How to Create a Unique Value Proposition—with Examples

7 Examples of great value propositions · 1. Campaign Monitor · 2. Stripe · 3. Trello · 4. Evernote · 5. Square · 6. Zoom · 7. Prey. A valueproposition isapromiseof value tobedelivered.It’stheprimaryreasonaprospectshouldbuyfromyou. It’salsothe#1thingthatdetermineswhetherpeoplewillbotherreadingmoreaboutyourproductorhitthebackbutton.Onyoursite,yourvaluepropositionisthemainthingyouneedtotest—ifyougetitright,itwillbeahugeboost. Infact,ifIcouldgiveyouonlyonepieceofconversionoptimizationadvice,“testyourvalueproposition”wouldbeit. Thelessknownyourcompanyis,thebetteryourvaluepropositionneedstobe. WhenIreviewedabunchofwebsites,amissingorpoorvaluepropositionwasoneofthemostcommonshortcomings. Whatisavalueproposition? Inanutshell,avaluepropositionisaclearstatementthatoffersthreethings: Relevancy.Explainhowyourproductsolvescustomers’problemsor improvestheirsituation.Quantifiedvalue.Deliverspecificbenefits.Differentiation.Telltheidealcustomerwhytheyshouldbuyfromyouandnotfromthecompetition. Yourvaluepropositionhastobethefirstthingvisitorsseeonyourhomepage,butitshouldalsobevisibleatallmajorentrypointstothesite. It’snotjustforaestheticsortoplacateaCEOorcopywriter.Ultimately,itcanimproveyourcustomerlifetimevalue. Peopleshouldreadandunderstandyourvalueproposition. Avaluepropositionissomethingrealhumansaresupposedtounderstand.It’sforpeopletoread.Here’sanexampleofwhatavaluepropositionisnotsupposedtobelike: Revenue-focusedmarketingautomation&saleseffectivenesssolutionsunleashcollaborationthroughouttherevenuecycle Wouldyoubeabletoexplaintheoffertoyourfriendorhowthey’dbenefit?Didn’tthinkso.Unfortunately,it’snojoke.Suchmeaningless“jargonpropositions”areabundant.Avoidblandvertisingatallcosts. Usetherightlanguageforyourvalueproposition. Yourvaluepropositionneedstobeinthelanguageofthecustomer.Itshouldjointheconversationthat’salreadygoingoninthecustomer’smind.Todothat,youneedtoknowthelanguageyourcustomersusetodescribeyourofferingandhowtheybenefitfromit. Youcannotguesswhattherightlanguageis.Thewayyouspeakaboutyourservicesisoftenverydifferentfromhowyourcustomersdescribethem.Theanswersareoutsideyouroffice.Youhavetointerviewyourcustomerstofinditout,oruseamessagingresearchtoollikeWynter. Whatthevaluepropositionisnot It’snotasloganoracatchphrase.Thisisnotavalueproposition: L’Oréal. Becausewe’reworthit. It’snotapositioningstatement.Thisisnotavalueproposition: America’s#1BandageBrand.Healsthewoundfast,healsthehurtfaster. Apositioningstatementisasubsetofavalueproposition,butit’snotthesamething. Whatthevaluepropositionconsistsof Thevaluepropositionisusuallyablockoftext(aheadline,sub-headline,andoneparagraphoftext)withavisual(photo,heroimage,graphics). Thereisnoonerightwaytogoaboutit.Isuggestyoustartwiththefollowingformula: Headline.Whatistheend-benefityou’reofferinginoneshortsentence?Itcanmentiontheproductand/orcustomer.Makeitanattentiongrabber.Sub-headlineora2–3sentenceparagraph.Aspecificexplanationofwhatyoudo/offer,forwhom,andwhyit’suseful.3bulletpoints.Listthekeybenefitsorfeatures.Visual.Imagescommunicatemuchfasterthanwords.Showtheproductimage,theheroshot,oranimagereinforcingyourmainmessage. Note:Havingsolidproductimagesarejustonepieceoftheecommercepie.You’llfind247ecommerceguidelinesinthisresearch-basedreport. Evaluateyourcurrentvaluepropositionbycheckingwhetheritanswersthequestionsbelow: Whatproductorserviceisyourcompanyselling?Whatistheend-benefitofusingit?Whoisyourtargetcustomerforthisproductorservice?Whatmakesyourofferinguniqueanddifferent? Usetheheadline/paragraph/bullets/visualformulatostructuretheanswers.