The Elements of Value Innovation

Have you ever wondered how some companies achieve sustainable growth while other struggle to keep up? W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne stated in an article from the Harvard Business Review, Value Innovation, “In a five-year study of high-growth companies and their less successful competitors, we found that the answer lay in the way each group approached strategy”. The authors go on to explain that the conventional way of thinking, beating the competition, wasn’t the type of strategy that high-growth organizations adopted but rather the strategic process of making the competition irrelevant. The article explained in detail that it didn’t matter what size the organization was but how they logically approached strategy that impacted growth. What can we learn from this as small business owners? The lesson is that we truly have a great opportunity. We, the small business owners, are more flexible, more agile, and more creative and we have less bureaucracy. That’s why entrepreneurs still have a chance to create successful businesses even in the most uncertain economic times.

Let’s talk more about the elements of value innovation. To innovate value you have to skillfully integrate an idea, competitiveness and emotional value for consumers. Ask yourself these questions:

• What do you stand for (value proposition)?
• What makes you stand out (marketability)?
• What makes you compelling (brand story)?

Consider this value innovation model when developing value innovation for your company:

To consider each of the strategies surrounding your value proposition look at:

1. Core Capabilities – Look at what value you have to offer your clients. Are you capitalizing on your strengths? Each of the following strategies will strengthen your core capabilities making you more marketable to your clients.
2. Partner Network – Develop partnerships and alliances so that you can win more accounts. Think outside-of-the box. Remember, the goal is to make the competition irrelevant if you want to master value innovation. Bring in more partners and alliances and you will build your core capabilities for a unique client experience.
3. Customer Relationship Management – How will you manage your clients? What unique value do you offer over the competition? Start by knowing the competition and defining how your CRM strategy will differ.
4. Distribution Channel – Distributing your product or service is the one of the most important strategies to consider. Think about the many products and services you can offer to build your core but more importantly determine how accessible will it be for your client.
5. Target Customer – The idea is to have a niche market. Define a small or narrow target and it’s much easier to offer them precisely what they need. Again, you may have several target customers if you have a variety of core capabilities but the idea is to identify each segment skillfully.
6. Cost Structure – Determining your cost structure will contribute to your competitive advantage. If you are a small business you have less overhead than larger companies and can add more value at the same time. Never price yourself out of the market or below. Investigate pricing strategies that will work for your clients.
7. Revenue Streams – Consider multiple revenue streams and structures. Think about funneling buyers through the buying process. First you have to build awareness, then interest and ultimately trial (A.I.T.). So, if you think about your revenue strategies you might want to think about different packages you can offer your client to augment your business. Start with a small package to build trust and win them over for repeat business in the future.

An Example of Value Innovation:

Amazon’s business model or value model combines an idea, competitive pricing and an emotional experience for the customer:

• Shopping convenience
• Ease of purchase
• Speed
• Decision-enabling information
• A wide selection
• Discounted pricing
• Reliability of order fulfillment

It’s the integration of all these processes and emotional benefits that makes Amazon a great value to consumers. Your business can do this too! You just have to plan to strategically position your company and products. Understanding that high-growth companies approach strategy differently really helps new companies create a sustainable model from the beginning. If you want to attend a free seminar on Value Innovation see our FaceBook Events page for more details.

Trisha Ahlman is a marketing strategist and small business owner. She has worked in just about every marketing function possible for nearly 20 years. Augment Marketing Group's specialty is helping small businesses build strong brands, increase visibility in the market, and generate sales - this is called our B.I.G. (tm) system. To contact, email trisha@augmentgroup.com.

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Repositioning a Brand - It's Going to Be a Long Road

A long road? It doesn't have to be. Today, branding is such a broad term used loosely to explain a concept that for some isn’t so easy to define. In our entrepreneurial training classes, we explain that the only way to describe branding is to say that ‘branding is everything’! From the way your employee answers the phone to how you dress and even how the company is structured internally. In fact, described by many professionals like LaCosta Lolly of LLS International Consulting, a international strategic firm, “developing a strong brand starts from the inside out”. I couldn’t agree more. I have taught in many courses that in order to brand or reposition an existing brand you must start from the inside out.

First, we analyze the brand through the process of what we call the branding wheel model which first starts with the company’s core philosophy. At that point we determine the organizations unique selling proposition moving into the entire brand architecture; ultimately, determining what that looks like and sounds like to the world through creative imagery and messages. To reposition a brand we have to take it a step further and redefine what the organization looks like to its stakeholders. This can be done through the perceptual mapping process. As you probably realize at this point, it isn’t going to be an easy task. It takes a highly skilled professional or consultant to help entrepreneurs step away from the business long enough to develop the foundation of a strong brand.The question is what can you do? The best thing you can do for your company is envision its future. Without your leadership and understanding of where you want to take the company – most likely you will not gain support from those who drive your vision. It doesn’t have to be a long road if you play the visionary role in your business. When repositioning your brand it’s best to understand how to shorten the path to successfully build positive brand equity in the minds of stakeholders.

Here are the top ten things you need to do in order to start:

1. Follow the branding wheel process
2. Develop scenario’s or what if situations
3. Take action (seems simple but many small businesses fail because they do not ‘TAKE ACTION’)
4. Hire someone to help you (a coordinator, an intern, a friend or relative or a consultant)
5. Review the trends 5-10 years out for your industry
6. Develop a spreadsheet that captures the benefits, features, advantages and disadvantages of your competition
7. KNOW the competition better than they know themselves
8. Network, network, network (both online and at events)
9. Remember the 5 P’s of marketing (Product, Placement, Price, People, Promotion)
10. Analyze your internal structure, your vision for the company and how you manage your people

If you want to learn more about branding or repositioning your brand, you can attend one of our free workshops (see events on our Face Book page) or you can visit our Web site. We offer a wealth of information to help small to mid-sized businesses augment their marketing and their brands. Learn from some of the brightest consultants in their fields of expertise like LaCosta Lolly, Harry Futch and others. These consultants have joined our team to deliver sound advice to our readers. Each of them have a passion for helping entrepreneurs realize their dreams.