Value Isn't Value Until the Customer Says So

Creating value for your customer, absolutely critical to winning an opportunity. But what you are training your salespeople to believe is value to the customer and what the customer actually values, well, those might be two completely different things. Let's go find out. This is Sales Untraining, a very different kind of sales podcast.

Three out of four salespeople are failing. They're falling short of their revenue. Why doesn't sales training work? That's what this sales podcast is about.

It's your weekly sales strategy guide designed to rewire your sales brain. Welcome to Sales Untraining. I'm Kelly Rings. Hey, it is your weekly sales strategy guide designed to completely rewire your sales brain.

Appreciate you coming alongside. Hey, can you like and subscribe to the podcast? I hope you will share it with someone. Anyone that is a sales manager, a sales leader, needs to be in on this conversation because, trust me, we can do better.

We are not being as effective, nearly as effective as we can be in terms of training salespeople to hit the ground running. We're going to talk a little bit about a special case of that this week. We're going to talk about value. But before I do that, hey, next week, I'm going to talk to a gentleman by the name of Matt Suka.

He wrote a book called The Hidden Yes, and we're going to talk about psychological barriers to your sale. It's a fantastic conversation. Can't wait to share it with you. Make sure you stick around for that one.

And if you're subscribed to the podcast, it will always hit your podcast tool that you're using to listen or watch. Perhaps you're on YouTube. You may not know this. You can watch us on YouTube as well.

YouTube.com slash Kelly Riggs. Glad to have you on board. Let's talk about value because I have had, I can't tell you how many conversations just this week, this week alone, talking about value and how important value is.

And we got to add value. By the way, what does that even mean? I got into a conversation with a guy this week. He said, well, we're always trying to add value.

I'm like, what does that even mean? I was like, you know, add value. I go, yeah, I heard you the first time. What does it mean?

Well, we're trying to give the customer more for their money. Like what? It's amazing. It gets vague.

Well, you know, value. We're trying, you know, add value. You know, it might, you know, it's quality and service. I go, wait a minute.

How is that adding value? That value is table stakes. I mean, if you don't have good quality, effective service, proactive communication, oh yeah, you may not have that because a lot of companies don't. But what you're talking about is just, it's our product offering.

It's what we have. So what do you mean by added value? Well, we try to bring some additional value. It's truly comical a lot of times.

these conversations that we just have, we use words, we throw them out there, and I wonder what it is. Hey, you want to have some fun? Stop the podcast, turn off the recording, pause it right now, and write down the added value that you are trying to provide to your customers. What is it?

Customer service, some side benefits, like what? What kind of benefits? Well, we provide this kind of guarantee or warranty or, you know, it's added value. Is it really?

Added value. That term has always escaped me. It's like we have a solution. We have something we sell to our customers that is valuable in and of its own self.

And then we're trying to add value to it. And typically what people mean is we're throwing in some freebies. We're taking some off the top of the price. We're providing some additional service or training or whatever.

We're adding value. Okay, so if you can get to that and make it tangible and it truly is not a part of the original solution, then I suspect that we might call it added value. But I always think about what Ziegler said way back in the 80s. He says, when people object to your price, here's what they're telling you.

The value that I perceive is not equal to the price. This hand is higher than the other one. My price hand is higher than the value. They're not equal.

Your value doesn't provide enough for me to justify the price that you're asking. So when you can get the value and the price on the same plane, then I can pull the trigger. So a lot of times people object to your price and our first nuanced response, that knee jerk is, wow, our prices are too high. Really?

Is it that your price is too high or have you considered that you haven't articulated, communicated your value well enough where the customer perceives that value relative to the price. Now, let's pause for a minute as an aside. You can have a great solution full of value. Customer perceives it.

They want it. They're dying to get it. It is absolutely what they're looking for. Solves their problems.

Fixes everything in the universe. They're still going to tell you your price is too high. Get over it. It happens.

It's called negotiation. This is what people do However again pause when the value perceived by the customer is exactly what they need it doesn't happen as often or as with much intensity. Also, man, this is exactly what we're looking for. This is the thing that's going to solve the issue that we're dealing with.

