Share this
Value Proposition: Your Number One Asset for Manufacturing Growth
by Chris Peer on Tue, Jul 28, 2015 @ 09:24
As an OEM or contract manufacturer, your buyers are demanding high quality, low price, as well as timely delivery. How many times have you garnered new business from a competitor because they couldn’t deliver on one or more of these important pillars? Worse yet, how many times have you lost business because you couldn’t deliver on one of these pillars?
It’s no wonder so many manufacturers choose to focus on these three vital elements in their value proposition. Yes, it’s true you can earn new business by offering a stronger value than another supplier in one or more of these areas, but what do you do after you win the business? How do you protect yourself from being the one on the chopping block the next time you miss a deadline, have a quality issue, or the cost of your goods increases?
Recently, I got to thinking about why companies don’t see the growth they were planning for. I thought about why their marketing and sales teams weren’t able to achieve success, especially when they were doing the right things, the right way.
Many business leaders and owners are used to fixing problems. So when their goal for growth isn’t achieved, the first thing they do is look to fix their sales or marketing teams—and sometimes both. What happens next? Salespeople are replaced, marketing agencies are “fired” and new processes and technologies are embraced. Sometimes this works, but often times the only thing that’s fixed is the symptom, not the problem. Fast forward nine to 18 months, and it’s common for the same problems to persist; corporate growth was never achieved and a lot of time and money were wasted.
So, what’s the root of the growth equation? It’s your company’s value proposition!
Today, buyers are more educated than ever before. Most buyers will have a multitude of choices when choosing a vendor, supplier, or OEM that all clearly meet the time, quality, and price expectation. It’s time to think about your value proposition and why a buyer should select your company from the pool of competitors knocking at their door.
“In almost every case where a company was struggling, we could find an issue with their value proposition at various points in the sales and marketing ecosystem.” - Chris Peer
Identifying your value throughout the buyer’s journey is critical. Buyers typically go through a six-step process when making a buying decision:
- Research
- Engagement
- Consideration
- Evaluation
- Confirmation
- Commitment
Determining how you provide value at each step in this journey is the path to marketing and sales success.
Research: How are you attracting buyers in the research step? Is your marketing bringing in leads? Is your value proposition attracting buyers?
Engagement: If the leads are coming in, are they qualified? Is your value proposition strong enough to convert a “researcher” and engage them in a conversation?
Consideration: At this step, it’s likely the buyer’s quality, time, and price needs are going to be met. What does your value proposition say to get you on the short list of companies they’re considering?
Evaluation: Now that you’re on the short list of qualified suppliers, is your value proposition strong enough to win you the job?
Confirmation: Congratulations, you won the job. Is your value proposition strong enough to keep the buyer over the long term?
Your value proposition is perhaps the number one asset in your company’s growth equation, yet so many companies fail to define it. Don’t waste years fixing the symptoms of failed success. We recommend you instead look deep into your company’s ethos and create a compelling message that clearly defines why your company is different and why buyers should choose you for their next job.
To get a stronger understanding of how to align your sales and marketing teams through digital properties, download our ebook, Selling Digitally, here.
Share this
- Inbound Marketing (126)
- Manufacturing (82)
- Lead Generation (70)
- Website Design & Development (58)
- Social Media (46)
- Online Brand Strategy (38)
- eCommerce (33)
- B2B Marketing (28)
- Expert Knowledge (28)
- Digital Marketing (26)
- Company Culture (22)
- Content Marketing (16)
- Customer Experience (15)
- Metrics & ROI (15)
- Search Engine Optimization (15)
- Marketing and Sales Alignment (12)
- Transportation and Logistics (10)
- Content Marketing Strategy (9)
- Email Marketing (9)
- SyncShow (9)
- Digital Sales (8)
- Lead Nurturing (8)
- Digital Content Marketing (7)
- Mobile (7)
- Brand Awareness (6)
- General (5)
- Digital Marketing Data (4)
- Video Marketing (4)
- LinkedIn (3)
- Professional Services (3)
- Transportation Insights (3)
- Demand Generation (2)
- News (2)
- PPC (2)
- SEO (2)
- SSI Delivers (2)
- Account-Based Marketing (1)
- Facebook (1)
- High Performing Teams (1)
- Instagram (1)
- KPI (1)
- Marketing Automation (1)
- Networking (1)
- Paid Media (1)
- Retargeting (1)
- StoryBrand (1)
- Storytelling (1)
- Synchronized Inbound (1)
- Value Proposition (1)
- October 2024 (2)
- September 2024 (4)
- August 2024 (4)
- July 2024 (1)
- June 2024 (1)
- May 2024 (4)
- April 2024 (1)
- March 2024 (3)
- January 2024 (2)
- December 2023 (4)
- November 2023 (3)
- October 2023 (1)
- September 2023 (4)
- August 2023 (3)
- July 2023 (2)
- June 2023 (2)
- August 2022 (2)
- July 2022 (2)
- June 2022 (1)
- March 2022 (2)
- February 2022 (1)
- January 2022 (2)
- October 2021 (1)
- June 2021 (1)
- May 2021 (1)
- March 2021 (1)
- December 2020 (1)
- October 2020 (2)
- September 2020 (1)
- August 2020 (3)
- July 2020 (3)
- June 2020 (4)
- May 2020 (2)
- April 2020 (3)
- March 2020 (9)
- February 2020 (5)
- January 2020 (6)
- December 2019 (5)
- November 2019 (7)
- October 2019 (6)
- September 2019 (8)
- August 2019 (5)
- July 2019 (5)
- June 2019 (3)
- May 2019 (2)
- April 2019 (1)
- March 2019 (2)
- February 2019 (1)
- January 2019 (2)
- November 2018 (1)
- October 2018 (1)
- September 2018 (1)
- August 2018 (1)
- May 2018 (2)
- March 2018 (1)
- November 2017 (1)
- October 2017 (1)
- September 2017 (1)
- August 2017 (2)
- July 2017 (2)
- May 2017 (1)
- April 2017 (1)
- February 2017 (1)
- January 2017 (1)
- December 2016 (1)
- November 2016 (8)
- October 2016 (7)
- September 2016 (2)
- August 2016 (2)
- July 2016 (6)
- June 2016 (3)
- May 2016 (4)
- April 2016 (6)
- March 2016 (6)
- February 2016 (7)
- January 2016 (7)
- December 2015 (6)
- November 2015 (2)
- October 2015 (3)
- September 2015 (2)
- August 2015 (4)
- July 2015 (9)
- June 2015 (9)
- May 2015 (8)
- April 2015 (8)
- March 2015 (9)
- February 2015 (7)
- January 2015 (8)
- December 2014 (7)
- November 2014 (7)
- October 2014 (5)
- September 2014 (4)
- August 2014 (4)
- July 2014 (5)
- June 2014 (4)
- May 2014 (5)
- April 2014 (4)
- March 2014 (7)
- February 2014 (9)
- January 2014 (7)
- August 2013 (2)
- July 2013 (4)
- June 2013 (6)
- May 2013 (7)
- April 2013 (7)
- March 2013 (8)
- February 2013 (5)
- January 2013 (7)
- December 2012 (4)
- November 2012 (4)
- October 2012 (2)
- September 2012 (1)
- July 2012 (1)
- April 2012 (4)
- March 2012 (5)
- February 2012 (2)
- January 2012 (3)
- November 2011 (1)
- May 2011 (3)
- April 2011 (1)
- March 2011 (1)
- February 2011 (1)
- December 2010 (2)
- November 2010 (3)
- August 2010 (1)
- July 2010 (1)
- May 2010 (2)
- April 2010 (1)
- January 2010 (1)