There is an old saying that; “it is a lot easier to ride a horse in the direction that it is going”. It is also much easier to sell something to a customer that they want, verses something that they don’t. The key to being a successful value adder of anything is to be able to get closer to, and understand your customer’s needs and wants better than any of the competition. If your products or services make your customer’s life easier or can solve some of their problems, then you are in a good position to capture added value and receive a price premium. The main job of a value adder must be to find and target the customers that are best suited to the level of value that their products or services can offer.

 

What if you produce a commodity product? Contrary to popular opinion, with some work it is possible to transcend from being seen in the marketplace as a commodity, and to increase your value ratio with your customer. Commodity products can and do sell at different price levels in the marketplace. Grading is a common method used to create product differentiation and to capture added value. Different grades or qualities offer different value to different customer market segments. This results in different market opportunities and different levels of return to producers. The more you are able to differentiate your products in the marketplace, while remaining congruent with your customer’s needs, then the greater the opportunity you create to add new value to your products and services. 

 

When searching for new value from what you have already got, questions are you best friend. Questions provoke thought and discussion, and the expectation of answers. They also help to stimulate new ideas, innovations and create powerful synergies. You will find asking yourself the following questions helpful when searching for new value and opportunities from what you’ve already got:

 

§ What does our farm presently value the most about our products and services?

§ What unique values do our products or services offer to our consumers?

§ What do our current customers value most about our products or services?

§ Are there other potential customers that share these same customer values?

§ How do our customers use our products? What are their main challenges?

§ Can our customers easily differentiate our products from the competition?

§ What would make it easier for our customers to buy more of our products or services?

§ What new technologies are available that could make our products better for our customers?

§ What other products could we produce and offer to our current customers?

§ What are our competitors doing to add value to their products?

§ Can our customers easily differentiate our products from the competition?

§ What are the future trends that could influence our product’s demand?

§ Who could we enlist to help us find new value from our products or services?

§ If it was possible to offer our customer better value, how would we do it?

 

If you limit your future value added opportunities to anything less than the most that you can become; the world is sure to oblige you. Don’t be afraid to ask the hard questions of your business that could change your future.