FLASH CARD: HOW TO ADD VALUE

I recently spoke to the Nampa Young Professionals group about defining and adding value to your prospect and customer base. In case you’ve forgotten, my definition of value is: your prospect or customer should be better off after meeting with you, than before. If your prospect isn’t returning phone calls, you’re not adding value.
Now, let’s go to work in terms of adding value or finding an easy way to remember what value means to a prospect or customer
V = Validating your solution. What are three touch points that solidify what you are selling. I give them information in the form of white papers: “Why Advertise?” check list, “The Five Fatal Flaws of Marketing” and “The Marketing Makeover.” How do you validate?
A= Add an artifact. Framing stores prove that adding an artifact to a piece of art, such as an arrow head to a Native American painting, can increase the sale of that piece up to 50%. Other examples: a hot towel at a golf course, chocolate chip cookies at a hotel, popcorn at the gas station, a to-go cup or newspaper. All of course are complementary.
U= Unexpected Surprise. Cracker Jacks are a great example. For your business, the best surprise is a handwritten thank you card or a copy of your book (more on this in a later column). Only three percent of Americans write thank you notes.
L= Losing customers if they don’t perceive you to be adding value. Follow up, follow up and always survey and ask the questions: “What do you like best about my service?” and “What can I do better?”
E= Expectation. Today’s value-added is tomorrow’s expectation. What you do for your client today, is expected tomorrow. Manage expectations, over deliver and under promise.
And finally—here’s a handful of quick ideas to add value to someone’s LIFE. Help three people that can’t afford your service, offer a free seminar for your prospects and clients, repackage or bundle your product and triangulate your service with your client to help one another create a new need for a prospect.
Make sure you add V A L U E to every sales call and understand what it means. The best way to learn is to study this flash card everyday.