What Is A Value Proposition? Only the First Step Toward a Successful Business!

Let’s say that you have invented a fabulous new gadget, the Pronto Pickle, and of course you’re very excited. You know that the world will be better thanks to your Pronto Pickle, and those who love pickles but can never open their pickle jars, especially, will benefit.

So what is your next step?
Well, getting the word out about your value proposition, of course, and doing this by developing an awesome content strategy.

Value Proposition

Value proposition is your way of saying to the world: “Here’s what I am offering, why it is unique, who exactly is going to love it, why you can’t live without it, and why you should get it from me!”

Just as importantly, it tells your customers why they should work with you and not your competition.

Everything that your business is and everything it will be emerges out of your value proposition. In those dark times at the beginning when you are just starting out and are wondering if you can succeed, a value proposition can help guide you and can help you determine if your idea really is one people will pay for.

The best ideas for business and products are ideas that solve problems, ideas that fill a need somewhere, and ideas that are unique. Defining your value proposition will help you decide if your business, does, in fact, meet these requirements. This is why determining your value proposition is vital right at the beginning, when you are deciding if you should even be in business or if a product is worth investing in.  

If you have already started your business and you're off and running, great! But you might want to take some time to think about your value proposition as a way to guide your marketing and branding efforts.

Another way to think of it is that it is the beginning of a business strategy involving getting customers and keeping them (and keeping them happy!) which is important whether your business is brand new or has been around for years.

Well, that’s all very well and good, but where do you start when developing this value proposition thing?
You start by asking some important questions about your product:
1. What you are selling?
2. What are the benefits of using it?
3. Who does it benefit?
4. Why is it unique?
5. Why are you and your product better than the competition?

Hopefully, these questions will be easy to answer!

After the details of your value proposition are hammered out, the final product should be very, very clear, and very, very succinct. The reader (i.e., potential customer) should not have to wade through adjectives, prepositions, and 42 adverbs to try to figure out what you are saying – as a matter of fact, if someone is having any trouble reading it, chances are they will move on. You typically have about 5 seconds to tell the reader how great you are and why they cannot live without you!

Although your value proposition tells all about your business in a neat little package, it is different than a catchy phrase or an advertising slogan. It is really more of an internal document that keeps you on track – every message that comes from your company in the form of marketing materials, every sales proposal, every move your company makes should spring from your value proposition, and your dedication to it.

In the following weeks, we’ll talk more about creating value proposition, how important it is, and getting the word out with a great content strategy!

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