(Here’savaluepropositionworksheetyoumightfinduseful.) Keystoagreatvalue proposition Thebestvaluepropositionisclear:Whatisit?Forwhom?Howisituseful?Ifthosequestionsareanswered,you’reontherightpath.Alwaysstriveforclarityfirst. Ifyourvaluepropositionmakespeoplego“hmph?”,you’redoingitwrong.Iftheyhavetoreadalotoftexttounderstandyouroffering,you’redoingitwrong.Yes,asufficientamountofinformationiscrucialforconversions,butyouneedtodrawtheminwithaclear,compellingvaluepropositionfirst. ResearchbyMarketingExperiments saysthatthekeychallengecompanieshaveisidentifyinganeffectivevalueproposition,followedbycommunicatingitclearly. Whatmakesagoodvalueproposition? Clarity!It’seasytounderstand.Itcommunicates theconcreteresultsacustomerwillgetfrompurchasingandusingyourproductsand/orservices.Itsayshowit’sdifferentorbetterthanthecompetitor’soffer.Itavoidshype(like“Neverseenbefore!”or“Amazingmiracleproduct!”),superlatives(“best”)andbusinessjargon(“value-addedinteractions”).Itcanbereadandunderstoodinabout5seconds. Also,inmostcases,there’sadifferencebetweenthevaluepropositionforyourcompanyandyourproduct.Youmustaddressboth. Whythepresentationofyourvaluepropositionmatters OriginalresearchbyCXLshowedthatusers: Noticedthevaluepropositionmorequicklywhenithadmoretext(i.e.tookupmorerealestateonthepage).Spentlongeronavaluepropositionasopposedtoelsewhereonthepagewhentherewasmoretoread.Recalledmoreservicesofferedbythesitewhenmoreserviceswerelisted.Describedmorewebsiteadvantageswhenthereweremorefeaturesandbenefitsavailabletoread.Preferredinformationintheformofbulletedlists.Preferenceforpagedesignwasinfluencedbywhichvariationwasoriginallyseen. Howtocraftapowerful,uniquevalueproposition Akeyroleforthevaluepropositionistosetyouapartfromthecompetition.Mostpeoplecheckout4–5differentoptions/serviceprovidersbeforetheydecide.Youwantyourofferingtostandoutinthisimportantresearchphase. Sohowdoyoumakeyourofferunique?Often,it’shardtospotanythinguniqueaboutyouroffering.Itrequiresdeepself-reflectionanddiscussion. Ifyoucan’tfindanything,you’dbettercreatesomething.Ofcourse,theuniquepartneedstobesomethingcustomersactuallycareabout.There’snopointbeinguniqueforthesakeofbeingunique(e.g.“theballbearingsinsideourbicyclesareblue”).Evenifwhatyousellisn’tunique,youcanstillcomeupwithagreatvalueproposition. Herearetwoarticlesthatcanhelpyoufinda“theme”orangleforyourvalueproposition: ValuePropositionsThatWorkTheFivePropositionsthatHelpCompaniesCreateValuefortheirCustomers Remember:Youdon’tneedtobeuniquetothewholeworld,justinthecustomer’smind. Theclosingofasaletakesplaceinacustomer’smind,notoutinthemarketplaceamongthecompetition. “Boosters”foryourvalueproposition Sometimes,littlethingstipthedecisioninyourfavor.Ifallmajorthingsareprettymuchthesamebetweenyouandyourcompetitors,youcanwinbyofferingsmallvalue-adds.Icallthemboosters. Thesethingsworkwellagainstcompetitorswhodon’tofferthem.Boosterscanbethingslike: Freeshipping;Fastshipping/Next-dayshipping;Freebonuswithapurchase;Freesetup/installation;Nosetupfee;Nolong-termcontract,cancelanytime;Licenseformultiplecomputers(vs.1);(Betterthan)money-backguarantee;Adiscountedprice(foraproduct);Customizable. Yougettheidea.Thinkwhatsmallthingsyoucouldaddthatwouldn’tcostyoumuchbutcouldbeattractivetosomebuyers. Makesuretheboosterisvisiblewiththerestofthevalueproposition. Exampleofavalueproposition“booster” Noticethe“FreeShipping”signinthetopleft?That’sabooster. 