Creating A Strong Ecommerce Value Proposition

It's time to start driving timeline with your Q4 deals. Here are the 4 ways to create urgency to close: 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 Examples:  • Contract expiring with their provider  • About to cross an employee # threshold & subject to new regulations • Tax filing or reporting deadline "Date on the calendar" events are the easiest to drive timeline with, since your prospect has to do 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 by the hard deadline. ___ 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗲𝗿𝗺𝘀 Discounts, flexible payment terms, extra licenses, etc. There are times you'll want to proactively discount as a way to drive timeline. Before proactively offering a discount, "Timeline Test" your deal: "𝘌𝘮𝘮𝘢, 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘝𝘗 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘶𝘱 𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳. 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘐'𝘮 𝘸𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘧 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘶𝘱 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘰𝘶𝘵?" ^If you can get them to close on your timeline, a small discount is absolutely worth it. But if a discount won't actually make a difference for their timeline, you'll only look like a chump if you proactively offer one. 𝟯. 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗜𝗻𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 This is a painful problem that's impacting your prospect's business, but doesn't need to be solved by a certain date. You generally need to pair high COI with another timeline driver; otherwise your deal is apt to linger since they can always kick the problem out another week (and another, and another....) 𝟰. 𝗦𝗼𝗳𝘁 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 These are events where your prospect might want to have something in place: • Buy podcast ads to support an upcoming product launch • Rollout new accounting software at the start of their fiscal year • Get your product stood up before the holiday craziness I like to 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱 soft deadlines: "𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘶𝘴𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰. 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘴𝘮𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘧 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘪𝘮 𝘧𝘰𝘳?" Just like high COI, you probably need to pair this with another driver. 

It probably doesn't matter whether you do customer research or not... ...if all you're going to use it for is to validate the obvious value prop The obvious value prop is the one most people can think of without talking to a single customer. And it's probably the one your competitor is using in their marketing material. You won't get a gold star next to your copy that says "validated by customer research" -- The only way your research moves the needle is if it actually shows up in your copy -- if your copy is actually different Here's two techniques you can use to take it to the next level and stand out: 1) Uncover a non-obvious value prop Here's an example from when I used to market fire protection equipment: The obvious value props were protecting machines and preventing downtime (safety + productivity = save money) After talking to customers, we spotted two less obvious value props: a) Downtime could cause a machine shop to lose a customer, which means we were actually helping them protect revenue (make money!) b) Because we often sold to very busy business owners, we also addressed a psychological pain point ("I have more important things to worry about than the remote possibility of a catastrophic fire") 2) Punch up the obvious value prop with a specific detail Sometimes the obvious value prop IS valid, so you don't have to ditch it entirely Weaving in specific details will build trust by signaling to the customer that you understand their pain points from experience (not just internet research) Here we used "back up and running in as little as 45 minutes" -- which is a specific figure from a customer interview Customer research is a TON of work Don't settle for surface level intel -- keep digging to make sure the time you spend on research really pays off #b2bmarketing #messaging #copywriting

Building the product is the easy part. Marketing is the real challenge Most founders obsess over features, tech stacks, and new releases. But what happens is: You build the perfect product. Clean code. Cool features. All the bells and whistles. But if no one feels something when they see it? ❌They scroll. They bounce. They forget. I've helped brands go from invisible to irresistible — not by adding more features, but by telling a better story. Because people don’t follow products. They follow stories they want to be part of. Want to make your product matter? Start here: ✔️ Lead with a problem, not a pitch Make people say, “That’s exactly what I’m dealing with.” Hook them emotionally before you explain logically. ✔️Turn features into transformations Nobody cares that it syncs in real time. They care that it saves them hours and headaches. ✔️Show real people, not just product screens Human faces and stories outperform product shots every time. Make it personal. ✔️Simplify your message until it sticks If your story can’t fit in a sentence, it won’t stick. Clarity beats cleverness. ✔️Sell the mission, not just the mechanics What bigger shift are you helping create? That’s what turns users into evangelists. If you're building something great, but it’s not clicking, don’t ship another feature. Start with the story. #marketing #branding #storytelling #storyselling I share storytelling and creativity to help you and your company sell more and grow. Let's Connect! 1. My AI course on LinkedIn Learning: https://lnkd.in/e3Nc_3Ya 2. Join 10,000 others learning weekly growth tips at: https://lnkd.in/eCDKabp2 Use the 3-Act E.P.I.C Structure to turn stories into sales: https://lnkd.in/e9_eczTG 3. 3 Ways To Grow Guide: https://lnkd.in/gZaq56hT (no sign-up needed)

The best way to understand your customer is to be their customer first. This will help you identify inefficiencies, and opportunities where your solution could help improve the overall customer experience. This is also the type of research which can help you develop a tailored point of view that will resonate with Senior Executives who are invested in better serving their customers. It shows them you’ve done your homework and can bring immediate value. Finally, it helps you build immediate rapport since you are already a customer of theirs. Here are a 5 examples of how you can do this: 1. Call into their customer service department and see how easy or hard it is to get an issue resolved 2. Sign up for their newsletter and see the quality and quantity of the communications they send out 3. Use their mobile app or visit their online portals to see what the user experience is like 4. Visit their physical or online stores and see how their products are sold. 5. Read what their employees are saying on Glassdoor and identify where the employee experience could be improved Once you’ve done this firsthand research, then it’s time to establish your point of view on how and where you can help. Finally, you need to share it with the leaders who care most. For example: If your POV is related to their online store, the VP of eCommerce would be a prime candidate to hear this message. The more you know about your customers, the more you know how and where you can help them.

Does niching down result in incremental sales? I recently had an interesting conversation with a brand about this after doing an audit for them... These founders launched a bike light with one main differentiator: it’s green, while most bike lights are black. But when we dug into the data, we saw their best conversions weren’t on generic terms like “bike light.” Instead, they performed better on niche terms like “kids bike light,” “stroller light,” and “scooter light.” My advice to them👇 If you’re entering a competitive market with a limited budget, lean into a niche. For them, that meant positioning their product as a kid-friendly, multipurpose light, targeting parents with use cases for strollers, scooters, and kids' bikes. By doing this, they’d avoid competing head-on with every bike light on the market, lowering advertising costs and capturing a focused audience. Even though the founders initially targeted an adult market, conversions and review insights suggested that their product naturally attracted parents shopping for their kids. The takeaway applies across categories: If you're in a crowded space, look at your data. See where you’re winning, and go niche.

Why Salespeople Struggle to Create URGENCY: Urgency gets buyers to act now. But most salespeople create urgency that feels like a gimmick.   “We will no longer be offering this type of package." “Prices go up next week.” “Buy now, and I’ll throw in a discount.”   That’s not urgency. That’s an enticement wrapped in a ticking clock.   It’s price-driven. Not purpose-driven.   Real urgency doesn’t sell pressure. It sells impact.   Urgency isn’t about what they’ll save. It’s about what they’ll miss.   Challenge them to self-reflect. To feel the cost of inaction. To ignite urgency and create ownership of the consequences and impact, ask: 1. What are your biggest challenges in X-area that you'd regret not solving six months from now? 2. Who is impacted by this, and how? 3. What happens if nothing changes? 4. If you could achieve these results now, how would it impact you, your coworkers, company and customers? 5. What’s the long-term cost of waiting?   These aren’t scripts. They’re implication based questions.   They turn your buyer from passive to proactive. From “maybe later” to, “I need this now.” Don’t tell them to act now. Help them see why they need to.   That’s not pressure. That’s salesmanship.   It’s not manipulation. It’s motivation.   Let them sell themselves on why now matters.   Urgency isn’t yours to push. It’s theirs to discover.   When customers articulate their urgency, rather than being told, you’ll never need to, “drop your price” again. #sales #selling

Want to see brand storytelling done right? Etsy’s 20th anniversary "What it Takes"  campaign reminds us that being original, human-centric, and true to your values builds trust *and* stands out. Let's break it down... Devoid of traditional (and expected) branded flair, the campaign shifts attention to the creators—the users—and what it takes to produce the one-of-a-kind items that fill the marketplace. Instead of focusing on the highly-visual products, this quiet tribute celebrates the power of originally, the need for human connection, and the richness of craft through telling the stories of three makers. As Etsy CMO Brad Minor put it, this is about “celebrating originality” in a world that often prioritizes convenience. I often advise that content should educate, inspire, or entertain. This hits all three. Through a mix of in-person events, social video, and UGC, the campaign (by Orchard) successfully humanizes an otherwise intangible online space. In a great breakdown for DesignRush, Roberto Orosa surfaces three key lessons: 1. As mass production and AI-generated products grow more common, shoppers are increasingly drawn to brands that feel human and handmade. 2. By showing the hard work behind creativity, the platform shifts the narrative from product to process. 3. It’s one of the cleanest examples of how brand storytelling can focus not on what’s being sold, but on why it matters. 🌟 Takeaway: As trust becomes the biggest currency in brand-building, stories about your people, your purpose, and your process ensure you’ll never run out of original ideas. See the Etsy “What it Takes” campaign in action: https://lnkd.in/gSE4HYJ2 Full article via DesignRush: https://lnkd.in/gmFTzYDz Video credit: https://lnkd.in/g4rtY_cw

