A few thoughts on what “providing value” really means

April 10, 2012 By 2 Comments

The notion of “don’t try to sell the drill, sell the holes,” has been around for as long as I can remember.  We’ve all heard it.  We all “get” it.  It’s the essence of selling value instead of selling price.  In the heat of battle though, we often forget.

Huber RoS 3Q Screw Press

The lesson hit home again for me last week – twice.  Once by a living, breathing example of company hell bent on selling “holes.”  And again when I stumbled into a reference to “Service Dominant Logic” then read more about it in this article.

First the living example; the parade of interviews my partner and I did for a client who manufactures sewage treatment equipment.  Fifteen different people.  From the guy in the warehouse who picks and ships replacement parts to the CEO, the message was consistent.  The words were all different, but every one of them stressed the importance of their own, personal role in making sure the customers’ machines kept running  all day, every day for at least 20 years.

The products themselves got mentioned in passing.  Helping the customer reach customer goals by doing whatever it takes was far and away their main focus.

The article, while a bit academic, provides excellent context for the notion of “Serve the customer first, well and always.”  A few of its (slightly paraphrased) “foundational premises” make the point.

#1 – Service is the fundamental basis of exchange.

#3 – Products are merely a distribution mechanism for services.

#6 – The customer is always a co-creator of value.

#7 – The supplier cannot deliver value, but only the potential to create value.  (That is, a supplier can provide resources, but value is created only when the supplier and customer collaboratively apply them.)

#10 – Value is always uniquely determined by the customer.

Re-read and think about that #7.  Then you’ll be thinking like the sewage guys.  Then you’ll be thinking like a sales professional.

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About Todd Youngblood

Clients value Todd Youngblood because he learns quickly and believes in rapidly and widely sharing everything he knows. Combined with thirty plus successful years in sales and marketing, these traits and experience are highly valued by sales executives. His education continues…

  • Kristina McInerny

    I look forward to your emails such as this. As a web dev – we are all over the place – what differentiates one web person from another? Customer service, experience… All of us say we have these but it comes down to value. How do you prove value besides doing well and getting testimonials? Referrals seem to be the best ‘value’ in clientele for me personally – they have come through someone else who sells my value but do you have an opinion on how to ‘brag’ on your own value?

    • Todd Youngblood

      It’s perfectly fine in my opinion to “brag” on your on value – as long as it’s done so humbly. e.g., “Customer A has told me that our service is…” “We’re proud of the fact over X% of our sales are from repeat customers.”

      With existing customers, I think the best way to “brag” is to continuously ask, “How are we doing? What could we do to enhance the value you get from working with us?”