What are we looking at price-wise? Well, does it make sense to put together a proposal, look at details, outline the solution exactly, and get specific on price. Absolutely, it does. Schedule your next appointment, come in and do a killer solution presentation, which should be interactive and a dialogue and an exchange and a confirmation of ideas you've talked about.

They're like, man, this is great. This is exactly what we're looking for. So your proposal, you're asking for X dollars. Wow.

Well, yeah, I mean, that's more than I was thinking, but boy, I understand. Let me ask you, sales leaders, sales managers, you're watching or listening to this podcast. Have you ever closed a deal without talking about price? Have you ever had somebody go, hey, man, this is what we're looking for.

Okay, how do we get started? You're like, well, probably ought to talk about the price. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Ever had that happen?

If not, it's a really good indicator. No, I'm serious. I don't care what you sell. And I'm not saying it happens every time you do a great presentation.

But there are many, many, many times, many times in my career, in the careers of people that I've worked with and seen, where they get to the end and they're like, this is absolutely what I need. How do we make this happen? Well, let's talk about the details. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

I need to know the price. Man, that's when you know you connected and they perceive the value. But how many trainings have you had on how to handle price objections? If people are objecting to your price, there's only really three answers.

One, they love your product, but they want to negotiate because everybody on the planet is trying to get a better deal. Two, the value does not justify the price. Three, they're not interested at all. And the best way to get rid of you is to talk price, tell you it's too high and say, hey, we'll keep you in mind.

Simple, right? One, two, three. It's one of those three. And I'm sure somebody's going to think of another one or two, some nuances, but man, that's the big buckets.

That's where they land. But the reality is, is that people will always try to negotiate price with very few exceptions. I've closed a lot of deals in my career. both before today or before what I do now and now, where people say, listen, this is exactly what we're looking for.

What's the fee? Tell them the fee and they go, okay, we can handle that. No problem. Let's do this.

Now, that's not me saying, wow, look how awesome me or my product is. No, no, no. Understand that the solution was perceived to be the value that they needed, may be far in excess of what is being asked for in terms of price. It makes the decision easy.

It's why all sales trainers, sales coaches, sales consultants tell you over and over, you need to be prepared not to discuss price early. Now, there's a lot of techniques on how to work your way around it. Okay, so what's this going to be? What's the price?

Tell me what's a price you're, and you're like, no, I'm not ready to tell you that. Well, if you can't tell me your price, then I don't have any interest, right? You have to know how to deal with preemptive questions about price. And there are great, great techniques to turn that conversation back in your favor and to negotiate through those obstacles and make it make sense.

You can't negotiate price until you get value on the table. Otherwise, you're not negotiating you against them or you versus them or your value versus the price. You're simply negotiating how much of your profit you're going to give away in order to get a deal. And that, my friends, is not selling.

See, value is perceived by the customer. So what you think is value is irrelevant. Now, you may have a lot of things in your deck, your tools, that you're hiding back over here that you can present at different opportunities in a conversation or a presentation as items that create value for the customer. Absolutely.

Your real objective is to find out what those are. What is it that the customer values? Well, the tired and trodden and old and out-of-date question that salespeople want to ask is, hey, what's keeping you up nights? Okay, intent is good.

That question lost its luster a long time ago. But there are variants of that and ways to get into a dialogue with a customer where you get that information when you know what a customer truly values, not just out of your actual product or service, but what is motivating them to make a purchase, why they need this, why it's going to impact them positively, now you are on the way to creating an opportunity to get the price you actually deserve. The reason we don't get the prices sometimes, many times, that we deserve for the product or solution that we provide to the customer is they do not perceive the value that we've given them.

Example, and I've talked about this in previous episodes, people will tell me, man, we've got an ROI story that is killer. I mean, it just man we can really light it up when we talk ROI We save this and make this more efficient and return this at a quicker rate And we help them make money or save money and all Listen, that's fantastic. But if they don't perceive it, if they don't feel it in their bones, if they don't go, holy smokes, that's amazing. That's exactly what I need.

