It's no longer enough to simply target your chosen customers and hope for the best in this competitive environment. Any B2B enterprise that wants to grow and remain a going concern has likely woken up to the reality that the landscape has shifted. To stay ahead of the competition, you not only need to create distinctive value and experiences for your clients, but you also have to approach everything you do in the most pre-planned way possible. This is where using project management for client development can put you ahead of the curve.

For some, gift giving is the merriest part of the holiday season. For others, it causes panic and dread.

Gift giving and receiving are both highly emotional processes, which is why there is so much pressure to give employees, managers, clients, and peers the right gifts. Stress builds over whether it is appropriate to give a gift in the first place, what to give, and how much to spend. But despite this worry, business professionals continue to exchange gifts and deliver gifts to clients year after year because the benefits of doing so far outweigh their internal angst.

Value propositions are a little like wine – there is a vast difference between good versions and bad versions, but many people cannot discern the nuances that go into crafting the best.

As the name would imply, a value proposition is a statement that conveys the benefit that a product provides to consumers. However, an effective value proposition is more than a statement of value. The best value propositions also:

• Make a credible promise to consumers
• Solve problems or help attain aspirational goals
• Differentiate products from competitors
• Provide quantifiable benefits
• Persuade consumers to take action (purchase, donate, etc.)

Unfortunately, instead of using this powerful tool to drive profits, many organizations end up with lackluster value propositions or overlook them altogether. Businesses in highly competitive industries are particularly vulnerable to falling flat with their value propositions because they are forced to contend with many competitors for the same audience’s limited needs.

Regardless of your industry, what you do, or your business type, two things are probably true: 1) you rely on customers and clients for success, and 2) you have competitors. As such, how you market your business is a critical part of business longevity, reputation, and influence.

This is why value proposition becomes so important. Indeed, a value proposition is arguably the most important aspect of your overarching company message, and potentially the most critical element of your marketing strategy.

A targeted marketing strategy has the potential for generating far more revenue than a generalized mass marketing approach. However, proper targeting is contingent upon segmenting your audience into distinct groups that share the same needs or characteristics.

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Brand integrity is a measure of how buyers perceive a brand across all its touchpoints. It is the sum of an organization’s parts as calculated by the public, and it has a direct correlation with overall brand value.

This brand value translates to revenue numbers, valuations, and almost every other measuring stick that both public and private companies use to demonstrate worth to investors and shareholders.

Savvy business executives understand that sales aren’t just about selling – it is about positioning and planning to ensure long-term success. An effective sales model has always laid the framework for a go-to-market strategy across all areas of the business. However, sales models today vary substantially from their historical counterparts.

Modern businesses face more rapid change and more complex logistics than ever before, which means their sales models have to follow in stride. Traditional sales models are failing to keep pace with the number of potential buyer touchpoints that B2C and B2B businesses manage.

Today’s sales model must be strategic in nature – integrating sales, marketing, distribution, and promotional considerations.

This checklist will help you align business functions with the end goal of a strategic sales model in mind: