Breathing new life into Value Propositions

Much has been said and written about a “value proposition”.  The term has gone through the jargon life-cycle, having enjoyed its day in the sun and now rests in the huge pile of overexposed words which once conveyed powerful ideas, but which have now largely lost their meaning – rendered nearly lifeless from overuse.

There remain a set of questions which come up in the course of business and everyday life which still seek the ideas to which the “value proposition” once so proudly pointed.

• What’s it good for?
• Why should I pay any attention to it?
• What will I get from it?
• Where is the payoff for me in it?

A couple years ago a client of mine asked a simple question which has come back to me over and over as a really useful tool for breathing some new life into the old idea we once thought about as a value proposition.  His question was, “are you offering me more for less or the same for less?”

This basic equation asks two simple questions which are fundamental to nearly all decisions / evaluations, whether in our work or in our lives outside of work:

• What will I get out of it compared to what I have now? (Value)
• How will it’s cost compare with what I’m paying now? (Investment/Cost)

What has evolved is a value / cost model which takes the current state (what you get today and what you pay today) as the center point.  It looks at the value/cost that can come from different get/pay combinations.  This can be used to position an alternative (an offer),  by identifying whether it provides more, the same or less value;  for more, the same or less cost.

When thinking about how an offer compares to today (current state), the future state provided by the offer can be framed in simple pair such as more for less (more value for less investment/cost).  Some pairs are obviously attractive and form the basis for most simple value propositions.  But any pair can be the basis of a successful offer.

Look for more about the value proposition pairs in future posts.