Is "good enough" really your competition? Or are you better than that? In a crowded market, it's easy to compete against products or solutions that are just "good enough." But what happens when your offering is truly superior? How do you ensure it's seen as a class above the rest? 👉 Here's how you can reposition yourself and highlight your unique value ↴ Elevate Your Story ↴ → Craft a narrative that emphasizes your journey, innovation, and commitment to excellence. → Highlight your passion for solving customer pain points more effectively than anyone else. Showcase Tangible Benefits ↴ → Use case studies and testimonials to demonstrate real-world successes. → Provide clear, quantifiable benefits that set you apart from the "good enough" alternatives. Leverage Thought Leadership ↴ → Share your expertise through blogs, webinars, and speaking engagements. → Position yourself as a trusted advisor and industry leader. Create a Premium Experience ↴ → Offer exceptional customer service that goes beyond expectations. → Focus on creating a seamless and delightful user experience. Communicate Your Unique Value Proposition ↴ → Clearly articulate what makes you different and better. → Use compelling messaging that resonates with your target audience's needs and desires. 👉 Remember, it's not just about being better;  it's about being perceived as irreplaceable. ✅ 🏆 When you position yourself as a differentiated solution, you don't just compete – you lead. 

While it can be easily believed that customers are the ultimate experts about their own needs, there are ways to gain insights and knowledge that customers may not be aware of or able to articulate directly. While customers are the ultimate source of truth about their needs, product managers can complement this knowledge by employing a combination of research, data analysis, and empathetic understanding to gain a more comprehensive understanding of customer needs and expectations. The goal is not to know more than customers but to use various tools and methods to gain insights that can lead to building better products and delivering exceptional user experiences. ➡️ User Research: Conducting thorough user research, such as interviews, surveys, and observational studies, can reveal underlying needs and pain points that customers may not have fully recognized or articulated. By learning from many users, we gain holistic insights and deeper insights into their motivations and behaviors. ➡️ Data Analysis: Analyzing user data, including behavioral data and usage patterns, can provide valuable insights into customer preferences and pain points. By identifying trends and patterns in the data, product managers can make informed decisions about what features or improvements are most likely to address customer needs effectively. ➡️ Contextual Inquiry: Observing customers in their real-life environment while using the product can uncover valuable insights into their needs and challenges. Contextual inquiry helps product managers understand the context in which customers use the product and how it fits into their daily lives. ➡️ Competitor Analysis: By studying competitors and their products, product managers can identify gaps in the market and potential unmet needs that customers may not even be aware of. Understanding what competitors offer can inspire product improvements and innovation. ➡️ Surfacing Implicit Needs: Sometimes, customers may not be able to express their needs explicitly, but through careful analysis and empathetic understanding, product managers can infer these implicit needs. This requires the ability to interpret feedback, observe behaviors, and understand the context in which customers use the product. ➡️ Iterative Prototyping and Testing: Continuously iterating and testing product prototypes with users allows product managers to gather feedback and refine the product based on real-world usage. Through this iterative process, product managers can uncover deeper customer needs and iteratively improve the product to meet those needs effectively. ➡️ Expertise in the Domain: Product managers, industry thought leaders, academic researchers, and others with deep domain knowledge and expertise can anticipate customer needs based on industry trends, best practices, and a comprehensive understanding of the market. #productinnovation #discovery #productmanagement #productleadership

Want to know if your UVP (Unique Value Proposition) is strong? Ask yourself: "Why should someone choose me over all other options—including doing nothing?" If your answer is vague, filled with buzzwords, or could describe any competitor, your UVP needs work. Example: A small agency initially said: "We help businesses grow with digital marketing." After reworking, they refined it to: "We help B2B consultants generate 5+ high-ticket leads per month—without running paid ads." See the difference? It’s specific, outcome-driven, and makes the right people say, “I need that.” Now, test your UVP. Answer the question. Does it truly stand out?