Value-based selling is an approach that has found widespread attention in the B2B community over the years.
Nevertheless, the basic problem that lies with value-based selling for business growth is that a very large number of webinars, articles and conference sessions that have been dedicated to this subject treats value-based selling just as a mere ideology, without illustrating how businesses can actually apply this approach in sales within their organization on a day-to-day basis.
Therefore as one of the most popular vendors of Salesforce Alternative CRM platforms, here in this article let us aim to provide tactical advice to help businesses get started.
What Is Value-Based Selling?
Now, before we take a deep dive into the practical applications of using a value-based selling strategy for business growth, let us define it:
In the most basic way, value-based selling is an approach in sales that focuses on understanding the prospects and thereafter reinforce to them why your brand’s offerings are valuable to the buyers of your products and services, which is in contrast to the common techniques used in sales that focuses only on the objectives and goals of the buyers.
Hence value-based selling connects the dots between your brand’s offerings and the desired outcome of the buyers.
Nevertheless, as we have observed in several cases even if sales reps are instructed to do otherwise, professionals in sales tend to land up with the habit of investing their vigor on prospecting rather than concentrating and focusing on the requirements of the potential buyers.
However in the recent times, as we are living in a market where buyers have more options than ever before, therefore today one of the best ways to set your business apart in front of your prospective customers is value-based selling, by which you can show them that your products and services can provide value in a way that is specific to your prospect’s business goal, which can easily make your brand stand out from the competitors and set your business for success down the road.
Applying Value-Based Selling
In reality, being successful in value-based selling all boils down to performing your research and putting the requirements of the potential buyers before your own.
Therefore, keeping these six lessons in mind can help you when implanting this approach for business growth.
Lesson #1
Do your due diligence
To create trust in the mind of your potential buyers, and for starting to substantiate your value, you primarily have to perceive the buyer’s problems, pain points as well as their objectives and goals.
Hence even before you first meet with a prospect, use all the resources available to you to find a better understanding of the prospect’s company, its competitions, its products and services, and the industry it is in.
For this to begin with you can start with the company’s website and then look into review sites, analysis reports, its quarterly earnings, its partner content, and whatever else that you can find.
This is because it is only by gaining a full understanding of your prospect’s company, you can start to map out the specific ways your offerings can provide value to your prospective customers.
Now your discovery should not stop there.
Hence in your first call with any prospect, ensure to ask hard-hitting questions about their company to help you further understand what the buyer is looking to achieve, since the more precise you can be when you are first positioning your value, the easier and better will be your chances of closing the deal down the road.
Lesson #2
Keep an open dialogue
We have often observed that sales reps mostly fall into the habit of using the same sales pitch no matter who the buyer is in the marketplace.
However, to adopt a value-based selling approach, there must be a dynamic communication with a lot of give-and-take between the supplier and the buyer of the offering, since communication is the key to success in sales for all businesses.
Hence when you primarily meet a prospect, go into the meeting with a plan (which can be based on the afore-stated research), but ask frequent questions to your prospect and do not be afraid to pivot when it is necessary.
Additionally, during every interaction with the prospect, continuously measure the requirement of their business and thereafter fine-tune your understanding of their desired business outcomes.
Lesson #3
Prove your impact
In this fast world of constant promotions, nowadays B2B purchasers are more skeptical than they had been ever before. Hence your selling strategy in the present times just cannot remain confined in saying about your products and services. Rather, if you are willing to truly break through your prospects, you have to learn the ability to prove how your offerings directly relate to the achievements of their objectives and goals.
Therefore when you are showing or demonstrating your offerings, you can apply them to particular use cases, which can aid in building a solid reputation and thereby move the deals forwards inside the sales pipeline in your easy to use CRM tools.
Lesson #4
Educate instead of sell
Your goal during every interaction with a prospect should be to offer guidance, educate, and lend your expertise to your existing prospective customers.
This is because, if a buyer views you as a valuable and important resource and confidant, it is more likely that it will help to build a solid foundation for an ongoing and steady relationship.
Remember, as in life, even in business the relationship between a supplier and its buyers has to be mutually beneficial to create longevity.
Therefore, once you have proved your enthusiasm and commitment to helping the buyers succeed, the sales process gets a lot more easier under such circumstances.
Lesson #5
Add value in every interaction
Whenever a deal gets interrupted and stalled, it can be really tempting to reach out to the buyers and enquire for an update.
Now, in reality, these actions do nothing to move the deal forward or more to say, create a positive relationship.
Rather, trying to offer value by sharing important informative content and opportunities, pertaining to the prospect’s industry can make the prospect feel heard and supported which can aid in building trust and create a positive long-term customer experience once they ultimately buy your offerings.
Lesson #6
Coordinate handoffs post-sale
Finally, once you have been successful in positioning your brand’s value in a way that a prospect understands and is capable of moving the deal beyond the finishing line, remember not to get disconnected.
This is because post-sales handoff often starts the unraveling of a previously successful partnership with the customers and your brand.
We say this since we have often seen many B2B suppliers experience a collective memory loss as the closing of many deals does not translate into a lasting success plan, whereby the customers are left behind awaiting their promised value to arrive, (while everyone else has moved on).
Therefore, it is necessary that in your best interest make sure that your implementation and success teams understand a new customer’s need-based desired outcomes.
Hence make sure to document your new customer’s goals and objectives and store them in your easy to use CRM solution’s database during the sales cycle and thereafter create a tight process around the internal handoff.
Doing this can not only help you to accelerate your offering’s post-sales value realization plans but also make way for future growth.
So as you gear up to approach new B2B leads, in value-based selling instead of going in with your typical sales pitch, ask your sales reps as to how they can provide value and help to your prospects succeed.
We are hopeful following these six tips may surprise you by making you start experiencing greater win rates and long-term, happier customer relationships.
