Value Proposition

Understanding and Applying Value Proposition to Your Content

What is a Value Proposition?

Proposing value has been part of everyday life since the beginning of civilization. Proposed and perceived value plays a major role in both non-transactional (personal) and transactional (financial trades) relationships. Identifying, applying, and verifying proposed and perceived value propositions in non-transactional relationships is harder as they are mostly subjective. When it comes to approaching value propositions in business, it becomes easier because you can test and measure them against metrics. In this article, I will cover the value proposition in the context of business (transactional).

Importance of Value Proposition on Web Pages

Before splitting hairs about what a value proposition is or how to apply it, let’s understand why there is such a necessity. A business means you offer something that solves a problem, whether it’s solving a long-grass problem or fixing a lack of a go-to-market strategy as a marketing consultant. The core of your business plan is solving a problem. However, most business owners don’t know how to define and effectively communicate what problem they solve that others don’t.

Key Components of a Value Proposition

The value proposition is one of the key components of a go-to-market strategy. You don’t have to be the only one with a solution, but you must be the only one at something while solving the problem. For instance, if you have a company that solves problems with your SaaS, your competition likely does, too. Why are you in the market then? Is your solution more efficient? Is it cheaper? Do you have better customer service? Are you more credible/trusted? You may be better than your competition in one or more of these areas, but communicating these at the right place, right time, and efficiently is another ball game. This is why understanding your value propositions on multiple levels matters.

Examples of Strong Value Propositions

According to The Magic Power of Emotional Appeal by Roy Garn, we are always preoccupied with one of these four trances:

1. Self-preservation
2. Romance
3. Money
4. Recognition

These are super-broad trances. Now, let’s apply these trances with a micro focus for your website visitors. I will take my own blog as an example. I am a fractional CMO with experience in cybersecurity (B2B and B2C), MSPs (B2B), and home automation (e-commerce). A visitor searched for “hire a fractional CMO for an e-commerce startup in the personal accessories field.” If they landed on one of my blogs with the headline “World’s Best Fractional CMO,” they would experience immediate friction because the headline is irrelevant to the specific search and too broad. A headline like “Here is my list of e-commerce accomplishments as a Fractional CMO” will immediately sync with the searcher’s buying trance, minimizing the friction.

Crafting Your Value Proposition – Articulating Your Unique Solution

1. Action Level Value Proposition: This level is suggested when a prospect is about to engage in impulsive behavior; “Should I click on this?” or “Should I open this email?” At this stage, focus on attention-grabbing messaging rather than promoting your product or brand. Remember, your target can only start listening to you if they take a micro-action (click, open, pick up the phone, etc.). Mass Persuasion Method: Activate 8 Psychological Switches That Make People Open Their Hearts, Minds and Wallets for You, Without Knowing Why They Are Doing It” by Bushra Azhar for specifics on action-level value propositions.
2. Solution Level Value Proposition: At this stage, your ideal persona has given a chance to your process-level messaging and starts paying attention to what you say about your product. Prospects ask, “Why should I buy this product rather than another?” Stay relevant here. Avoid talking about your brand or using clickbait. Be honest, specific, and clear about why your product is better.
3. Brand-Level Value Proposition: Here, you address the buying question: “Why should I buy from you and not from others?” This is where your reputation and credibility come into play. Discuss what makes you credible and trustworthy as a brand.

Applying Your Value Proposition to Web Pages

Homepage: You don’t have to overcomplicate the application of value propositions on your website. For instance:

• Home Page / Why Us / About Us pages: Brand-level value proposition
• Paid ads / CTA pages with forms or sign-ups: Action-level value proposition
• Product / Pricing / Case Study / Demo / Free Trial pages: Solution-level value proposition

Product/Service Pages Even if you have one value proposition, you may need to communicate it in at least three different ways based on the preoccupation of your target persona. Customize each message based on the medium/protocol you are using to engage with your target audience (emails, social media, blogs, etc.).

Best Practices for Displaying Value Propositions

Clear and Concise Messaging Prioritize your target audience’s current buying trance rather than your own thought process as a business. Apply this to all levels.

Visual Presentation: Utilize design elements to highlight the value proposition effectively. Keep in mind that a “beautiful design” may not always mean a “converting design.” Visuals should complement the content around them.

Testing and Optimization: Gather feedback via AI chatbots, heatmaps, and other engagement metrics. Test different value propositions and optimize based on analytics and feedback.