And if you don't take it about three layers deeper, for example, so if you're able to accomplish this and create this much savings or efficiency or additional revenue, what kind of impact is that going to have on you or on the department? Get them to feel it, to understand it, to see it in their mind, to put themselves in that movie. If you don't do that, then you're not getting as much value out of that perceived value that you're actually capable of getting. Well, coming up next, let's talk about some value items that are very, very real, but almost never get sold by the salesperson.

Hey, thanks for making Sales Untraining your first listen of the week. And if you find something you like, if you hear something that's interesting, I hope you'll share it with somebody you know. You can find out more about me at bizlockerroom.com or email me, kelly at bizlockerroom.

com. Now back to the show. Welcome back. It's Sales and Training, and I'm Kelly Riggs.

Thank you for joining me on segment number two. We talk about value and why the value that we think we're offering is oftentimes mismatched with the value that the customer actually needs or perceives. You see, in the training process, we indoctrinate. It's the right word, I think.

we indoctrinate salespeople that all of our value is encompassed inside that product itself, that it's the best product. It's the fastest, the most efficient, the most reliable, the best quality, has all the right features or unique features or the best features. It's all about the product. Except that people don't buy products, as I've said a thousand times, they buy what that product does for them.

It's what it does for them that is the source of the value that they will perceive. So all of these fancy things that you have in your solution mean nothing. And I mean nothing to a customer unless they perceive a true value behind it. Not the value that you say it is.

Wow, we use this type of material and that material is the best in the industry and it lasts the longest and it's the highest quality. And they go, uh-huh, okay, let me write that one down. Material, great quality. What else you got?

It's just a piece of information. It's all it is. And you're thinking, man, our value is amazing. Except that value is perceived by the client, by the customer.

And there are so many things that never get sold, air fingers quote, sold by the salesperson that are truly valued by the customer. I ask this question in a lot of the trainings. Does the lowest price ensure the best final result? No.

Okay. Well, do they care about the best final result? Yes. Okay.

So do they want the lowest price or do they want the best final result? This is where it gets complicated because people think you're arguing for the sake of arguing or you're in a circular argument and it's just creating more chaos. No, not at all. Because if you go back to the premise of why people object to price, it matters.

When value is perceived, people are willing to pay lots of money for things that they perceive to be valuable to them. Does the lowest price guarantee responsiveness from your company? No. Does it guarantee great customer support, effective, responsive customer support that owns the problems that we may have?

No, not at all. The lowest price doesn't guarantee anything, listen to me, anything except the lowest price. That's it. Now, the stark contrast here is easy for people to see and they go, okay, you're right.

I get it. But Kelly, you know, the problem is you don't live in the real world. My customers care about price. Hang on a second.

Shocker. You have customers that care about price. Never heard that before. No, my friend, everybody cares about price.

Everybody. I mean, anything we buy, almost without exception, unless it's just a transactional purchase, we care about price. We always do. Why wouldn't we want to get the same thing for less?

Why wouldn't we want to get better for less? But if the customer doesn't perceive that it is better or more valuable or provides more for the money, then it has no impact whatsoever. I mean, the things that customers value. I'll tell you one that doesn't get sold at all, doesn't really get drawn out in detail and illustrated and communicated effectively.

Man, customers love to press the easy button. Just please make my job easier. Today's managers, they're being asked to do more with less, many times with disengaged employees, with limited resources. Could you please help me press the easy button find out what you can do to make a customer's life easier and they'll be on your side fighting for your solution yeah I know it sounds like a Nirvana panacea yeah I sounds great in a classroom Kelly but this is real life no no I can tell you that when you understand that client because you had the right dialogue and uncovered things that nobody else has and you find out that this particular issue, problem, challenge that, wow, has never come up until now, and you show them how you can navigate around that, take that off their plate, and make their life easier, suddenly, at an emotional level, they get highly engaged.

