Value Proposition Development

I was Wrong about Influence. Early in my career, I believed influence in a decision-making meeting was the direct outcome of a strong artifact presented and the ensuing discussion. However, with more leadership experience, I have come to realize that while these are important, there is something far more important at play. Influence, for a given decision, largely happens outside of and before decision-making meetings. Here's my 3 step approach you can follow to maximize your influence: (#3 is often missed yet most important) 1. Obsess over Knowing your Audience Why: Understanding your audience in-depth allows you to tailor your communication, approach and positioning. How: ↳ Research their backgrounds, how they think, what their goals are etc. ↳ Attend other meetings where they are present to learn about their priorities, how they think and what questions they ask. Take note of the topics that energize them or cause concern. ↳ Engage with others who frequently interact with them to gain additional insights. Ask about their preferences, hot buttons, and any subtle cues that could be useful in understanding their perspective. 2. Tailor your Communication Why: This ensures that your message is not just heard but also understood and valued. How: ↳ Seek inspiration from existing artifacts and pickup queues on terminologies, context and background on the give topic. ↳ Reflect on their goals and priorities, and integrate these elements into your communication. For instance, if they prioritize efficiency, highlight how your proposal enhances productivity. ↳Ask yourself "So what?" or "Why should they care" as a litmus test for relatability of your proposal. 3. Pre-socialize for support Why: It allows you to refine your approach, address potential objections, and build a coalition of support (ahead of and during the meeting). How: ↳ Schedule informal discussions or small group meetings with key stakeholders or their team members to discuss your idea(s). A casual coffee or a brief virtual call can be effective. Lead with curiosity vs. an intent to respond. ↳ Ask targeted questions to gather feedback and gauge reactions to your ideas. Examples: What are your initial thoughts on this draft proposal? What challenges do you foresee with this approach? How does this align with our current priorities? ↳ Acknowledge, incorporate and highlight the insights from these pre-meetings into the main meeting, treating them as an integral part of the decision-making process. What would you add? PS: BONUS - Following these steps also expands your understanding of the business and your internal network - both of which make you more effective. --- Follow me, tap the (🔔) Omar Halabieh for daily Leadership and Career posts.

One question turns failed PropTech pitches into closed deals. And most vendors never ask it. Here's the strategy alignment secret nobody's talking about. Last week, I watched another great product get rejected. Strong features. Clear value prop. But they pitched long-term efficiency to a merchant builder focused on exit value. Now they're wondering why the deal went nowhere. Here's how to align your pitch with their investment strategy: 1. Focus on strategy, not just asset type The secret isn't just knowing office from multifamily. It's understanding their investment timeline: Most vendors only see: • Office vs. retail • Multifamily vs. industrial • Class A vs. Class B Smart sellers also ask: • Hold period length • Exit strategy • Value creation timeline • Cash flow priorities Most fail because they stop at asset class. 2. Tailor your pitch to their timeline For long-term holders, focus on: • Operational efficiency • NOI improvement • Portfolio-wide impact • Solution stability • Compound ROI over time For short-term players, emphasize: • Repositioning acceleration • Lease-up support • Quick implementation • Flexible contract terms The timeline mismatch breaks more deals than price. 3. Ask the right questions first Start with: • "What's your typical hold period?" • "Are you looking to stabilize and hold or exit?" • "How do you handle property management?" • "What's your current solution stack?" Not: • "What types of properties do you own?" • "How many units do you have?" • "What systems are you using now?" • "When can we demo our product?" 4. Connect your value to their strategy Your pitch should show: • ROI within their ownership window • Value that matters to their strategy • Implementation that fits their timeline • Flexibility that matches their exit plans Never assume: • All owners want long-term savings • All GPs prioritize NOI • All buildings are forever holds • All operators think the same 5. Become a strategic partner Investment strategy changes everything: • It shapes their decision criteria • It determines their value metrics • It drives their timeline needs • It defines their success The difference between just another vendor and a strategic partner is understanding their investment strategy. Want to learn how the best PropTech companies align their pitches to investment strategies? Check out our free PropTech Pipeline Playbook email course in the comments.

