Can DVP…?

Day 1 in Australia and I am at sitting with a Valkre customer whom I have partnered with for over a year, let’s call him “Cooper” because I think that is a strong Aussie name. Cooper is a young, ambitious, introspective, MBA graduate who has worked in both B2B Sales and Marketing. He is trying to push the multiple businesses of a large company towards a steeper growth path by improving Customer Value, by simplifying business operations and by listening to customers. I am peppered with questions, and frustrated at myself for not having already documented the answers to these very relevant questions sooner…So here is the start of my list of things that DVP, and improving Customer Value, can help your business achieve. Before I jump in, just a quick reminder that Differential Value Proposition (DVP) is how we define Value Propositions and help companies on the path of improving Customer Value. Here goes:

1. Can DVP help reinvigorate a long term strategic account where we just lost a very large RFP to a strong competitor? Yes
2. Can DVP drive internal organizational alignment, and develop a common language and understanding of Customer Value, around complex Product and Service value propositions? Yes. What if those Customer Value Propositions vary by customer?  Yes
3. Can DVP help coordinate across businesses serving a strategic customer who thinks in 20+ year horizons (while we think in 90 day P&L targets)? Yes
4. Does DVP help drive Commercial Innovation and growth at an ‘engineer-centric’ company? Yes.
5. Can DVP Provide Account Reps with a meaningful reason to get in front of even the smallest of customers?  Yes, a direct quote from a Valkre customer:
   
        "DVP gives my Account Reps a way and a reason to get in front of their
        customer’s. If you think of the critical pain points our Reps deal with at
        the customer, it is turnover (of employees) and broken promises, DVP helps
        us all understand what we do well today and what we need to do to
        improv."

Here are some things DVP cannot help your organization achieve:

1. Provide the courage to go talk to your customers and ask them how your company drives
   differential value for their business
2. Win the Excel Award for “Most complex value calculator spread sheet equation” (although I believe I did win that award in 2005 while working at a major consulting company)
3. Win over skeptics who believe they can solve P&L shortfalls by cutting Travel budgets year after year. 
4. Stop your organization from having an internal focus around whose Outlook Calendar is filled with the most meetings
5. Make your team stand up and sing “This is the Age of Aquarius” like Steve Carell at end of the movie, “The 40 year Old Virgin”  

Notice a common theme in what DVP ‘can’ do? DVP, improving Customer Value, is an enabler and Valkre believes it is the best system to help you engage and better partner with your customer to drive mutual growth and benefit.  While DVP can shed light on most any question which requires “Customer” to understand, DVP cannot force your organization act on those insights to improve Customer Value. However, Valkre finds that by bringing the Customer into the day to day conversations and water cooler talk, that things do begin to change, and Outlook calendars start to get blocked out for day trips to talk to customers…To HECK with Travel budgets!!

By the way, my hometown of Chicago finally emerged from 9 months of gray skies, and I am welcomed to Sydney by this scene!