Your customers buy value. Why are you selling features?

Your company is great at developing new products and services, but is it equally adept at positioning value? Are sales and marketing in synch on articulating that value? Quite often the answer to these questions is no. The simple exercise of creating value propositions many times is ignored. The result is a fragmented approach to selling, one that removes value from the discussion.

Without value, companies are reduced to selling features, which doesn’t differentiate the company or its products and services from all others in the space.

Selling your value is a four-step process that begins with understanding your customers’ needs and problems. The first question to ask is: what is the need my customers have for the product or service my company markets? This answer is likely a simple sentence or two.

Next, ask what are the problems clients face in meeting this need. This will be a bit longer list. Answers may include a lack of: expertise, time, costs, systems, tools, space, etc.

The third step is detailing your company’s solution that helps customers overcome these problems to meet the need. Here’s where you list those features and benefits to begin building your case.

Finally, and most important, list your company’s differentiation points. How does your company, product/service differ from all others in the marketplace? Points may include expert staff, warranty, quality, advanced systems, better ingredients, production process, facilities, longevity, and certifications, anything that enables you to carve out a unique space in the industry. This is the section that helps companies elevate beyond just selling their features.

Work, however, is not done once the value proposition document is completed and vetted past subject matter experts. It must become a cornerstone piece, meaning sales and all customer-facing departments should be trained on it. Marketing must use it as a guide for all advertising, campaigns, collateral, sales tools, website messaging, and content marketing initiatives.

Designing a strategy around value propositions unites all players in the business and ensures everyone is speaking from the same script. While tactics may vary, the messaging remains consistent. Companies that solve customers’ problems and sell their value are far better positioned than those simply pushing a product or service.