Value During a Sale: Who Determines It?

Who Determines the Value During a Sale?
A sales rep struggling to close a deal asked us recently, “Who determines value during a sale?” At first glance, the answer seems obvious — but it’s worth pausing. While you can shape perceptions and influence decisions, ultimately, it’s the buyer who decides what they truly value. Your role isn’t to dictate value — it’s to:

• Uncover it.
• Connect it to their priorities.
• Make it impossible for them to ignore.

It Is About Your Customer
Sales rep assessment data finds that many solution sellers embrace the idea that value can outweigh price — but too often, they define value narrowly, through their own lens rather than the customer’s. The result? Sales reps spend energy trying to convince customers of “the value,” hoping it will justify a higher price — rather than uncovering and connecting to the value the customer actually cares about. True value emerges only when you see the deal through the buyer’s eyes.

What Top Performing Sellers Do: Value During a Sale

Top performing solution sellers start with one guiding principle: the customer’s unique situation defines value. They focus entirely on understanding the buyer’s needs, then craft a tailored combination of performance and price that delivers exactly what the customer requires to succeed. In solution selling, the only definition of value — and the only measure of success that matters — is the one set by the customer, not the seller..

How Performance and Price Intersect
When it comes to who determines the value during a sale, one way to think through value from the customer’s point of view is to ensure that your business sales training programs help sales reps understand where two needs intersect: performance and price.

1. 1. Price
      Budget is often a primary consideration for the customer and is a function of overall resources available, priorities of the business, and available alternatives in the marketplace.
      
      Mission critical projects will take precedence. Smart sellers know where their project fits in the customer’s larger business strategy, financial constraints, and competitive landscape.
   2. Performance
      A second consideration is performance.  How will the success of the project be measured?  What is the required level of performance?
      
      Maybe the customer does not need to roll out the program to all employees — maybe a select audience is all they require. Perhaps speed is of the essence, or cutting edge technology, or proven quality. It is your job to figure out how to enhance your basic offering with only the features a customer needs and wants.
      
      Most often, a customized approach to their unique situation is what will differentiate your offering from the competition.

It Is Not About You or Your Stuff
In our experience, most salespeople do not invest enough time or energy understanding the unique needs of their client to design a customized solution that truly adds value to their buyer. High performing sales organizations deeply understand the unique journey each customer goes through before they buy. This understanding allows them to align their sales strategy to what matters most to their buyers.

Understanding the Customer Journey Provides Advantages
Sellers who deeply understand the customer buying process discover and add value at every stage of the buying cycle. For example, when the customer is beginning to shop, the best sellers are helping them to:

• Define the problem.
• Understand options.
• Identify the buying criteria.

When they are ready to buy, smart consultative sellers:

• Help usher contracts through needed channels.
• Create financing arrangements that favor the customer without extra cost for the seller.

And as the solution is being implemented, the smart value seller:

• Oversees the project.
• Makes suggestions for more efficient and effective execution.
• Keeps the customer’s goals as top priority.

The Bottom Line
The solution seller who can redefine the concept of value as what really matters to the customer is the solution seller who determines the value during a sale. The more precisely your sales team can meet a customer’s known and unknown expectations, the more they will differentiate themselves as a trusted advisor who truly wants the customer to succeed.

To learn more about who determines the value during a sale and how to negotiate value more effectively, download The 2 Most Common Sales Negotiation Tactics to Prepare For

by Tristam Brown: CEO

Tristam Brown is an executive business consultant and organizational development expert with more than three decades of experience helping organizations accelerate performance, build high-impact teams, and turn strategy into execution. As CEO of LSA Global, he works with leaders to get and stay aligned™ through research-backed strategy, culture, and talent solutions that produce measurable, business-critical results. See full bio.