Any business you start, any idea you come up with, you’ll notice that there’s someone in the market already doing something similar.
In this age of cut-throat competition, we are all stuck in a race, craving to come first, and be better than the rest!
Well, good for us, in the real world, there is not just one space for the first position.
If you strive to stand out, you need to take measures that guide you that way.
One great way is to create an amazing value proposition to get ahead of the competition.
A value proposition acts as a crucial sales pitch for your company. It tells the customer why they should buy from you and not your competitor. It is something that gives your customers a solid reason to choose you.
Do you think your brand is unique?
Do you think it has qualities that stand out?
Does it solve the problems of your target audience?
If your answer to these questions is YES, then you need to prepare a fantastic value proposition to let your customers know that you can serve their needs like no other!
After reading this article, you will be able to understand:
- What value proposition is and what isn’t
- What makes a value proposition great
- What elements you must include in your proposition
- How to write a value proposition of your own
- The exact format of writing a value proposition
So, let’s get right into it.
What is a Value Proposition? (Definition)
A value proposition is a detailed document that portrays the unique selling proposition (USP) of your brand. It identifies the problems your target audience is facing and explains how your product/service can help solve them.
A value proposition is not a slogan, tagline, or positioning statement like the #1 global brand. It is much more than that.
For instance, instead of claiming that you are a globally recognized IT company, you list all the reasons why you are one, and how are the services given by your company different than the existing ones in the market.
A value proposition is a clear, to-the-point document that lists specific benefits your customers can avail from you and a comparative study showing why would they (the target audience) buy from you, instead of your competition.
Here are some examples of great value propositions:
Example 1. InfusionSoft- “small business sale and marketing software. Get organized, grow sales, save time”
Example 2. Shopify- “Shopify is everything you need to sell anywhere”
Example 3. Stripe-“Payment infrastructure for the internet. Whenever you’re building a marketplace, mobile app, online storefront, or subscription service, Stripe has the features you need”
Example 4. KISSmetrics- “KISSmetrics gives you the insights you need to optimize your marketing”
Further, here are some reasons explaining how creating a value proposition can benefit your business…
Importance of Writing a Value Proposition
Is it necessary to write a value proposition?
Well, why don’t you answer that question for yourself after reading these 3 ways a value proposition benefits your business.
1. Increases Conversions
Studies suggest that a strong value proposition increases conversion rates by 90%!
Conversion means when a reader converts into a customer, basically taking a step ahead in your marketing and sales cycle.
For instance, let’s say that you own a website.
A person visited it just to read blogs, but as soon as they enter their email address and agree to receive your weekly newsletter, they get converted from a reader to a subscriber.
A strong value proposition helps in doing just that by helping you and your team convert your target audience to loyal customers.
Read more: Company Profile: What is it & How to Write a Perfect one?
2. Builds Transparency and Trust
A value proposition clearly lays out what the business will offer your customers. There are no hidden costs and ulterior motives!
It builds transparency of operations and lets your audience know exactly what they are signing up for. The word between you and your customer remains clear. This way, you earn yourself loyal customers for the long term.
3. Engages the Visitors
According to Chartbeat, it takes 5-30 seconds to hold the attention of a viewer. If he/she is not immediately hooked to your content, they will easily surf to another page.
It’s a cut-throat competition, right?
Fighting with the user’s short attention span is the main threat for digital businesses. A strong value proposition on your landing page attracts the attention of viewers and makes them stay for a while.
So what is a STRONG value proposition? Let’s find out.
Elements of a Strong Value Proposition (Format)
Value propositions differ from business to business (obviously!). However, the basic structure of a strong value proposition remains the same.
The basic formula consists of 4 main ingredients.
When set in order, you get yourself a strong pitch. They are:
1. Headline
It is the first thing anyone notices, right? Your headline is your biggest clickbait. You want to attract clicks on it. While writing a headline, make sure that it is compact yet delivers your objective.
The headline of a value proposition should tell the end benefit you’re offering to the customer. It should be crisp and precise with a tint of emotional touch.
Yes, that’s right. An ideal headline consists of emotional words.
For instance, ’10 Tips (that actually work) to Grow Wealth in your 20’s.’
The emotional word here being ‘that actually works’. There are hundreds of articles telling investment strategies. But a millennial looking for a solution is more likely to click on this one.
