The 21 Marketing and Sales Challenges of ICT Businesses

Challenge #3 – There is no Clear Value Proposition

Welcome to the third video in our series of 21 Marketing and Sales Challenges of ICT businesses and what to do about them.

Many IT businesses struggle to find new prospects and potential clients as they haven’t got a well defined value proposition and that means that any potential client is unable to separate your business from the sea of similar competition.

Watch the video below and read the article to help you overcome this challenge.

We look after your tech so you don’t have to

The usual approach for many companies’ value proposition is to throw out a generic statement, such as:

“We look after your tech so you don’t have to worry about it”

OR

“We provide the complete range of IT services that your business needs”

This approach almost always  doesn’t work long term because everyone is saying the same thing and you don’t stand out from your competition. Therefore people won’t know why they should buy from you over the competition.

How do you Create a Strong Value Proposition?

To solve this you need to become clear on four questions;

1. 1. What do you do? (or what products and services you offer)
   2. Who do you do it for? (This is the ideal client, which we covered in video #2 if you haven’t seen it check it out here.)
   3. Why do they buy from you?
      • Is it quality
      • Is it convenience?
      • Is it easy to purchase?
      • Is it your expertise?
      • What do your customers say when they actually buy from you?
   4. How are you significantly better than your competition?
      If you are struggling to answer this one ask some of your most recent clients why they chose you.

Then craft your answers for each of the four above questions into a strong value proposition that articulates:

1. 1. • Who are you?
      • What do you do?
      • What clients do you help?
      • What makes you different?
      • What outcomes does the client get?

These four points are exemplified in the example below.

ABC Web Company states who they are, what they do, who they work, what makes them different and the outcomes the client gets by working with them:

“ABC Web Company redesigns and expands web sites with style, technology and care helping eco-friendly organisations build a stronger and more meaningful online experience.

We personally guide you through the Web Life Cycle, analyse, design, program and promote to ensure you receive the best of both form and function”

Need some guidance?

If you need more help with this challenge, we have a free Integrated Marketing Plan Roadmap you can download. You can also download the Value Proposition Guide mentioned above.

That’s the third of the marketing and sales challenges that ICT businesses face. If you would like to discuss any specific marketing needs feel free to contact us