Why Leading with a Point of View Wins in B2B Tech
The B2B tech market is more crowded than the Atlanta airport (PSA: Roast Coffeehouse is an oasis, even though there’s always a line). Even solutions that are truly unique get lost in the plethora of options because buyers can’t easily see the difference between competitors.
For companies with transformative products and services that are making a real difference to their customers, this situation is incredibly frustrating. They struggle to attract attention, and their impact goes unnoticed — which translates to leads that don’t fully understand their value, and the sales cycle drags on.
Of course, capabilities matter. You have to have a solution that does what customers need it to do. But promoting capabilities is no longer enough to attract customers.
So what’s the answer to this dilemma? Lead with your point of view on the problem you solve for your customers and how to solve it.
How is the status quo damaging them in ways they haven’t considered?
Why hasn’t their old way of solving the problem worked?
What factors are they missing when looking at the problem?
What’s the root cause they aren’t addressing?
What opportunities are they not seeing clearly?
What things are they assuming can’t be changed, when they actually can?
Leading with a point of view is powerful for a lot of reasons. Here are just a few.
Provides Context for Your Capabilities
Situating your capabilities in the context of the problems they solve helps buyers better understand them. Your POV acts as a map — it lets them see the layout of the land before they get dropped into the forest of features. It gives them a framework for how to think about your solution.
Demonstrates Your Expertise and Builds Trust
A meaningful point of view shows prospects that you understand the situation they’re in and you are capable of helping them. It’s the difference between “Hey, we built this thing, and isn’t it cool?” and “Hey, we built this cool thing because we / our friends had this problem, and we saw that the usual way of approaching the problem wasn’t working. Here’s why.” A POV builds trust in your expertise.
Inspires Buyers with a Vision for a Better Future
A list of capabilities can’t inspire buyers the way a POV can. As part of your POV, you’re painting a picture of a possible future, a better future. Prospects will be inspired by that vision and want to experience it. That inspiration will help motivate them to overcome the status quo bias to purchase and implement a new solution.
Makes You More Memorable
A point of view is rooted in narrative. Your POV originates from the story of how your product or service came to be and the outcomes your customers achieve when using it. A story is always going to be more memorable than a description of capabilities.
With a meaningful point of view, suddenly, you’re standing out with a unique perspective of your market’s pain points and how to best solve them. Now prospects are paying attention to your capabilities. Now they’re interested in how your solution delivers the outcomes they need. You become the obvious choice.
Check out my manifesto, Be the Obvious Choice, for more on the power of a point of view. (No need to submit your email address, unless you also want to subscribe to the Viewpoints newsletter, which you can do below.)
