As you work to identify your value proposition, evaluate it based on a scale of 1 to 5 in each of the following areas:
Make your value proposition stand out to be exceptional. This area evaluates the value proposition’s originality as experienced by your customers, as well as within the marketplace. Overused value propositions, such as typical customer service, will get a score of 1. When Zappos first came out with its free shipping both ways, the company introduced an innovative value proposition to the marketplace that set it apart from the competition. Progressive Insurance positioned itself as the website that allows visitors to compare insurance quotes from different companies, which was novel and gave customers enough knowledge to develop a liking for and make a purchase from the company.
How unique is your value proposition compared to your competitors’? Your value proposition should distinguish you in at least one area from the rest of the competition. Consumers consider several companies before making a major purchasing decision because of the commonality these companies share, but the one they select is often the company that offers the most unique value to them. When we launched Invesp in 2006, we competed with few conversion optimization companies. But we suffered from lack of uniqueness. When we found we were most successful working with ecommerce companies on complex conversion optimization problems, we hit gold because none of our competitors positioned themselves that way.
How do you excel at your value proposition? Toyota’s value proposition focuses on quality and reliability. The company delivered on this value until it had major recalls in 2010, which shook consumer confidence in the company and its products.
How desirable is your value proposition to your customers? It is important to consider how relevant or desirable your value is to the various types of customers you have. The more desire you provide them, the more inclined they will be to purchase from your company. Netflix’s value proposition of never charging late fees resonates well with consumers who are tired of paying late fees. Compare that clear value proposition to the number of times Blockbuster had to change the way late fees are calculated in the past few years.
Different visitors will be interested in different aspects. Browsers who are just looking around your site appreciate the originality of your value proposition. Visitors in the early stage of the buying cycle will most likely give the same weight to the different factors. Visitors in the later stage of the buying cycle will most likely give “desirability” and “excellence” more weight.
Evaluate your value proposition through the lens of your personas. What’s the value for the individual persona versus the value for the entire market? Test the value proposition to understand how it will resonate best with each persona:
Does it appeal to the impulsive persona? Is it a value the customer can act upon immediately?
Does it appeal to the caring persona? How does it relate to other customers? Have other customers benefited from this value?
Does it appeal to the aggressive persona? Is this value unique? Do other competitors offer something similar? Why is this value better?
Does it appeal to the logical persona? What’s so useful about this value? Will this value truly impact this person’s conversion?
When evaluating your value proposition, you should also consider personas from the various buying stages.