When times are hard, your business will have to put in that extra effort to attract the loyal customer. You may have the best quality product, but your competitor may offer the best value – and that is why the customers are going there.

Value is not merely about ‘quality’, especially if that quality has too high a price tag. In fact value is a balanced combination of a number of things: price, features, how well-made is the product and the benefits to the purchaser. In summary value answers the questions: what is it worth to the customer and how well does it meet their needs?

For example, if the customer primarily wants transport for shopping at the local supermarket, they probably do not want a Rolls Royce.

So, while you may have the best-made product with the most features, do your customers think that they can afford it in a weak economy? It all depends on your marketing approach and how you represent ‘best’ and price.

Value is perceived

There are no fundamental values in your marketplace that cannot be influenced by good marketing. You need to understand your customers and provide a solution to their problems. If you do, you will be providing value to them.

If your solution provides much more than they expect, then that perceived value may increase, subject to cost. If you can provide products of exceptional quality but at a reduced cost, then you have a high-value offering. But quality relates to the ability to meet the customer’s needs and is subjective. In many instances this perception can be influenced to create greater demand.

A possible place to start

Information products can provide the basis for low-cost, high-quality offers that result in the perception of high value. These products can be developed with little time and money. Using the Internet they can be duplicated and delivered ad infinitum. Since the manufacturing costs are reasonably low, you can create bundles of these products as high-value packages without additional cost. Then instant delivery, via the Internet, will result in instant customer satisfaction.

Marketing over the Internet

You can market most things over the Internet. However, some market niches are more suited to this medium than others. To those providing high quality, low cost and quick delivery, the Internet can be a blessing in difficult economic times. You need to concentrate on products and services where you can influence the perception of value. This will help keep demand constant or even increase it during hard times. For the next few years at least, value will be the key factor in both online and offline marketing strategy.