How to Articulate Value in Professional Services
I have been in the services business for about 30 years and have always found it interesting as a communicator that many professional services companies and their executives often have a tough time articulating value.
First off, we know that “value” can be so many things. It can be monetary, material or some kind of service—a watch, lithium, an NFT or someone to help you do your taxes. While all of these have some kind of value, that value is subjective and what one person finds valuable, another may not.
I was once told a story by a good friend of mine. An art gallery had suffered a leak in the ceiling and had left a bucket and mop on the floor to catch the leaking water. The small area was cordoned off with yellow tape to prevent gallery visitors from slipping. Shortly after the gallery opened one day, a small but growing group of people started to gather around the taped-off area and began taking photos of the mop and bucket. It was not long after that that one of the group asked a nearby gallery employee what the price was for the bucket and mop “art installation.”
Second, while this may be obvious, “services” companies are in the business of delivering often intangible things—processes, expertise or assistance—to fulfill the specific needs or requirements of individuals, organizations or communities. My experience inside these organizations is that many of the professionals selling services, the best ones, have a strong, innate desire to serve and solve problems for clients. They inherently derive satisfaction and are trained to analyze complex problems and develop solutions in the service of a client. But so often, the problem-solution, problem – solution approach, so second nature to many consultants, overshadows the effort required to articulate an outcome or the value resulting from the solution they are recommending.
So powerful is the inclination to solve, that more energy goes toward explaining at length all the things (approaches, strategies, processes, architectures, org design, etc.) that would be done to solve that problem. On many occasions I was asked to review case studies or Requests for Proposals (RFPs) from clients, and they all generally followed the same structure. Case Studies tended to always have: “Challenge, Solution, Result”: RFP Executive Summaries – “Our Understanding, Approach and Solution, and Expected Result.” In both scenarios, the solutioning, the “all-we-would-do-for-you” sections, would invariably take up the greatest amount of space in the written response. The outcome or result, in essence the “value,” would not only be the last thing covered but it would often be very brief and sometimes almost parenthetical.
In fairness, many of the problems and solutions faced by professional services providers are complex, particularly when it comes to work involving transformation, technology and systems. I believe, however, that there is a predisposition to think that the more complex the description of the solution, the more the client will value the work and of course, pay a higher price. Don’t get me wrong. Complex problems should be right priced to fix, they just don’t have to be expressed in complex ways to convey value.
So, here are a few ideas that will help to communicate value more clearly.
Client Defines the Value: Value should always initially be defined and established by the client/customer, not just what you think has value. A joint understanding of value and how to articulate it will minimize misalignment and disappointment. Agree with the client up front as to what success will look like for them. If everything goes exactly to plan, what will make the client satisfied and delighted with the outcome? What will be different tomorrow?
Ask questions: Clients hire professional services firms and their people for their expertise. That does not mean you are expected to know everything. If you don’t understand something, ask, and ask again if necessary. It is better to ask and be clear.
Listen…actively: While it may seem obvious, it is surprising to me how much we think we listen versus what many call active or empathic listening. Active listening is not just about hearing something but empathically attuning to the thought and feeling around what a client might be saying. How a client says something may be as important as what they say, perhaps a tone that conveys concern, stress or hesitation. There is some interesting research (“The Relative Effectiveness of Active Listening in Initial Interactions”) that shows people feel more understood versus those that who just receive consulting advice.
Choose to Unconfuse: Complex answers to complex problems can be hard to describe. Regardless, spend the time getting the language right and err on the side of being concise. Seventeenth century mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal said it best: “I have made this longer than usual because I have not had time to make it shorter.” Complexity in a response (written or verbal) does not justify price when it comes to communicating.
Price to Value and not to Cost: So often we tended to underprice engagements, in part, because having clarity and confidence around the ROI (return on investment) can be elusive. Price with confidence around both “harder” and “softer” value (as long as you are aligned with the client around what you both agree is valuable). So much of the work I participated in delivered value beyond the contractually-agreed-on outcome or service level. I urge you to take an expansive view of value. How much less time will it take a programmer to ramp up and be productive? How much less “noise” or disruption will there be in the business because of the new, recommended approach? How will the solution contribute to employee satisfaction, engagement and the consistency of company culture?
Watch for Consulting-speak: Instead of “solutioning the ask,” why not “address the problem” or “solve the problem” (and in general, don’t treat nouns as verbs!)? Instead of “Value Realization” why not, “Results?” And please, no: “Our agile team leverages disruptive innovations for creating a paradigm shift” (an actual example).
Tell a Story: One definition of a story goes something like this: “A narrative account of events, experiences, or scenarios that typically follows a structured sequence and involves characters, settings, and a plot.” It may include some emotion, some excitement, some conflict or challenge, some kind of theme and most times, some kind of conclusion or resolution. This may not seem business-oriented, but the principles of storytelling will make your communication, particularly around value, more compelling and engaging.
Value in services is hard to express and quantify. Ask strong, probing questions and get to a mutually agreed definition with your client of what value is to them. Then, spend the time to communicate it simply. This will undoubtedly help to make it more interesting and increase the possibility of exceeding client expectations and building long-term trust through understanding, reliability and confidence in delivery.
Alex Pachetti
Strategic and Executive Communications Advisor