7Examplesofgreatvaluepropositions It’stoughtofindperfectvaluepropositionexamples.Probablybecauseit’shardtocreateagreatone.IfindflawsorroomforimprovementwithmostvaluepropositionsIcomeacross. I’malsofullyawarethatI’mnottheidealcustomerformanyoftheexamplesshownbelow,andmycritiquesareeducatedhypothesesthatshouldbetested. Herearesomegoodexamplesalongwithmycomments: 1.CampaignMonitor Comments Veryclearwhatitdoes;Specificleadparagraph;Relevantimagesthatsupporttext-basedclaims;Featuresabooster—”Instantsignup.Nocreditcardrequired.” 2.Stripe Comments It’sclearwhatitisandforwhom;Specificbenefit-orientedsub-headline;Relevantvisuals;Smoothtransitionintofeaturesandbenefits. 3.Trello Comments Clearstatementaboutwhatitisandforwhom;Listoffeaturesandbenefitsinsub-headline;Relevantimage. 4.Evernote Comments Succinctexplanationsofwhatit’sfor(“Yournotes”),thebenefititprovides(“Organized”),andwhyit’ssogreat(“Effortless”).Keyfeaturesandbenefitsinthesubheadline;Relevantimage. 5.Square Comments Veryclearheadline;Clearcalltoaction;Relevantimage;Missing:comparisonwiththecompetitionormoredetailsinasub-headline. 6.Zoom Comments LikeEvernote,theheadlineisclearandsuccinct.Boosterwith“SignUpFree”and“Signup,It’sfree”;Useofathird-partyreviewtocomparefavorablyandcrediblyagainstcompetitors. 7.Prey Comments Theheadlineisokaybutcouldbeclearer(i.e.“Keeptrackofyourlaptop,phoneortablet.Getitbackwhenitgetsstolenorlost.”Thefollowingparagraphdoesagoodjobexplainingwhatitis,asdoestheimage.Anactualscreenshotoftheproductmaybetterdemonstratewhatitdoes.Itusesboosterslikesocialmediaproofandrespectedlogos. Examplesofpoorvaluepropositions Somelessonsfromthedepartmentof“Don’tdothis!”: 1.Cloudflare Iusethisservicemyselfandthinkit’sgreat,buttheyreallyneedtodoabetterjob. Comments: Awfulclarity:“HelpingBuildaBetterInternet”?Nobodywillunderstandwhatthatmeans—nordoesthatsolveanyone’sproblem.Sub-headlineofferssomeclarityanddetail,butthatinfoshouldbeintheheadline.Imagelookslikeastockphoto. 2.ContinuumFinancial Comments Nopropervaluepropositioninplaceatall—theheadlinecongratulatesthemselvesonafive-yearanniversary.Awkwardphrasingifnotflat-outincorrect(“…welookforwardcontinuingtodeliver…”and“Whatstageofyourfinancialjourneyareyouat?”Noimageryabovethefold;thosebelowarestockphotos. Howtotestyourvalue proposition Youdefinitelyhavetotestyourvalueproposition.How?Therearetwomainways. 1.A/Btesting Thebestwaytotestyourvaluepropistocrafttwocandidates(ormore,ifyouhavetonsoftraffic)andsplittestthem.Ideally,you’dmeasuresalesconversions(forthemostaccurateresults),butifthat’snotpossible,leadcountsorevenclick-throughswilldo. LearnhowtorunA/Btestshere. 