And my friends, people make decisions at an emotional level. What do customers care about that does not get sold? Well, I guarantee you customer experience matters. When they're negotiating that lower price, they're not thinking about customer experience, but when they have a bad customer experience, they're going to forget about that price.

Are they not? They're going to be really upset with you. And what are you going to say? Hey, look, man, let's be real.

You got the lowest price. You get what you pay for. Maybe you ought to be saying that early on. You know, in our industry, there's a lot of price points for this kind of product.

In my experience, and I've been doing this a while, you typically get what you pay for. You know, there's product quality, there's service, and there's price. And you can have two of those, but you can't get all three. You can't get the best product with the best service and still get the best price.

Almost never. Almost never. But there's incredible ways to add value. Let me give you one example.

If you've never heard of Briggs & Riley, Briggs & Riley makes luggage. and you know i've been traveling as a salesperson manager consultant now for i don't know 35 40 years whatever it is and i've been through a few suitcases and you know i'm a carry-on guy i never check luggage i'm in and out of the airport i don't like to waste time so i can pack whatever i need i can take my briefcase backpack whatever that goes with it where i carry my computer and assorted things. And, you know, airlines and me, we're pretty hard on luggage.

And so I went through three or four different pieces of luggage and just thinking that's the standard. Well, I learned about this company called Briggs & Riley. My son told me about them, actually. And I said, so what's so special about Briggs & Riley?

He said, Dad, let me put it to you simply. They have a money-back guarantee that includes everything. I go, what do you mean everything? Airline blows up your bag, you get a new one.

No questions asked. What if it's 10 years old? Did I say no questions asked? Actually, yeah, you did.

What if I break a wheel? They replace it. No questions asked. I mean, come on, they can't be serious.

No, no, absolutely true. Now, what are you thinking? Are you thinking maybe this bag is going to cost more than other pieces of luggage? Well, of course it is.

So I went and priced a Briggs & Riley carry-on bag and choked. What? It was like double. And I thought, well, let's put this to the test.

That was, I'm going to say, 16 years ago, at least. It's been a very, very long time. Never missed a beat. Never had a hiccup.

Never had a problem. Nothing. I haven't even had to test the guarantee. but I've been on airplanes with lots of guys carrying Briggs and Riley luggage.

And I ask, hey, how do you like that luggage? It's indestructible. You ever had one go bad? No.

I did have one guy recently say, yeah, I had a handle messed up. I took it in and they had a new one shortly after that. Like, so they really do replace them. Oh yeah, they do.

That, I mean, that's real value, right? That's real value that solves a half a dozen problems that I care about, but you've got to actually make it real for me. Tell me that story. You ever been on an airplane, got your luggage off the belt, or you pulled it off the plane and busted a wheel or whatever?

Oh yeah, been down that path. What is that like? What stinks? It's terrible.

And then you go into a story about your luggage and how it solves that problem. You know, I would tell people, now listen, you get what you pay for. And if you're concerned about saving money long-term, the cost today is going to be more, clearly. But long-term, you just bought your last piece of luggage.

Okay, I'm in. Let's do this. And you pay twice as much? Really?

You come back and say, I paid twice as much for this luggage. You get what you pay for. People will pay for things. They'll pay for the easy button.

and they'll pay for predictability. They'll pay for consistency. They'll pay for customer experience. They will pay for proactive communication.

The number of horror stories I've heard over the years from customers who say, you know, things go wrong. I get that. What really drives me bananas is when companies don't communicate. I don't know what's going on.

I call up, and they're going to get back to me. They don't have an answer yet. I have to call them. I did a podcast episode several weeks ago about an experience like that.

Like, why aren't you calling me and keeping me up to date? Listen, those things and those responsibilities fall directly on your salespeople. But you have to train them effectively to learn and understand what real value is from the customer's viewpoint, what they perceive. it's all about the training and this is sales untraining I'm Kelly Riggs see you next time sales untraining is a production of business locker room and pot about it productions music and editing by Doug Branson to get more Kelly visit bizlockerroom.

com Thank you.