All small and medium size business owners, at some point in time, are faced with the pressure to offer lower prices or greater discounts. This is especially true for those of you who sell, or want to sell at the higher end of your market. There are many schools of thought about dealing with this common sales objection, but the general consensus is to steer the prospect away from the conversation of price and toward a discussion of VALUE.
But what is value?
“Value” is defined as, “the amount of money or relative worth that is considered to be the fair equivalent for what’s to be received in return.” Should be easy to identify and communicate, right? The fact is selling (and consistently providing) value sounds much easier than it actually is to pull off. Why is that? The reason is two-fold:
Value is in the eye of the buyer, not the seller (what you think has value may not have relevant value to the buyer). A company may believe they have a value proposition that matters to the buyer, but in the end…it’s often not enough. What your customer values, and what they’ll pay for it, are often at odds. Don’t get caught in the fallacy that what you’re providing… and at the cost you’re providing it… will be considered “value” by your buyer. Survey your customers and define your value proposition based on what you find.
Buyers assume value is a given…what they really want is REAL VALUE-ADD. When you look at the definition of value again, you can see that this is true. Buyers come to the table assuming that what they’re going to pay for something will be a “fair equivalent” for what they’ll be receiving. What they’re really looking for is a good value. No matter the price point, buyers want to know that what they’re buying is worth more than what they’re paying. As you define your value proposition, look for things you offer that add exclusive yet relevant value, but are included in your price. Make those value-added offerings a tangible part of your messaging!
So, as you begin to develop your “value pitch,” remember these two very important things…your value must be RELEVANT to your buyer… and it must be an EXCLUSIVE (meaning only you offer it) value-ADD.
Innovation at its best…
Let me give you a quick example of this. There is an advertisement I see continuously on TV for LaQuinta Inns. I have stayed at LaQuinta several times in the past and have always found them clean and comfortable. I would rate them in the middle of the road for hotels.
So what are they highlighting in their advertisements? They focus on the fact that they have recently remodeled their sleeping rooms and their lobbies. And guess what? They have COMPLETELY missed the boat. Rooms and lobbies are NOT the hot button issues with travelers. First of all, I EXPECT a nice room when I go to a LaQuinta Inn. In fact, the rooms they show me in their ads actually look tackier than what I remember when I last stayed there. The rooms look exactly like a room in a Motel 6.
As for the lobby, how much time did you spend in the lobby at the last hotel you stayed at? Who cares anything at all about the rooms or the lobby? No one… because they expect both of those to be nice. The key to selling value is to give your prospects what they want and expect so you don’t disappoint… but then “innovate” your business so you blow them off the face of the earth by exceeding what they expect.
If I owned a LaQuinta Inn and my ideal client was a family of four enjoying vacation time, then I know they expect a nice room, clean sheets and towels, probably a swimming pool for the kids and a continental breakfast in the morning. But that’s what they EXPECT… so I better make sure I offer all of those.
But what if during check-in, I inform them that they will receive, as part of our service, a 5 minute vacation analysis with our concierge. During the meeting with the parents, the concierge discovers the family is on vacation… and they plan to take the kids to Sea World in San Diego, Disneyland in Anaheim and Universal Studios in Hollywood.
What if the concierge handed them discounted tickets to each of the parks, discounted meal coupons at restaurants close by all of those parks, provided them with free passes to a live filming of one of the kids favorite TV shows and then handed them a Garmin GPS locator to make sure they never get lost during their adventure?
And all of this is complimentary. Think they might “notice” this service? Think they might just mention this to friends, family, relatives, acquaintances and business associates when they return home? Think the local newspaper, radio and TV stations “might” be interested in doing a local news spot on this hotel offering this remarkable “standard” service?
Now, you might be asking what all of this would cost LaQuinta. All of the discount coupons are provided by the parks. Same thing for the meal discounts from the restaurants. The ONLY cost LaQuinta would incur would be to purchase the Garmin GPS locators for a hundred bucks… and they would last for years.
By the way, what if the hotel created a special “vacation package” that included all of these services and discounts? Think they could charge an additional 20% per day for the room rate… and get it all day long? You wouldn’t be able to book the demand for this hotel fast enough.
See what I mean by “value”?
It truly is in the eye of the beholder. That’s why we encourage you to focus on ways you can “innovate” your business. If you massively innovate your business, marketing becomes easy. The value becomes so apparent all you have to do is just mention it without worrying about fancy words or magic phrases. Try it and see if it works for your business. I guarantee you won’t be sorry.