Explaining your "value proposition" is probably doing more harm than good with your prospects.  Value propositions are meaningless to prospects when they don't connect the dots between what your product does and what problems it eliminates. Here's an example: If I were selling cookware, pitching "titanium-plated non-stick pans" would not resonate with my prospects, especially if they liked their current cookware. In order for "titanium-plated non-stick pans" to mean anything of value to my prospect, I would need to remind them of the gnarly egg crust that they had scrub away when doing the dishes last week and then explain that the "features" of my product are what would eliminate their egg-scrubbing problem. ___ Expecting your prospect to infer what problems your "value proposition" solves for them dumps all the work on your prospect. Do the work for them and put 2 and 2 together so they don't have to. You make it far easier for them to understand why your "Automated Billing Workflows" or "Unified Data Platform" or "Titanium-Plated Pan" is valuable when you ALSO tell them what that means for them. It's YOUR responsibility to remind your prospect of the egg stuck to their pan. 

One of the bigger lessons learned along the way was how to think about orienting our demand-driving engine around appealing to the whole brain of the consumer There's nothing wrong with focusing only on the left brain. There are likely countless examples of that approach working What seemed to work for us was evolving from building an engine primarily focused on appealing to the left brain to an engine aiming to appeal to both Here are my learnings on ways to approach each LEFT BRAIN ONLY 1) TACTICS  - 100% Direct Response  - Get the click, get the revenue...now 2) CREATIVE  - Rational appeal, promotional/offer-based, urgency 3) REPORTING  - Reports well with the modern toolkit 4) PURCHASE THOUGHT PROCESS  - High effort - Rationally considered - Emotion plays a tiny role 5) WORD OF MOUTH  - Worst case, it's all about the discount. not about the brand or how great the product is 6) SUCCESS METRICS  ⬆️ ROAS ⬆️ Attributable revenue via last click or MTA model 7) REVENUE COMPOSITION  - Feels great in the short term as the brand captures the initial group of raving fan customers / early adopters - If the brand is not careful, the base sales can erode over time as more efforts, creative, messaging, etc continue to be optimized around what best drives short term revenue  8) LONG-TERM OUTCOMES  - Decumulating (<- had non idea that was a word) Advantages - Need better offer & better product to continue to perform, continued reliance on buying attention. Race to the bottom - Resilient base of revs erodes, requiring more and more spend as a % of revs to hit growth goals APPEALING TO THE WHOLE BRAIN 1) TACTICS  - Balance of Brand Building and DR  - Create high quality experience, drive brand association, drive learned behavior, drive subscriber bases 2) CREATIVE  - Narrative storytelling, values-based, emotional (doesn’t mean ‘serious’) 3) REPORTING  - Reports poorly with modern toolkit 4) PURCHASE THOUGHT PROCESS  - More automatic and emotionally driven than driven by a rational, 'heavy' approach - Price tends to play a smaller role in the consideration 5) WORD OF MOUTH  - Ideally more of the WOM conversation is around how awesome the product and/or brand is  - the framing the friend receives is not around price or promo, but around excitement, enthusiasm, feeling and passion 6) SUCCESS METRICS  ⬆ base sales that keep showing up even if your conversion ads stop delivering or slow discounts, promos ⬆ can see increases in DR efficiency 7) REVENUE COMPOSITION  - Can lead to an increase in base sales from broader reach, long lasting emotional impact 8) LONG-TERM OUTCOMES  - Accumulating Advantages - Larger organic shopping base that doesn't have to be DR activated = less dependent on ads, less dependent on offers - Customer acquisition costs have the potential to decrease as more base sales steadily increase - Mkting $ as a % of revs can stay the same, or decrease, over time, which can increase profit margin 

