Most businesses struggle to explain why someone should choose them. They either sound like everyone else, or they overcomplicate things with jargon. A value proposition cuts through the noise—it’s the clearest, simplest way to tell people why you matter.

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Your value proposition is one of the key elements of your brand messaging. It’s the tool that ignites interest, communicates who you are, and encourages people to take the next step—whether that’s working with you or simply learning more. It’s also the foundation of your brand messaging framework.

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For the uninitiated, here’s how the pieces fit together:

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• Your tagline is your big idea
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• Your value proposition supports that big idea
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• Your messaging pillars are the stories you tell to underpin your value proposition and tagline

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Together, they create a hierarchy that looks like this:

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Each element helps you communicate authentically and consistently, write compelling copy, and convert people. But they aren’t always easy to articulate—particularly your value proposition.

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That’s why it’s best to tackle them individually. And while the framework works top-down, we always recommend starting with your value proposition, because it’s the core of what you do.

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We also know how intimidating this can feel. So here’s a straightforward guide—with tools, tricks, and examples—to help you write a value proposition that’s simple, clear, and effective.

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What Is a Value Proposition?

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A value proposition is a clear explanation of both the functional and emotional benefits your product or service provides. It’s not just your positioning (who you are and what you do differently)—it’s also how you solve your customer’s problem and why they should choose you over the competition.

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Putting your value proposition front and centre is key to successful marketing. It’s what all great brands lead with on their website, and it’s what all other brand messaging should support and reinforce.

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Think of it as your brand answer to the question: “Why should I choose you?”

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What Makes a Great Value Proposition?

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A good value proposition needs to communicate your brand’s what and why in a way that:

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• Is clear and concise. A strong value proposition should be easy to understand at a glance.
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• Speaks to your audience. It frames your message in terms of their needs, goals, and frustrations—not just your features.
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• Communicates a promise. A great value proposition feels like a guarantee. It should create trust and set expectations you’re confident you can deliver on.

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How to Write a Value Proposition in 6 Steps

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If you’re planning on achieving the perfect value proposition in a single brainstorming session, you’re likely to leave frustrated and burnt out. (We know all about this.) It’s much easier and more productive to take your time and follow this process step by step. You may need multiple sessions (with key stakeholders), so consider your businesses unique needs as you take on this exercise.

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Step 1: Clarify Your Brand DNA

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More often than not, when a brand struggles to articulate their messaging, it’s because they don’t have a strong Brand DNA (purpose, vision, mission, and values). If you want to communicate effectively, you need to identify who you are and why you’re in business in the first place. If you haven’t done so already, follow our guide to document your:

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• Purpose: Why do you exist?
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• Vision: What future do you want to help create? What does the future look like?
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• Mission: What are you here to do? How do you create that future?
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• Values: What principles guide your behaviour?

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Doing this exercise gives you a stronger foundation and makes it much easier to craft a value proposition that feels authentic and aligned with your identity.

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Tip: Download our free Notion template to articulate your Brand DNA quickly and easily.

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Step 2: Complete a Competitive Analysis

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To grab attention and stand out, your value proposition needs to draw people toward your brand and highlight why they should choose you over the competition. To do this effectively, you need to communicate what makes you unique—this is why a competitive analysis is essential. By examining your competitors, you start to “see” your market position and uncover how others are presenting themselves. With that valuable insight, you can hone your message and stand out more effectively.

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Tip: If you haven’t done this yet, check out our 6-step guide to complete a competitive analysis, and download the free template.

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Step 3: Know Your Marketing Personas

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Your value proposition isn’t written for you—it’s written for the people you want to connect with. That means it has to resonate with them directly. By creating personas, you can identify both the demographic and psychographic info that reveal who your audience is, what matters to them, and how to communicate with them. This helps you shape your value proposition to speak to their real needs and priorities.

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Tip: Check out our quick guide to create personas. Once you’ve defined them, you can use those personas to test and refine your value proposition.

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Step 4: Brainstorm Your Benefits

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So far, you’ve gathered the information needed to clearly articulate your value proposition. Now, it’s time to put that knowledge into action. Begin by brainstorming all the benefits your offering provides, such as:

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• Functional benefits: For example, if you’re a bicycle brand, your functional benefits might be something like “lightweight frame” and “durable components.”
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• Emotional benefits: Your emotional benefits might be “the joy of freedom,” “confidence on challenging terrain,” or “a stronger sense of wellbeing.”

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At this stage, don’t worry about editing—just capture everything that comes to mind. You’ll refine, combine, and narrow down your list later. The goal is to create a comprehensive starting point.

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Step 5: Iterate a Rough Version

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Here’s where it gets both exciting and a little tricky. From your benefits list, pull out the points that are most compelling, relevant to your personas, and truly unique. These are the elements you’ll want to lead with.

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Start by writing the simplest version of your value proposition, then refine or expand as needed. A useful tool for this is Steve Blank’s XYZ framework, we help X do Y by doing Z, where X is your target audience, Y is the goal or problem they want to solve, and Z is the method by which you achieve it.

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Following our bicycle brand example, the XYZ framework would give us a value proposition that looks like this: “We help mountain bikers (X) conquer tough trails with confidence (Y) by building bikes engineered with durable components, precision handling, and lightweight frames (Z).”

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Although it’s straightforward, this exercise is powerful in clarifying your message. A few things to keep in mind:

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• Focus on your customer and their problem. Imagine you’re the one struggling and seeking a solution—what would you want to hear from the brand that could solve it?
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• Keep it clear, not complicated. Impact matters more than cleverness. Plain, direct language beats confusing jargon every time.
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• Make sure it sounds like you. If your value prop could apply to your competitors, keep iterating until your brand’s personality comes through. (If you need help, try our brand voice guide).

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Once you’ve nailed the message, you can play with different ways to present it for maximum impact.

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Step 6: Perfect the Presentation

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With your value proposition written, the final step is making sure it lands with impact. A strong message can fall flat if it’s hidden, cluttered, or inconsistent—so presentation matters.

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Start by putting your value proposition front and centre, typically on your website homepage, pitch decks, and key marketing materials. From there make sure the wording is consistent everywhere it appears, even if the format shifts slightly (e.g., it may be two sentences in a shorter format or it may be a headline, blurb, and a few bullets in a longer format).

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Finally, test it. Share your value proposition with your team, trusted clients, or even consider A/B testing. Notice what resonates, where people pause, or what sparks interest. Refining based on real feedback ensures your value proposition doesn’t just sound good—it actually works.

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How to Use Your Value Proposition Once You’re Finished

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You’ve done the hard work—now put it out into the world. A value proposition only creates value when it’s put to work across your brand. Here are practical ways to roll it out:

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• Lead with it on your website. Use a short version on your homepage, and a slightly longer version on your product/services pages.
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• Bake it into your sales process. Add it to your pitch decks, capability statements, and sales calls to frame value before features.
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• Sharpen bios and microcopy. Update social profiles, email signatures, and meta descriptions, so they all say the same core thing.

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And if you need a second set of eyes (or any help rolling out your value proposition), we’re here for it. We’d love to help bring your brand to life.

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