Keep these core concepts in mind when developing and implementing your industrial firm's value communication strategy.

1. Ten Core
Concepts:
for
Communicating
Value
in
Industrial Markets
Value!
Rhett Talley, Marketing & Business Development Manager, SCACO Pty Ltd www.scaco.com.au

2. The Technical Team
I work as the sales and marketing guy in a niche technology firm. That’s
me above on the right. I work with a bunch of propeller-heads, like the
guys on the left. No, really.
Technical people sometimes focus on how things work.
I ask: Who is the buyer persona? Is how the thing works what she really
values?
The Purpose of this Presentation: A reminder not to get lost in how
technology works but to focus on who values it, and why. Basically, to
introduce a value vocabulary.
The Customer

3. What is our Value Communication Strategy?
What strategic objectives does it serve?
Before we start we should know the value what we want to communicate and why.
Wait! Why are we here?”
“We’re supposed to say something, right?”
“Hey, are those customers?”
One

4. Think of the customer as a buyer persona with known characteristics,
challenges, value needs, KPIs to satisfy, preferences, biases,
expectations, a boss to please, and a busy life, all within a defined
targeted market segment or niche.
Who is our customer?
And where is she?
Two

5. Answer: We want to improve
the customer’s life by selling
a uniquely valued solution to a
vexxing problem which we
really understand.
“Please, tell me
about your
problem.
It could be an
opportunity to
improve the
quality of your
life…”
This is you:
This is
the customer:
“They really understand me!”
This is you:
Question: What do you want to sell to the customer
- and why do you want to sell it?
Three

6. “What do you see?”
“It’s leaking. Clearly, the food trough
has been poorly riveted, built of
substandard timber, sanded in the
wrong grain direction, and is
unsymmetrical.”
“How about you? What do you see?”
“I see the end of my hunger.”
Four When you look at the stuff you sell, what do you see?
What does your customer see?

7. Do you and the customer
have a shared
understanding of
problems, needs and
expectations? Do we
assist the customer in
articulating need and
value? Do we create
value together?
“I’m not really
an expert
at this stuff.
I’m in the dark
here.”
Five

8. Does our value narrative clearly identify and address insightfully, effectively,
and persuasively the customer’s value need and value expectation?
Is it a great story that engages and makes sense?
Like a perfect couple, does it seem that we are a match made in heaven?
heaven?
“What’s a value narrative?”
“Uh, I think it’s a brochure.”
Insert Value Partnership here
Six

9. What is our value communication strategy within our target market
and what tactics do we employ to connect our compelling value
story with those expectations and needs of targeted persons or
companies?
• Telephone Conversations
• Face to Face Meetings
• Marketing Automation
• Trial Use Offers
• Email Campaigns
• Technology Showroom
• Telemarketing
• Company Technical Blogs
• Thought Leader Blog
• Social Media
• Print Advertising
• Trade Media Articles
• Web Based Advertising
• Trade Shows
• White Papers
• Google SEO Mastery
• Social Cause Promotions
• Peer Word of Mouth
• Company E-Newsletters
• You Tube Videos
• Technology Roadshows
Go see a customer!
Sir, Is that a tactic or a
strategy?
Seven

10. What are we famous for? (What does our brand actually mean to our
customer?)
Does our customer and our target market even know what we are
famous for?
Should they know? Have you told them?
“Thanks for calling our company! My name’s
Bob
and I’m the CBMO (Chief Brand Meaning
Officer).”
Eight

11. How effectively do we communicate and reinforce to prospects and
industry peers the value-in-use and value co-creation story of our
existing satisfied customer-partners?
Nine

12. After all of this value communication, how does it stack up within the
need requirements of our Google, SEO, Social Media, Opt-In, and other
enquiry/lead capture and convert strategies?
Have we defined what these numbers actually are?
Or who is in charge of getting them?
Incoming enquiry levels
needed to B/E
Actual incoming
enquiry levels
(Yikes!)
Ten

13. “Mr Customer: The guy on the left chose to partner with our company…
…the guy on the right chose to partner with a different company…
…please don’t be the guy on the right.”
If you’ve made it this far – thanks for viewing. Now go and market something! © Rhett Talley 2014