Stop treating your prospects like calculators. I learned this lesson painfully while leading the launch of a new solution for a healthcare transformation organization. The CEO and SVP of Product Innovation were well-intentioned, but they had biases that fueled their convictions. “Show them the science and ROI. Once they see the data, they’ll switch,” said the CEO. “They’ll switch?” I asked curiously. They rarely switched for the logic. They often resisted because we didn’t understand the emotion that tied them to maintaining the status quo. Most B2B marketers still build journeys on the idea that buyers only care about features, scientific studies, and ROI models. But real people buy with their hearts as much as their heads. LinkedIn's B2B Institute found that emotional factors significantly influence B2B buying decisions, accounting for 66%, while rational factors account for the remaining 34%. When you act like every decision is a math problem, you miss the emotional needs and biases that drive action. Fear of missing out. Desire for security. The endorsement of a trusted referral. Those feelings tip the scales long before spreadsheets ever come out. Three quick shifts to make your GTM more human: 💡 Map emotions, not just touchpoints. Ask: What’s the buyer afraid of at each stage? What small win can calm that fear? Use stories to build trust. 💡 Data is important. But a 2-minute customer story about real struggle and success sticks far longer. 💡 Frame decisions around loss-aversion. “Don’t lose your edge” often lands harder than “gain more efficiency.” When you blend hard facts with a genuine understanding of how people feel, you’ll see faster decisions and deeper loyalty. Takeaway: Your next user journey should start with these questions: ✔️ “How do we show up in our customers' struggles? ✔️ "Do they see us as relevant?” ✔️ Can they see their lives as being better because of our help? Build from there. #businessgrowth #GTM #buyerjourney #CMO

Uncomfortable Truth for Pricing Strategy: Customer value isn't guesswork. Think pricing is all about costs? Think again. Online value research reveals what customers truly value and are willing to pay for. Here's what happens when companies embrace value-based pricing: → True Value Discovery A vending machine company discovered untapped value in their premium service and better-quality product. Result? $40M additional annual revenue with no loss in sales. → Customer Understanding One dashcam manufacturer found that women had completely different value drivers than men and were willing to pay 25-30% more. Understanding this doubled their projected sales. → Market Segmentation By matching prices to different market segments' willingness to pay, a corporate training provider drove 40% revenue growth. → Consistent Results Our client successes show the power of value-based pricing: - SaaS company raised prices 41% without losing customers - Streaming service doubled revenue through strategic pricing - Industrial components manufacturer grew sales 20% while raising prices 15% The truth? When you understand true customer value, pricing becomes your most powerful growth lever. Are you ready to let data drive your pricing decisions? #PricingStrategy #BusinessGrowth #ValueBasedPricing

Let's talk about the emotional algorithm of B2B decision-making. At the core of every buying decision—whether it's enterprise software or sneakers—lies the same human truth: Logic justifies. Emotion decides. Heartstrings loosen purse strings. We've spent decades pretending B2B decisions are purely rational. The data tells a different story: - Kantar research reveals emotionally-driven digital ads are *4X more likely* to build brand equity than their rational counterparts. - LinkedIn x Magna research shows *39% of B2B buyers* prioritize emotional connection when selecting vendors. (Yes, even for those six-figure contracts!) Yet I see most marketers make one of two fundamental mistakes: 1. They ignore emotion entirely, clinging to sterile "professional" content that feels safe but fails to connect. 2. They treat emotion as a blunt instrument, defaulting to generic inspiration that could apply to any brand in any category. There's a smarter, more nuanced approach. Our Creative Labs team at LinkedIn for Marketing decoded an emotional blueprint that maps precisely to the buyer's journey. I'm breaking it down in today's #PurnasProTip because it's too good not to share. After analyzing top-performing tech brands on our platform, we discovered distinct emotional patterns: - Awareness Stage: Winning content sparks celebration and love, mirroring the optimism of discovery. This is where possibility lives. - Consideration Stage: Reactions shift dramatically to insightful, reflecting the brain's need for evaluation and validation. Depth matters here. - Decision Stage: Top performers blend insightful + love, proving final choices require both confidence and emotional resonance. The head and heart must align. What this means for you: LinkedIn isn't a "suit and tie" network where emotions get checked at the door. It's where professionals come to solve problems, feel understood, and align with brands they genuinely like. The most successful B2B marketers are those who understand the emotional journey behind every seemingly "rational" decision. Infuse the right emotion at the right stage, and watch your impact multiply. Because heartstrings loosen purse strings. #HICM #CreativeLabs #B2BEmotion #HeartstringsLoosenPurseStrings

