MHI GLOBAL SALES PERFORMANCE SPOTLIGHT
WHERE’S THE “VALUE” IN YOUR PROPOSITION?
KNOW THY CUSTOMER
A sales force able to articulate their company’s
value from the customer’s perspective enables
them to go into a complex sales situation with
extra tools. They not only understand what their
product/service does, they can align it with the
customer’s concept – providing added value to
customers. Through a formalized value proposition
that will resonate with clients, the organization
looks at its company’s product or service from the
customer’s point of view to identify the reason
why clients turn to them. By recognizing these
differentiators, the sales organization can craft a
concise, appealing message that targets customer
requirements and draws them in.
“We have a formalized value proposition
that is very compelling to our prospects.”
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FINDING YOUR DREAM PROSPECTS: THE “IDEAL CUSTOMER”
The “Ideal Customer” is not actually a real-life
customer. Rather, it’s a standard that organizations
can measure their prospects against to determine
whether they are a good fit for the organization’s
solution. Sales professionals can maximize their time
by focusing on the good ones, getting rid of the truly
bad ones, and anticipating problems with those who
fall in the middle. To come up with a definition of the
hypothetical perfect customer, start by looking at
your most profitable customer.
Make a list of the best and worst.
“Specific criteria have been established to define
a strategic account in our company.”
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List the characteristics of the best and worst.
Ideal clients may possess the following
characteristics:
Limit the list to those companies with whom
you’ve already done business. The best will
include those that have given you the most
number of wins and the least amount of trouble.
The worst are those accounts where, even if the
deal was closed, either you or the customer feel
as though you’d lost.
a Willing to pay for “value added”.
b Committed to high quality.
c Good proximity to sales professional’s or
Combine the two lists.
List the positive characteristics, then add
the opposite of your negative characteristics, e.g., “slow to make buying decisions”
becomes “has process for making buying
decisions quickly.”
organization’s support center.
d Size of end-user group.
Unfavorable clients may be:
a
b
c
d
Inflexible on price.
Slow to make buying decisions.
Secretive and unwilling to cooperate.
Outside organization’s or sales
professional’s industry expertise.
You now have a profile of your “Ideal Customer.”
CAVEAT!
It’s likely that the prospects you’ve identified as
worth pursuing don’t match every standard of
your Ideal Customer Profile. So what do you do
with prospects that aren’t entirely ideal but still
reflect some of the characteristics from your
Ideal Customer Profile? One of two things:
Stop pursuing specific
Carefully pursue those
sales opportunities within
that aren’t a great fit,
these accounts because
but anticipate what
they represent a low
problems will likely arise
probability of generating
and devise strategies for
a win-win outcome.
overcoming them.
A FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE?
We are highly confident in our sales force's
ability to communicate value messages
to customers and prospects.”
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Some companies may not have high-value
messaging due to lack of marketing alignment or
lack of clear and consistent messaging. Another
reason could be the failure, or nonexistence, of an
enablement function, leaving salespeople to create
messages on their own. Creating a value proposition
that resonates with customers isn’t always easy for
marketing—it needs input from the field. However,
taking time to provide this input isn’t always at the
top of sales’ to-do list. Marketing needs a way to
gather feedback without disrupting sales activity.
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FORMAL—NOT RIGID
Value propositions are short statements summarizing
your organization’s key message. The most effective
statements target the two issues customers care about
most: what’s in it for them and why you. Formalized
does not mean standardized and inflexible.
Key characteristics of your organization’s Ideal
Customer should be at the heart of every value
proposition. Clients have differing needs, so the
actual way salespeople deliver the statement will
vary, but the heart of the message should hold true.
VALUE, VALUE, VALUE
“Our salespeople have a solid understanding
of our customers’ business needs.”
A sales organization must prove its value during each and every
customer interaction. Customers are focused on one of three pain
points—what they’re trying to:
fix
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accomplish
avoid
Value propositions that focus on solutions to those points will
resonate with customers. There are three types of value that must be
addressed when selling:
ALL
financial value
business value
personal value
While a good value proposition addresses all three, the most important is the third and what will most attract an individual’s attention—personal value.
SOURCES:
2014 MHI Global Sales Best Practices Study
The Miller Heiman Prospecting Guide: Best Practices for Maximizing New Business Development,
https://www.millerheiman.com/getattachment/Knowledge_Center/Knowledge_Center_Articles/Article/The_Miller_Heiman_Prospecting_Guide_Best_Practice/P
rospectingGuide_0109.pdf.aspx/
Miller Heiman Research Institute, Sales Performance Spotlight, “Drive Opportunities with a Compelling Value Proposition,”
https://www.millerheiman.com/getattachment/Knowledge_Center/Knowledge_Center_Articles/Newsletter/Spotlight_Drive-Opportunity/SpotlightSheet-0213.p
df.aspx/