2.Pay-per-clickadvertising AfastandcheapwaytogoaboutitistouseGoogleAdsorFacebookAds. Splittestadswithdifferentvaluepropositionsthattargetthesamecustomer.Theadwithahigherclick-throughrateisobviouslyabetterattentiongrabberandinterestgenerator,althoughitdoesn’tnecessarilymeanhighersalesconversions. Sendthetraffictoacorrespondinglandingpageandtestconversions,too. Conclusion Youneedavaluepropositionandyouneedtocommunicateitclearlyonallthemainentrypages:homepage,productpages,categorypages,etc. Ifyoudon’tstatewhyusersshouldbuyfromyou,youwilllosemostofthem.Tocraftagreatvalueproposition: Focusonclarityaboveallelse.Usetheheadline,sub-headline,bullets,andimageformula.Test,test,test. RelatedPosts DoesYourValuePropositionEffectivelyCommunicateHowYou'reDifferent?Yourproductissosimilarto2or3majorcompetitorsinthemarketthat… IsYourValuePropositionClear&Compelling?[WebsiteReviews]TodayI'mreviewingvaluepropositionsofseveralwebsites.Valuepropositionsarecriticallyimportant-especially… UsingMessage-MiningtoPinpointaHigh-ConvertingValuePropositionforYourProductTherearealreadyabazillionresourcesouttherethatspellouthowto“craftthe… ManagerTrouble,WhatDoYouDo?(ValueYourCraft&Yourself)Areyouhavingissueswithyourmanager?Whatdoyoudowhenyourmanagerjust… RelatedPosts DoesYourValuePropositionEffectivelyCommunicateHowYou'reDifferent?Yourproductissosimilarto2or3majorcompetitorsinthemarketthat… IsYourValuePropositionClear&Compelling?[WebsiteReviews]TodayI'mreviewingvaluepropositionsofseveralwebsites.Valuepropositionsarecriticallyimportant-especially… UsingMessage-MiningtoPinpointaHigh-ConvertingValuePropositionforYourProductTherearealreadyabazillionresourcesouttherethatspellouthowto“craftthe… ManagerTrouble,WhatDoYouDo?(ValueYourCraft&Yourself)Areyouhavingissueswithyourmanager?Whatdoyoudowhenyourmanagerjust… PeepLaja PeepLajaisthefounderofCXL.He'sarenownedconversionoptimizationchampionandwasnominatedasthemostinfluentialCROexpertintheworld. AftersettingupandrunningSpeero(previouslyCXLAgency)forfiveyears,hestartedCXLInstitute,wheredata-drivenmarketersgettrained. Overthelast20years,Peephasworkedinwebdevelopment,marketingconsulting,B2Bsales,SEO,PPC,andSaaS. JointheconversationAddyourcomment great,thisreallyhelpedmeformymarketingclass.thanks! Goodpost. Avaluepropositionisnotforproductsorservicesonly.InthesamemanneryoucancreatewhatiscalledProfessionalValueProposition.Todoso,answerthefollowingthreequestions: 1.WhycanIbeuseful?WhatbusinessdrivershouldIrespondto? 2.HowdoIproceed?WhichareashouldIfocuson? 3.WhatresultscanIdeliver?Forwhatimprovement? Tolearnmorehttp://blog.instarlink.com/en/content/generate-value-proposition Wellwrittenandhighlyusefulpost. Thankyouforsharing Thanksforthispostitwasbrillianttoseeavisualrepresentationofthegood,thebadandtheuglywhenitcomestoUVP’s.It’sbeengreattoseeexamplesofaUVPtranslatedintowebsitedesign.We’vebeengettingcaughtupandstuckaroundourUVPandthishasreallyhelped. We’llcomebackandshareourlandingpagewhenwe’relessembarrassedbyit! JanineandJo brillant great!niceinformationforme Googleventuressaidexplainyourvaluepropositionin5seconds.Isearchedhowtodothatandfoundyourarticle.Fantasticadviceand100%rebrandable:) Greatlinkstoo–thanks fabulous..!!! Ihavereadsomanycontentregardingthebloggerloversbutthisarticle