Sales Value Proposition: How to Build and Deliver a Powerful SVP

The post Sales Value Proposition: How to Build and Deliver a Powerful SVP by Tim Riesterer appeared first on Corporate Visions.

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Your sales value proposition, or SVP, is a powerful messaging tool for communicating the unique value of the solution you’re selling. Unfortunately, most value propositions in sales fall short of delivering on that promise.

According to research by SiriusDecisions, only 10 percent of executives think sales calls provide enough value to warrant the time they spent on them.

A similar study by Forrester Research determined that only 15 percent of sales calls add enough value. That means 85-90 percent of sales calls are perceived as communicating no value—a staggering failure rate by any measure.

In short, most SVPs are poorly conceived and ineffectively delivered. So, what are some common mistakes to avoid? And how can you build a truly unique and highly effective value proposition of your own?

Common Value Proposition Mistakes

If your company is like most, you’ve carefully crafted your
value proposition and you’ve trained your salespeople on how to use it.  But considering the earlier statistics, the
majority of SVPs fail to actually deliver any value to the customer.

Salespeople fail to articulate value when they commit the
three deadly sins of sales messaging:

Providing too much informationNot describing value from the buyer’s
perspectiveFailing to identify what’s different about them

A lot of SVP development advice reads like Mad Libs for business—a fill-in-the-blank formula or template that looks something like this: 

[Product] is a [description] that [what it does] for [target audience] who need to [do something/solve a problem]. Unlike [alternative], it [differentiator].

But a formulaic approach creates a formulaic result.

Alternatively, some companies take a persona-based approach,
where they define characters (personas) with names, demographic attributes,
attitudes, and behaviors to help frame and target messages, including their value
proposition for sales. But when used as a superficial profiling approach,
personas can lead your messaging astray.

The result? Everyone follows the same approach, so
everyone’s SVP sounds the same.

To stand out, you need to understand why your value proposition is coming up short. And that means changing the way you build and deliver it.

How to Build a Powerful Sales Value Proposition

There’s a better way to create a value proposition that actually communicates value and sets you apart from your competition. And it starts by finding your Value Wedge.

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Most people build messages that unwittingly put them in the center of this Venn diagram. This area of Value Parity is the overlap between you and your competitors. Focusing here won’t communicate any real value for the customer—you just end up saying a lot of “me too” statements about your offerings that sound like everyone else.

Your best opportunity for differentiation is to focus on
what you can do for the prospect that’s different from what
the competition can do. This is your Value Wedge—this is where you find your
distinct point of view.

To create a sales value proposition that sits in your
Value Wedge, you need to:

1. Identify Previously Unconsidered Needs

Show your prospects a previously unconsidered, undervalued,
or unmet need that’s relevant to them and puts their status quo in jeopardy.
Revealing this inconsistency in their current model, in a way that’s different
than what they’ve heard before, can motivate them to care about doing something
different from what they’re doing today.

2. Attach the New Needs to Your Unique Strengths

Tell a compelling story that clearly shows the contrast
between the gaps and deficiencies in the way your prospect is doing things
today, and how those issues will be resolved with your new approach and unique
strengths.

3. Defend Your Story

Arm yourself with proof points of times when comparable
companies have identified the stated challenges, agreed to make the changes you
recommend, and come out the other side with documented success. These proof
points help defend your story as being different from your competitors and
underscores the positive business impact you’re claiming.

When you create a value proposition that’s unique to you, important
and relevant to the customer, and defensible, you have a powerful value
proposition that actually communicates real value to the
prospect.

In fact, the Value Wedge is designed to overcome all three
of the deadly sales messaging sins mentioned earlier in this article. It helps
you identify and focus on the unique strengths that only you can offer your
buyer.

How to Deliver Your Value Proposition More Effectively

Once you have a well-crafted value proposition for your
sales conversations, you’re still only halfway done. You need to
understand how and—more importantly—when to deliver it.

Most salespeople lead with a sales pitch value proposition
right away. But most prospects aren’t ready to hear it yet. Before you start
talking about why they should choose you—your value proposition—you need to
establish a Buying Vision which makes the case for why they need to change.

Why? Because your competitors aren’t the only thing standing
in the way of your sale. Studies show that at least 60 percent of deals
in the pipeline are lost to “no decision” rather than to competitors.
Most customers you engage with are still trying to determine whether they
really need to do anything different.

This means that despite what your buyers are telling you
they want, you need to take a step back and make sure your prospect:

Is convinced that they can no longer stick with
their status quo Understands the needs and requirements they
should be considering Appreciates the urgency of the situation, and Knows what capabilities and strengths they
should be looking for

To make it happen, you need to grab the prospect’s attention, challenge their current assumptions, and persuade them to consider making a change. Only then—when your prospect cares enough to do something different—can you effectively introduce your value proposition and start leading them on a path to choosing you.

Want to improve how you develop and deliver your sales messages? With Corporate Visions sales training and messaging solutions, you can arm your sales reps with the research-backed selling techniques they need to effectively create value and close more deals across the entire customer lifecycle.

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