I am a big believer that value selling is a key element of successful B2B sales. It is based on the belief that customers are more interested in the business value of your offering than its features or attributes. And it requires a persuasive economic argument for the value of your product or service.
Business-to-business (B2B) selling is complex, especially when justifying the price of a solution. Today’s buyers are increasingly discerning and value-driven, so B2B sellers must thoroughly understand their buyers' needs and their solution’s value. A value selling methodology and ROI tools can help.
Developing a solid business case is a critical step in the B2B sales process. It involves creating a clear and comprehensive argument that presents the financial benefits of a solution so that a customer can make an informed purchasing decision.
I recently reflected on what might cause sellers to reassess their value pricing and value selling strategies in a changing economy. While both are rooted in value, value pricing and value selling use different tools with different purposes and reference sets. Let’s take a moment to review the basics.
Sales adoption is a crucial challenge to rolling out a successful value-based selling program. Beyond providing ROI tools, companies must also help the sales team embrace a new way of selling. You can understand and overcome these challenges using best practices gleaned from our 20 years of experience.
Building value selling content into your solution messaging and sales process requires a deep understanding of the difference between ROI and TCO analyses and the right use case for each. If used inappropriately, or not at all, you can lose credibility with customers and hurt your chances of closing deals.
Encouraging prospects to change their behavior is one of the greatest challenges facing marketers and sellers. Behavioral economists call this phenomenon “status quo bias.” How can sellers overcome this inherent yet irrational desire to keep something the same, even if it’s less than optimal?
Economic indicators are sending mixed signals about the health of today’s economy. Inflation is on the rise and whether we’re in (or will be in) a recession is up for debate. Through it all, B2B sales don’t have to slow down if you understand how an uncertain economy influences buyer behavior.
I recently met with the marketing manager at a new ROI Selling client. While reviewing a draft of their new value selling tool, the manager commented, “Customers don’t think about it that way and they would never say that. That’s our internal language about our product.” Oops. How did that happen?
In B2B buying decisions and consumer purchases, humans do not always make optimal or even rational economic decisions, as predicted by Rational Choice Theory. If this is true, why do we continue to preach value-based selling? The fascinating and evolving study of Behavioral Economics may hold the answers.
