Where's The Value?
Value is in the eye of the beholder...
Value-based selling is a common term used to describe a consultative sales approach, rather than a product, service or solution-centred approach. But what is value, and how do we identify it? It can be a challenge on complex, high-value opportunities with multiple stakeholders, each with different perspectives on what they value as individuals.
If it's hard for sales professionals, it's equally difficult for buyers who might not be challenged to consider and articulate what value means to them.
At The Sales Coach Network, we have developed a proprietary Value Framework which complements our Sales Accelerator Methodology to help sales professionals think and act differently, as they navigate the various client conversations during a sales pursuit.
Value-Based Selling
Value-based selling means putting the salesperson's needs on the back burner and fully understanding (and then prioritising) the needs of the client or prospect. It is not about reaching a solution as quickly as possible, but instead how to bring meaningful value to clients. It does not push a solution at every stage of the process, but instead takes an approach that results in selling based on a client's perceived notion of the product or service.
As a salesperson, you have a quota to fulfil. It can seem counterintuitive to put your client's needs first when you feel you ought to be concentrating on pushing for a solution and advocating for your service. By putting the client first, you can build trust, which can in turn lead to the outcome you are seeking.
It might mean taking a slower and more considered approach to needs analysis or 'diagnostic' conversations. However, the gains in the medium to long termare well worth it. Trust comes first, then the sale.
Here's the challenging question... What is value?
• Ask a dozen people and you'll get a dozen different answers.
• Start with your 'value proposition' and there's an overwhelming chance it won't resonate with the majority of stakeholders.
Instead, challenge yourself to find out what each stakeholder values most. Think broadly, think differently, and go deeper in your diagnostic conversations.
The Value Framework
Our framework describes the four pillars of value that can be identified during discovery conversations with multiple clients on any given opportunity. Identifying what clients truly value at a level of detail superior to the competition will allow us to better qualify an opportunity and present a solution that closely meets their needs, all while delivering the outcome they seek and differentiating our offer in a way that they appreciate.
The four pillars represented in the framework are:
Business ValueFactors that the organisation values when seeking to solve current challenges or create different and better outcomes in the future.
Individual ValueFactors that an individual might value from a personal perspective when sponsoring or facilitating a change programme.
Solution ValueSpecific elements of value that our solution might provide. This could be a significant factor in differentiation.
Provider ValueFactors that might be of value if they choose us, opportunities to differentiate us, and significant factors in the final decision.
The model has been organised into four categories of value and more than 50 distinct descriptors of value that B2B solutions provide clients or prospects. They have not been categorised in order of importance, but instead grouped to help sales professionals navigate conversations in more detail when undertaking diagnostic or needs analysis conversations.
Many clients will not have exhaustively considered the potential value we can help identify and realise. Our job as sales professionals is to have conversations that mine for value and identify what truly motivates the client to act. Our intent (to identify value rather than sell) in these conversations will unlock a free flow of information and enable us to develop a hierarchy of value for each stakeholder.
In most cases, this involves a number of diagnostic conversations with stakeholders, exploring each of the four pillars in turn.
When advancing and qualifying large, complex opportunities with multiple stakeholders, it is critical to help them determine whether the value is measurable and quantifiable(in monetary terms) when building a business case, while exploring the full extent of value that we can deliver to differentiate us and ultimately reach a final decision.
Hierarchy Of Client Value
Much like the hierarchy of human needs that psychologist Abraham Maslow first described in 1943, the hierarchy of client value recognises that buyer actions and behaviours are motivated to fulfil needs ranging from the very basic – in this case what we might consider 'table stakes' – progressing in importance to where we add value, forging a path to where we win.
Typically, the table stakes are easy to identify, and the measurable elements might be found here in terms of our capability, credibility and solution components. When all competing vendors look and feel the same, added value and differentiation sway buyers to choose us.
As we progress from table stakes to added value, buyer emotions play a stronger part in the decision process. This means that any superficial discussions around value will make us vulnerable, as will our inability to identify and engage with all stakeholders involved in the decision process.
Our Challenge
Our challenge in complex opportunities with multiple stakeholders is to understand everything that they value and what they value most. Our job is to map the elements of value for each stakeholder in a way that recognises what we learned and enables us to propose a solution that meets their needs and delivers the value they seek. Finally, we need to differentiate our organisation in a way that the buyers value in order to be selected.
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