Your value proposition is the core of your marketing.
Essentially, it describes why your target customers should get their products or services from you and not from other companies. And more so, it serves as a guide for your marketing efforts and effectively, how you present your brand to the public.
Most of the time, a value proposition sticks with a company for a long time without any change. However, there will be instances wherein certain situations will force your hand to amend it.
And as such, below, you’ll discover those instances or reasons when you need to reform your value proposition.
1. Your Marketing Campaign Is Rendered Ineffective
There are a lot of indicators of success and failure when it comes to marketing, and it can be challenging to know if your value proposition is ineffective. However, if your campaigns and ads aren’t working or bringing in new customers, you should scrutinize your value proposition first, as you can easily overlook it as the main problem.
To have a good or compelling value proposition, it must have the following qualities:
- It should be able to explain how your company, products, or services are better and different from others.
- It should let your target audience or customers understand the result if they choose you over other companies.
- It should tell with clarity the message you want to convey.
- Ideally, it should be understood in five seconds by whoever reads or hears it.
If your value proposition doesn’t have those qualities, it may be time to regroup as a team and refresh it.
2. People Find It Difficult To Engage With Your Brand
Your value proposition may have all the good qualities a value proposition should have, but it seems that people are reluctant to engage with your brand. People may still be getting your services or buying your products, but everything is transactional between you and them. Unlike your direct competitor, even your social media posts don’t get enough likes or posts. This situation may signify that you need to refresh your value proposition.
There could be many reasons why this is happening. But again, you should always start troubleshooting with your value proposition. Note that even if you have a clear-cut, understandable, and seemingly too-good-to-be-true value proposition, it may still put people off. How? Some of the things you should check are the proposition’s tone and target demographic.
For example, say that you own an old pizzeria. Your food delivers the promise in your value proposition. However, it’s written in a very formal language, and your current and significant demographic is teens or the younger generation. While they love your pizza, they would rather ask for deliveries instead of dining in. On the other hand, even if they are very active in social media, they wouldn’t want to get associated with your brand just because your value proposition doesn’t cater to them or the marketing surrounding it sounds too old for their tastes.
In such a case, it could be the perfect time to build a relatable and superior value proposition that resonates well with your target market.
3. Your Business Is Stuck In A Rut
Say that your business is stable. It can support you and keep your employees afloat. However, it’s been like that forever. You haven’t seen any sign of growth. To be precise, your company may be functioning or performing on an average level, and perhaps, you’re in a rut on how to change things.
One of the probable reasons your business is in that state is your value proposition. It might be a sign that you need to reform it because it’s the single cause your business’s growth halted or became limited. It’s likely developed wrongly to say what you do. Remember that your value proposition isn’t what you do; it’s supposed to be what you can offer your customers.
Suppose that you have a dollar store, and your value proposition reflects that you’re the best dollar store in town. Unfortunately, people around your store have become a bit richer or brand conscious, and they have the cash to burn for more expensive items.
You have a business opportunity that you can take advantage of in that situation. If only you could sell them items that cost more than a dollar, but the thing is, your value proposition locked you to only sell items that only cost a dollar or less. In such instances, you could take the time to amend it and see to it that it won’t be as limiting next time.
4. Your Competitors Are Doing Well For Themselves
This one’s simple. One of the effective parameters to assess and know how your business is standing in the market is to check how well your competitors are doing. Perhaps, they have been doing well. In such a case, consider sparing some time to check their value proposition. Most often than not, when competitors take over, their value proposition may be more attractive than yours. Or it could be because of any of the following:
- Other competitors may have used your value proposition as their guide when drafting theirs. As a result, yours no longer sounds unique and differentiable.
- The demand for your value proposition has disappeared or significantly lessened.
- Your competitor has made your proposition inclusive of theirs while offering more to their customers.
Conclusion
Listed above are some of the notable signs that it may be time for you to reform your value proposition. Remember, it’s the core of your marketing—no—your whole business. So, be constantly vigilant when it comes to it, as it can easily make or break your company.
