Joseph Wilson jwilson@marsdd.com

www.josephwilson.ca www.treehousegroup.org

Agenda

What is a value proposition?

Examples

Dimensions of value

Your target customer

Personalizing your value proposition

The strategy canvas

The buyer utility grid

MaRS Advisors

EIRs (Entrepreneurs in Residence)

Venture Capitalists

Investor relations professionals (Equicom)

PROBLEM #1: Defining a value proposition

Talking With Scientists:

What do you do?

“Explain the value of your company, not the technology behind it.”

“Your grandmother should understand your business.”

“Will I want to tell people at the next cocktail party I’m at?”

Who cares?

A value proposition is a statement of the unique benefits delivered by your offering to the target customer

The value proposition statement may consist of several components:

1. What your product is

2. The target customer

3. The value you provide

4. Why your product is unique

Good: “Winners is the only department store that offers fashion conscious consumers the latest brand names for up to 60 per cent off.”

Bad: “Winners is an off-price department store owned by TJX that employs international sourcing and buying power.”

“Winners is the only department

store that offers fashion conscious

consumers the latest brand

names for up to 60 per cent off.”

customer

value

what unique

Good: “Google is the world’s largest search engine that allows internet users to find relevant information quickly and easily.”

Bad: “Google uses a patented page-ranking algorithm to make money through ad placement.”

“Google is the world’s largest

search engine that allows

internet users to find relevant

information quickly and easily.”

what

customer

value

unique

Good: “A1 Industries has developed a cheap and easily applied additive that allows paint manufacturing companies to reduce the environmental impact of their products”

Bad: “A1 Industries has discovered a chemical isomer that bonds with carbon to allow an overall reduction in VOC emissions.”

“A1 Industries has developed a

cheap and easily applied

additive that allows paint

manufacturing companies to

reduce the environmental impact

of their products”

what customer

value

unique

Templates

Templates

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Usability

Social Inclusion

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Self-Actualization

Ethical

Selling to Business

Selling to Customer

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

- Overt values

- Rational decision making

B2B Sales:

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Selling to Business

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

Usability

Social Inclusion

Self-Actualization

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Ethical

Selling to Customer

- Latent values

- Emotional decision making

B2C Sales:

Saving/making money

Saving time

Lower risk

Enabling function

Convenience

Quality

Customizable

Usability

Social Inclusion

Health

Aesthetics

Status

Newness

Environmental

Self-Actualization

Ethical

Selling to Business

Selling to Customer

Get out of your office

Day in the Life Scenario

Ernie: fixes airplanes

Current situation & desired outcome

Problem encountered & economic consequences

Enabling factors of your product

New outcomes and economic rewards

Before

After

Get in the head of your customer

MaRS Market Intelligence Databases

Industry specific vendors

IDC Forrester Gartner

Lux Research Cleantech Group Thomson Pharma

MedTrack Business Insights

Recap

Multiple Industry coverage vendors

Frost & Sullivan BCC Research Total Patents Datamonitor

Venture Source Innography

Aggregator of other vendor

resources

Dialog Pro Market Research

Factiva

1. Access to reports from 20 databases

2. Access to industry analysts through inquiry

time

Key: Red – ICT Green – Cleantech & Nanotech Blue – Life Sciences

  Who has the most compelling problem?

  Who has the biggest financial problem?

  Which market is easiest to access?

  What values do you bring your target customer?

Prioritize your market segments

“A1 Industries has developed a

cheap and easily applied

additive that allows paint

manufacturing companies to

reduce the environmental impact

of their products”

“A1 Industries has developed a

cheap and easily applied

additive that allows _________

_________________________ to

reduce the environmental impact

of their products”

“A1 Industries has developed a

cheap and easily applied

additive that allows plastic chair

manufacturers to

reduce the environmental impact

of their products”

“A1 Industries has developed a

cheap and easily applied

additive that allows ____________

______________ to

reduce the environmental impact

of their products”

“A1 Industries has developed a

cheap and easily applied

additive that allows solar panel

manufacturers to

reduce the environmental impact

of their products”

Different stakeholders have �different values

Stakeholder Values

Teacher - Saving time, curriculum-aligned, engaging students, simple to set up and deliver,

Student - Fun, building self-confidence and social inclusion

Parent - Helping their child socially, academically,

Principal - Raising standardized scores, addressing priorities of the board (bullying, lowering suspension rates)

Superintendent - Addressing priorities of board, increasing communication between “family” of schools

Trustee - Get re-elected, broader community engagement;

Ministry - Broad policy: raising achievement, reducing achievement gaps, increase public confidence

Procurement officer

- Buy software and textbooks that are proven effective, that teachers will use.

“Google is the world’s largest search engine that allows internet users to find relevant information quickly and easily.”

customer

“Google is the world’s largest search engine that allows internet users to find relevant information quickly and easily.”

end user

“Google is the world’s largest search engine that gives advertisers access to millions of potential customers by personalizing ads based on searched content.”

customer

Double-sided business models

Double-sided business models

“The PeePoo Bag is a cheap, disposable outlet for human waste, providing a hygienic option for refugees in camps across East Africa.”

“The PeePoo Bag is a cheap, disposable outlet for human waste that turns into high quality fertilizer, perfect for low income East-African farmers to increase yield and avoid using expensive fossil fuel-based fertilizers.”

Product differentiation

Blue Ocean Strategy, Kim & Mauborgne, Harvard 2005

What is the criteria people use when solving their problem?

How does your business rate on that criteria?

High

Medium

Low

Product differentiation

The goal is not to be the highest in each category, but to have a unique profile that highlights where your value lies.

Blue Ocean Strategy, Kim & Mauborgne, Harvard 2005

Added Value How do customers perform research on the product they want to buy?

How do you deliver the product to your customers?

How do your consumers use your product?

How do customers maintain the product over time?

How do you support the use of the product?

How do your customers dispose of your product?

Blue Ocean Strategy, Kim & Mauborgne, Harvard 2005

Adding Value: on-line banking

Blue Ocean Strategy, Kim & Mauborgne, Harvard 2005

The value proposition statement may consist of several components:

1. What your product is

2. The target customer

3. The value you provide

4. Why your product is unique

Summary

Go home and write one!

Joseph Wilson jwilson@marsdd.com

www.josephwilson.ca www.treehousegroup.org