2. Sub-heading
Since a heading shouldn’t be very long (not more than 5-6 words), a sub-heading helps cover the remaining information. It delivers the idea of your brand in brief.
The sub-heading of a value proposition should explain exactly what you are offering to whom and why.
3. Key Benefits
A headline and sub-headline should be followed by a bulleted list of key benefits your customer will get if they choose to work with you.
This section lists what all is in it for the customer.
Mention your USP in this list along with basic functions.
4. Visual Element
And finally, attach it all with a visual element. It could be an infographic, visual presentation, or video.
This gives your readers the flexibility to choose whether to read or just see the visual element and understand your entire pitch.
A visual element makes your value proposition look attractive and eye-catching.
Read more: Writing Vision Statement: Definition, Examples and Best Practices!
A 4-step Process to Creating an Amazing Value Proposition
Just knowing the format isn’t enough. Here is a simple 4 step process that will guide you in creating your winning value proposition:
1. Research your Audience
Knowing your target audience is the first step to selling something. You frame the language and offers in such a way that will attract your target audience.
Thus, to create a value proposition, first know who your customers are what will they be attracted to.
This step includes determining the demographical aspects of your audience.
What age group do they come in?
What do they do?
This will just ease and align your upcoming steps.
2. Find Your Audience’s Pain Point
Now that you know who your audience is, find out what problem are they facing in the industry.
Is there a pain point mentioned a lot of times?
What tool do they use?
How can your tool better satisfy their demands?
This will derive the USP of your product/service.
3. Research Your Competitors
To beat something, you have to get to completely know it.
Obviously, right? Research your competition thoroughly in the market. This will help you understand what other people are already offering so you don’t include that in your USP.
Find a weak point of your competitor and make it your strongest pitch.
For instance, OnePlus caught Apple’s weak point of a ‘quickly draining battery. It introduced super-fast charging and thus managed to capture a lot of market share.
4. Offer a Unique Solution
Find your primary benefit. While your product/service has many features, find the one which will attract the most eyes.
Clearly explain in your value proposition your unique solution and address the pain point.
To add more credibility, you should go the extra mile and add some statistics to prove your point. Tell them exactly how you are going to help the customer.
Altogether, these 4 steps will help you land a proposition that will skyrocket your business results!
Bit.ai: The Ultimate Tool for Creating Value Propositions
What’s Bit.ai?
Bit.ai is a new-age virtual workspace and document collaboration tool for teams to collaborate, share, track, and manage all company documents, files, and other content in one place.
How you can use Bit.ai to create value propositions?
We saw that creating an amazing value proposition involves a lot of brainstorming – from target audience research to finding your USP and selling the product.
With Bit.ai, you can store all your ideas in one place and write all the content related to your value proposition in an organized manner. You can easily organize everything in workspaces, folders, and content libraries!
You can also embed any type of digital content in your value proposition document like videos, images, google sheets, presentations, and a lot more.
Bit integrates across 80+ popular applications like Google Sheets, OneDrive, Tableau, Typeform, and LucidCharts! That means, your content, wherever it may reside, can be a part of your value proposition.
That’s not it!
Bit.ai is a highly collaborative platform wherein you can work with your team in real-time. You can co-edit and use inline comments to bring your colleagues and team to the same place to make decisions related to your value proposition.
If you want to share your value proposition with others, you can invite them to view it inside of Bit as a Guest.
You can also share it with a live link, embed it on a website, or share a trackable link to track the engagement levels of your value proposition. You can even see who is opening your value prop and how much time they spent on it!
Awesome, right?
Wrap Up
Your value proposition is a core selling strategy for your business.
Remember to make it engaging and appealing.
So what are you waiting for?
It’s time to let your audience know how your product is better than your competition. Use Bit.ai and create the amazing value proposition your business needs to stand out!
Let us know how it goes by tweeting us at @bit_docs.
We wish you all the best!
Further reads:
What is Product Adoption & How to do it Right?
Market Targeting: Definition, Importance & Strategy!
Elevator Pitch: What is it & How to Write One!
Go-To-Market Strategy Guide for Businesses
User Persona: What is it & How to Create it?
Creative Brief: What is it and How to Write it?