isactuallyagoodpost,keepitup. WowthismightbeoneofthebestpostsI’vereadonvaluestatementoptimization.Simple,easytoread,andnolongerthanitneededtobe.Hopetoputsomeofthisintoeffectsoonforourownstartup! AmazingPostagain..justcan’tgetoffthisblog..thisismy5tharticleinarow..greatsensible,usefulcontentwithlotofcasestudiesandresearch. Iwantedtosendthistomystaffandsomeclients.Ididn’t:“Youhavetopresentyourvaluepropositionasthefirstthingthevisitorsseeonyourhomepage,butshouldbevisibleinallmajorentrypointsofthesite.” Itseducative,informatory,andwelladvisingforrightdecision. continuewithgoodjob. kindregards. Ijustwantedtothankyou.Iaminthewebdesignindustry,andmyhomepageintroductionisn’treallytalkingtoanyone.Idon’thaveavaluepropositiononmyhomepage,thethemessageisweakoverall.Funnyenough,Icheckedmycompetition,andtheyarethesame!Thisinfoisreallygoingtohelppointmeintherightdirection.Iappreciateit. Thisisverydetailandgreatvalueforcreatingthevaluestatement! Excellentwork. Really,reallydetailed,meatyarticle.Morecopywritersanddesignersshouldreadthisarticle.Imusthavereadit5times,justtograspalittlemoreofwhatyouwheresaying.ThankstoyouIjustincreasedmylaunchpageskillsafewpoints. Quiteinformative!Ireallylikethecomparativeanalysis,itreallyhighlightskeyelementsofagoodvalueproposition Greatarticle.GreatExamples.Gotsomeworktodonow. Mysiteiskindofembarassingandtothisendwearelookingatatotalupdateinourapproach.MostofwhatisonthissitetoberemovedtobetterfocusonwhatwedointheRealEstateindustry,ie.Sell,buyandconsult. Averygoodpost,Peep.I’vereallygotdownwhatahomepageneedstohave. Teachingaconceptthroughgoodandbadexamplesarealwaysinformativeandentertainingaswell.Ibelievethatcreatingagoodvaluepropositioncanhelpusinresearchingandselectingtherightkeywordsforourtargetaudience.Next,italsohelpsincreatingcontentthataddresstheirproblems.Finally,providingaseriesofsolutionsthatmakethemwanttobuyourproductsorservices. Iusealotofexplanationstoclientsastowhydon’t‘Welcometo…’gleefullylookingforwardtousingyours! :-) manythanks Greatarticle!ArticlesonUVPgenerallyfocusonSaaSbusinessesanddon’tgivemuchattentiontoe-commerce,sothanksforincludingasolide-commerceexamplewithDown&Feather. informativearticle.keepitup.i’mfollowingeachofyourarticlebecauseitmighthelpmecreatingmynextwebsite. Foundthearticleveryhelpful.Iamdesigningawebsiteandthesetipsarehandyanduseful.Thanksforpublishing. VeryhelpfularticlePeep.Ihavebeenfocusingmuchmoreonconversionsforwebsitesandyouclearlyexplainedwhatavaluepropositionis.Theexamplesyouprovidedmadeitveryclear.I’mgoingtocheckoutsomemoreofyourposts.Thanksforyourhelp:) Astrongvaluepropositionisspecific,oftencitingnumbersorpercentages.Itmayincludeaquicksynopsisofyourworkwithsimilarcustomersasaproofsourceanddemonstrationofyourcapability.It’soutcomefocusedandstressesthebusinessvalueofyouroffering. Anexcellentarticle!GreatexamplesofwhattodoandwhatNOTtodo.After3yearsonline,IamfinallylearninghowimportantaUVPreallyis. Welldone.ToooftenIseecompanies–especiallyyoungtechcompanies–loadingupwithpropositionwithtechjargon.Wereallyhavetogettotheissuesourcustomercaresaboutbeforetheywilllisten. Awesomereading,clearandmakessense.IamafulltimestudentandamwritinganassignmentwhereIhavetoputvaluepropositionofmyproduct.Afterreadingthisarticle,IammuchclearhowIshouldframemyvalueproposition.Greatwork.Thankyousomuch. ExtremelyindeptharticleImustsay.Willdefinitelytakeitintoaccountanddolotsoftesting.Shouldbeinteresting! Thoseareusefulvaluepropositionexamplesindeed.IknowthereareplentyofsucharticlesontheNet(Imeanhelpfulones),butthereshouldbeevenmore!Thoseareinvaluabletobeginnerbloggers.Thanks! Greatpost…IwilldefinitelyusethesetacticsasitrelatestomyendeavorIamworkingon. ItwouldbeperfecttoseeyougivingthealternativestoL’OrealandBand-Aid. Yourwebsite’susabilitysucks.Youhavezoomdisabledformobiledevices.Diditeveroccurtoyouthatsomepeoplemaywant/needtozoom?Otherthanthatyourcontentisgood. Reallygreatandusefulcontenthere,thanksforputtingthistogether:) Asalways,greatpostPeep. ButIamwondering,couldyougivesomeexamplesofhoweCommercesitescandovaluepropositioninggreat?Ifyousell,forexample,archerygear,whatwouldyoudo? Excellentanddecentpost.Ifoundthismuchinformative,astowhatIwasexactlysearchingfor.Thanksforsuchpostandpleasekeepitup. Greatarticle,Ilearnedalot. Combinedwithyourarticleabouthowworthlesscarousels/sliderswere,Icreatedanewgraphiconoursite.Iwouldloveanyquickfeedback:http://www.designpanoply.com Thesliderisstillthere,butdoesn’tplayautomatically,andthearrowspopupwhenitgetshoveredover. Keepupthegreatcontent:) MycoachjustbroughtouttheuniquevaluepropositionformysiteandIcameheretofindoutmoreaboutUVP.Greatcontentandveryusefultohelpwritethewebsitecopy.IthinkIhavemyUVPfiguredoutbutifanyonewouldliketocommentonitpleaseemailme. Theexplainationisveryusefulforabusiness.Thereisthislearningthatcouldacquiredbyreadingthearticle. Greatstuff,Peep. Iwasreallystrugglingtocreatesomethingsuperexcitingandtotallyuniquebutthepointaboutusingsmallboosterstomakeourvaluepropositionuniquehelpedalot. Alsothedistinctionbetweenwhatisactuallyuniquewithwhatisuniqueinourcustomers’minds. Wehaveimplementedabunchofyourtipsforournewwebsite’svalueproposition. Thanks! GreatpostPeep.Iprobablyhavereadthisatleast10timesbynow,lovethevisualsandanalysis. Ithoughtyourarticlewassupervaluableandwantedtoshareit.Iuseditinmyrecentpost:Step-By-StepGuide:CreateAUniqueSellingPropositionforYourLandingPage(http://blog.usefedora.com/create-unique-selling-proposition-for-landing-page) Thanks! Thiswillbeveryuseful&helpsustobecompetitive. Greatpointsandsuchanimportanttopic.Havingtherightvaluepropositioncanreallygetyourbusinessgoing.Customizationisthekey. Greatarticle. Explaininagoodwaytounderstand. InBrazil,brandshaveapoorunderstandinginvalueproposition. thanksforthebook! ThanksforoneofthebestsummariesofwhatavaluestatementshouldbeandNotBE! Commentsareclosed. Currentarticle: HowtoCreateaUniqueValueProposition(withExamples) PreviousArticleYouTubeAds:HowtoSetUp,Run,andMonitorCampaigns NextArticleTheOnly3WaystoIncreaseSales What’sonmymindHi,I'mPeepLaja—founderofCXL.I'maformerchampionofoptimizationandexperimentationturnedbusinessbuilder. Idoalotofthinking,reading,andwritingaroundbusiness,strategy,andoptimization.Isendaweeklynewsletterwithwhat'sonmymindonthisstuff. Subscribe Categories Acquisition(137) Audioposts(5) BusinessBuilding(101) Copywriting(46) CRO&Testing(300) DigitalAnalytics(60) GoogleAnalytics(28) OriginalResearch(30) Psychology(79) SocialMedia(19) ThePe:pShow(49) UserExperience&PersuasiveDesign(175) ExecutewithplaybooksCreateauniquevalueproposition Invest5minutesaweek&learnfromtheverybest. Join100,000+growthmarketers,optimizers,analysts,and UXpractitionersandgetaweeklyemailthatkeepsyouinformed. Yourbusinesse-mail* Hidden Iagreetogetemails PhoneThisfieldisforvalidationpurposesandshouldbeleftunchanged. Subscribe ✕