value assessment

A client of ours recently asked us to help his company increase sales revenue. “Our sales are fine, but not what we need them to be,” he said. “I just have to believe we could be closing more deals. Once we get in the door, the sales process is going really well. The problem is getting in.”

What else is new?

Many companies have the goal of maintaining existence by selling what they make. Great companies focus on offering unique value, even before purchasing a single product or service. It’s an old saying that is still ignored by far too many companies.

Our client’s problem is simple: their company fails to communicate unique value to the target market.

Soul

Communication is the soul of any business. It has a unique value: the key nutrient that fuels all relationships. When the flow of value is obstructed, a variety of symptoms manifest, including:

• slow sales
• customer dissatisfaction
• High employee turnover
• Poor product quality

Evaluating the communication flow is one of the most important business diagnostic tools you have at your disposal. One method of evaluating that flow is to analyze the value delivered to key stakeholders.

In the case of our client, a commercial communications evaluation of the marketing material revealed that the language the company used to talk about its value and the customer’s perception of the value of the company did not match. The unique value in this case was obscured by heavy language: jargon, dense writing, and phrasing designed to sound good rather than convey information.

The material put people off. Because it was so hard to understand, there was no flow of value. When value doesn’t come out of a business, value (money) doesn’t come in. Stagnant relationships.

nobody wins

the value stream

The flow of value is always bidirectional in relationships. Otherwise, all you’re doing is streaming. Constraints in the flow of value cause poor business health. Many businesses have closed their doors because the flow of value stopped.

As you look at the value stream in your business, think about the relationship between what your organization gives and what it receives. Change that relationship and study your customers until you are just as clear about what value means to them as what it means to you.

When you learn to perceive your unique value from the customer’s perspective, your communication with the marketplace reflects that perception. Your business can’t help but be healthier as a result.