When you're launching something new, you want to be sure it's going to work. Running in-market experiments prior to launch confirms hypotheses before you commit resources. Just as important,  experiments can often prevent big missteps. Here are four rules of thumb that make for powerful experimentation: 1. Test more than one concept or proposition with more than one target market segment. Sure, you can test just one concept with just one target, but you'll only learn if it succeeded or failed. If you test several concepts in parallel with more than one target, you can compare performance by audience and start to understand the drivers of success across concepts. 2. Make sure that tested concepts are distinct and differentiated. Each concept should be unique because the goal is to learn as much as possible. If you only test three shades of blue, you'll never learn that people actually want red. 3. Test more than once. As you see 'hot spots' form between concept and audience, test variations of your winning concept. Let’s say, for example, that you test three distinct versions of your new product concept—let’s call them Red, Yellow, and Blue. In the first experiment, Red tests well with all three of your target audience segments. In the next experiment, test three versions of Red with all three segments. This next experiment might explore value propositions or particular features or positioning. It’s a way to generate additional learning about strategy: →What problem does Red solve for customers? →Which features drive interest in Red? →Which positioning helps to interest people in Red? 4. Be aware of your testing environment and how it creates bias (or not) for your experiment. I prefer real-life in-market experiments, with just enough exposure to generate statistically valid results; others prefer ‘lab-based’ testing. Either way, think about how representative your environment is of your eventual launch. The next time you’re making a big move, remember: experiments are a powerful way to reduce risk, whether you are launching a new product, repositioning a brand, or prioritizing a product pipeline. Happy experimenting! #LIPostingDayJune

Most founders test their messaging with expensive marketing campaigns. Smart founders test it with coffee conversations. The big marketing push approach: • Spend $10K on ads to test messaging • Launch to everyone at once • Get unclear feedback mixed with noise • Pivot the entire strategy based on vanity metrics The conversation experiment approach: • Talk to 10 people from ICP #1 this week • Try different messaging with each group • Learn what resonates before spending a dollar • Refine based on real reactions, not click-through rates Why conversations beat campaigns: → Real-time feedback → You see their face when you explain your value prop. Data can't show you confusion. → Deeper insights → 'That's interesting, but what I really need is...' vs. a bounced visitor → Multiple ICP testing Week 1: Talk to small business owners Week 2: Talk to enterprise managers Week 3: Talk to freelancers See who actually gets excited. Messaging iteration Try 3 different value props with the same ICP. See which one makes them lean forward. The conversation experiment framework: Week 1: 5 conversations with ICP #1, messaging version A Week 2: 5 conversations with ICP #1, messaging version B Week 3: 5 conversations with ICP #2, best messaging from week 1-2 Week 4: 5 conversations with ICP #3, refined messaging What you learn: Which ICP immediately understands the problem What words make them say 'Yes, exactly!' Which objections come up repeatedly Who's willing to pay vs. who just thinks it's 'cool' The goal: Find the ICP + messaging combo that creates genuine excitement. Then you can spend marketing dollars with confidence. Conversations scale insights. Campaigns scale what's already working. Which ICP are you assuming will love your product without actually talking to them?

The inbox of a founder is filled with failed AEs hawking GTM services and sales coaching they should have applied themselves successfully before trying to convince others their process works. Founders need to learn the art of simplifying your product pitch, and I'm highly skeptical an SDR/AE who didn't last a year a few times in a row before starting their own thing can help you do that. Founders often struggle to explain their products concisely. They become too in love with features and trapped in complexity, believing more details will convince investors or prospects to purchase. The opposite is true. To simplify your pitch: 1) Start with the problem. Articulate the specific pain point your audience instantly recognizes. Make them nod in agreement before introducing your solution. Use a framework like: "We help [specific customer] do [specific action] so that [meaningful outcome]." This forces clarity about who benefits and why they should care. 2) Strip away jargon. If your grandmother wouldn't understand it, try again. Technical brilliance means nothing if people can't grasp what you're selling. Test with strangers. When explaining your product in 30 seconds, watch their eyes. Confusion means your pitch needs work. 3) Focus on one core value proposition. You likely solve multiple problems, but leading with too many dilutes your message and stresses your buyer out. Remember: complexity signals insecurity, not intelligence. The truly revolutionary products can be explained simply. Your ability to distill complex ideas into simple language demonstrates your deep understanding and makes your vision accessible to everyone who matters.