include that in your value proposition statement. You’ve got to earn a prospective buyer’s trust, and this is the first step. The fact that you take the time to learn about their business, and their “language,” will earn you points in their favor. Those points are often redeemable for valuable prizes, like second meetings!
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. You’ve got work to do before you worry about second meetings. Let’s go back to that hidden sales cycle, where prospects are swimming around in a sea of information, looking at, considering, and digesting the various bits of data around them. If you want to be on that short list of vendors they are making, you need to pave your way there with compelling value-based content marketing.
Wouldn’t it be great if the core message that introduces your business and products was totally aligned with the content on your website, as well as with the words that your salespeople spoke? And all this content was clear, concise, and verifiable? Why yes, that would indeed be wonderful. Does that seem like chasing a unicorn?! Well, that is exactly the scenario you will have once you create that well-crafted, buyer-centric value prop, and then integrate it into all your content and conversational assets. It has to start with a value-based message in order to engage a buyer. I often tell people that a value prop is a mirror – and you need to check to be sure your buyer’s face is reflected back if you want them to take a step forward.
Regardless of how well your salespeople can think on their feet, there is no substitute for having a well thought out and clearly articulated value proposition, backed by examples of proof and validating content.
This is not your grandfather’s Mad Men elevator-pitch-type-value-proposition. This is a toolbox of thought, understanding, empathy, and strategy to provide your business with what is needed to close the right deals. This type of value proposition will forever hold its value.
Want to learn how to get there? Get a copy of my book, Value Propositions that Sell available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
