Value Added Selling: How to Differentiate Yourself from Your Competitors

Value added selling. You have probably heard of it, but what does it mean and what can it mean for your business? Value added selling involves enhancing, augmenting or enlarging your product offering through various components, which differentiates between competitors. This value added product offering, is what will make your business the business of choice when buying the product.

You and your competitors may sell the exact same product, but by enhancing your product offering, customers will prefer buying from your business, rather from the competitors. Businesses cannot compete just on price anymore; it is just not profitable for anyone and will result in the downfall of the business. Adding extra value allows you to charge a price premium and still gain loyal customers.

7 Ways to Add Value and differentiate yourself from your competitors:

• Providing expert advice and a high level of professionalism

This can be implemented by consulting, giving advice and assisting the customer in the buying process. This advice should be better than the advice offered by the competitor. Employees with extensive product knowledge and understanding of the customer’s needs will be able to add this value to the experience of the customer. An example of this can be buying a computer from the ‘techxperts’ at Incredible Connection versus from general sales staff at HiFi Corporation.

• Bundling and Packaging

This does not only include the visual aspect of the product, but desirable packages and added benefits of the product offering that are more valuable than simply the product itself. An example of this, is buying a gaming console from Makro, like a xbox, which offers a free game versus just the console from Game.

• Service Levels

Differentiate yourself from competitors by high levels of service and different levels of service. An example here of is Bloemfontein business Kloppers, which expanded to branches in George and Knysna. They are known for excellent service and thus people will prefer Kloppers, even if the product is more expensive.

• Frequent Buyer Program

The more someone buys from you, the more valuable deal they receive. An example of this is frequent flyer miles. Many people will travel extra miles just to stick to the same airline.

• Recognition and Reward Levels

This is when the business recognises certain members as being outstanding members, with certain rewards that go along with it. An example of this is the w-rewards from Woolworths with silver, gold and platinum tier levels based on yearly spending.

• Dedicated personnel

This value adding service works well with a product that requires support. Certain customer accounts are assigned to dedicated personnel who know everything about their account and way of doing business.

• Speed of Service

On time delivery is a component of asking maximum price, but is also a part of customer expectation. Most customers will pay a premium price if a business can get the product faster to them than competitors.

These are only a few of the measures that can be implemented. The four thoughts that should be kept in mind with value added selling:

• Customer satisfaction is dependent on performance and customer expectation.

• Explore each potential opportunity of doing business, even though not all business is wanted

• Not all customers are valid targets for value added efforts (like fast moving consumer goods)

• Think about your own shopping and buying experiences.

Added extra value results in customers being willing to pay higher prices and travel extra distances to buy YOUR products. It is important to remember that value adding services works better with certain products and not so well with others like fast moving consumer goods.

By implementing these value adding services, customers will be loyal to your business and choose your product, making value based selling still the one and only when it comes to differentiating you from your competitors.

References

tomreilytraining.com/writings-and-recordings/articleswhat-is-value-added-selling/

www.brooksgroup.com/free-sales-resources/training-articles/concept-value-added-selling/

www.secretsellingtips.com/Articles/ValueSell.htm