A compelling Value Proposition? Here we go!

A compelling Value Proposition? Here we go!

Think somebody opens a door and invites you in. An appearance, a smile and a way of speaking of the inviter makes you think: either to step in or just to turn back and fade away. It’s the same when you visit any website online. Say you enter website, see some words, pictures, promises etc. If you can grasp what is in it for you in 5 seconds you move forward, if not you jump to others. Long story short that stuff, which persuades you to continue is a good Value Proposition (VP).

What is Value Proposition exactly?

The Wikipedia says “a value proposition is a promise of value to be delivered, communicated, and acknowledged”. In a nutshell, a value proposition is a promise of value to be delivered. It’s the primary reason a prospect should buy from you. It’s neither a slogan nor a positioning statement.

Some people mix-up Value Proposition with the Unique Selling Proposition (USP). I believe the latter is a part of VP, which mostly highlights your differentiation points among other alternatives.

What makes it compelling?

A good Value Proposition has to be short, clear, specific, direct and straight to the point. It avoids buzzwords and it can be read & understood in 5 seconds. And the most importantly it has to speak in your customer’s language!

The way you speak about your services is often very different from how your customers describe it. Your industry-specific terminology is nothing but bullshit for them. The answers are outside of your office. Go out, talk to your customers, record them, listen them repeatedly and then tailor your VP according to their language. 

Being precise is very effective. “We guarantee 15% increase of qualified leads in 90 days” is 10x better than “We promise a growth”.

A compelling Value Proposition loves action verbs. Basically, VP either increases or decreases something. It can increase your sales, profit, number of users or it can decrease your costs, problems. In this context "increasing" is a synonym of improving, adding, seizing and capturing. And “decreasing” is equal to solving, saving, reducing etc. Eventually the final outcome has to imply something positive, something beneficial for the customers.

How should it look like?

No standards here. You can deliver your message however you want it. If you have no idea where to start just use the following formula:

  1. Headline – One short sentence about the final benefit. A goal is to grab a customer’s attention at once.
  2. Paragraph – A specific explanation of what you offer, for whom and why is it useful. 1 or 2 sentences must be your limit.
  3. Bullet points – List down 3 key benefits.
  4. Visual – It’s optional. However, images communicate much faster than words. Reinforce your main message with relevant and catchy image.

Read about The Reptilian Brain, and Customer Perception to have better understanding about how to capture customer’s attention instantly.

What's next?

If you’ve done your VP, test it. You’d better create at least 2 options and ask around a feedback. Another handy option might be posting 2 different sponsored ads on Facebook (the same audience, the same budget) then compare the results. The winner ad we’ll obviously bring more traffic to your website.

Here are 3 nice examples of a compelling Value Proposition:

OPERA

EVERNOTE

NETFLIX

Thanks for reading, liking and sharing!

Your article is spot on Vüqar Mehdiyev, MBA . :)

Chris Marrington

Co-Founder SME-SMARTMARKETING

6y

The VP concept has been around since David Ogilvy was a lad. Different clients and agencies used their own nomenclature in an attempt to gain exclusivity but 'brand proposition' was the widely accepted term. It's the brand's reason for being and should be core driver in all aspects of its marketing activity. Yes, it should hold my attention on a website, but that's just the beginning. Of course the VP can only capture a brand's essence and not its entire story but, ideally, it should be compelling.

Chris Marrington

Co-Founder SME-SMARTMARKETING

6y

All very sound thinking and pretty much in line with what should be the standard approach. I have one issue, though. You mentioned USPs, of which there are very few these days, and it strikes me that neither Opera nor Evernote offer a VP that gives me a compelling reason to switch. Is there nothing different that these brands offer? If not, especially in Opera's case, are they just an alternative to the market leaders? Evernote was in serious difficulty last year - perhaps a victim of their own success!

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Reply
Suunil M Kher

Proven catalyst and strategic futurist who makes “the impossible possible” for world class companies.

6y

Great Article

Jim Liptrot

B.Eng, C.Eng. MIET | MD at Howorth Air Technology - Changing Lives "The Howorth Way"

6y

Great article

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