Use Your Stories to Increase Value, Sales and Margins

Mar 7

What Is Value?

Value is the personal, emotional worth of a product. It is subjective. Value is a perception.

Who Determines Value?

The buyer determines value, using their personal criteria. Just as beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, value is in the mind of the buyer.

As long as the buyer's value is greater than the seller's price, a sale is probable.

The Role of Stories

Stories can enchant your buyer and encourage them to act. If you are selling houses, you might tell a story of someone you helped earlier. You might show how a family was having trouble finding just the right house. You listened. You recommended the house that met their needs. Their search was over. They fell in love with the house, and they signed the preliminary paperwork on the spot.

Properly told, this story can position you as a Trusted Advisor. Trusted advisors don't compete on price. They compete on the value they bring to the buyer.

How to Structure Your Own Value-Building Story

The recipe is easy:

State the goal of the buyer. What problem are they trying to solve?
List up to three ways your product helps the buyer achieve their goal.
Describe "what is" for the buyer.
Describe the journey to "what could be," by using your product.
Ask the buyer if that's the outcome they want.
Ask the buyer to commit.

Your Turn

You can create several value-building stories this way, one for your company and one for each of your products.

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Mike Goss

I'm Mike Goss, PMP, DTM, Certified Coach. I help sales professionals, project managers business owners achieve more.

Project managers use my PMP Boot Camps to prepare for their PMP or CAPM certification exam. Their new certification opens doors for income and career advancement.

Sales professionals use my Sales Storytelling training to close more sales by touching the hearts of more buyers, and motivating them to buy.

Sales managers and business owners use my Sales Project Management training to turn their sales goal into a project goal. We use the principles of project management to achieve greater sales, greater margins and more referrals.

Author: I wrote "Breaking Through Walls," a business novel about overcoming obstacles.

Speaker: I present keynote speeches and educational sessions on Leadership, Communication, Problem-Solving and Project Management. Clients include the Oregon Department of Public Safety, the Oregon State Sheriffs Association, the Trauma Intervention Program and the Portland Chapter of the Project Management Institute.

https://www.gossconsulting.com