Value Merchants: Demonstrating and Documenting Superior Value

The history of sales is every bit as long and varied as the history of civilization; a case can be made that you can’t have one without the other.  The book "Value Merchants: Demonstrating and Documenting Superior Value in Business Markets" brings some new thinking to a very old skill. Written by three professors from Kellogg, London and Babcock business schools, it advocates what might be called the Jerry Maguire principle: if you show the prospect the money, they will buy.

Not that this is easy, mind you. But that’s why it takes a book to cover the topic. The authors outline a methodical approach to quantifying value, building collaborative relationships with customers in order to do so, and getting sales reps to sell that value (turning them into “Value Merchants”). They then present case study after case study where the approach has been used.

That last point alone – getting reps to sell on value, not on price – is something Solutions for Sales has to constantly address. In the book’s lingo, sales reps are often “value spendthrifts,” granting price concessions to the purchasing agent in order to undercut an inferior competitor, something SfS Sales Guides seek to avoid. It’s another reminder that internal communication targeted specifically at sales reps is critical to achieving revenue objectives. It’s a unique style of communication, one rarely found inside companies that do not specialize in sales enablement.

The irony is that purchasing agents don’t just care about price, stereotypes notwithstanding. In truth they only care about things they can quantify, price being only one example. Help the purchasing agent quantify your superior value (easier said than done, of course), and watch her become your most passionate supporter. It’s doubly ironic that if you cultivate the right relationship, many customers will help you quantify your superior value. The book covers strategies to cultivate such relationships.  

Although primarily focused on sales, Value Merchants also includes valuable insights for pricing and messaging. The case studies may feel too straightforward to some readers; I found myself wishing that quantifying value were that easy. In fairness, however, the companies in those case studies clearly worked very hard at quantifying value, and that may be the most valuable lesson. You may think it’s hard for you to quantify the value of what you sell, in a fashion that will resonate with prospects. But it’s well worth the effort.

Bob Sawyer, Solutions for Sales

Buy this book online at Amazon