You will be able to write a value proposition with a clear outcome, a target customer and a reason to believe.
Farah sells modest workwear online from a small studio in Geylang. The banner at the top of her shop page says "Elegance, redefined." It looks good, and it tells a visitor almost nothing. Someone landing on that page from an ad has a few seconds to work out what the shop sells, whether it is for them, and whether to trust it. The banner answers none of those questions.
In module 3 you worked out who you are for and why they should pick you. That positioning is written for you and your team. This lesson turns it into words a stranger reads, which is called a value proposition.
A value proposition is a short statement, usually a headline and a line or two below it, that tells a stranger what they get, who it is for, and why they should believe you. All three parts have to be there.
What they get is the outcome, the change in the customer's situation. Who it is for lets the right person recognise themselves and lets the wrong person move on quickly, which saves both of you time. The reason to believe is what stops the reader dismissing it as one more claim.
The positioning statement from lesson 3.4 contains most of this already. The difference is that a value proposition has to be short enough to read on a phone in a few seconds, and written for the customer rather than for you.
The headline names the outcome in the customer's words. Not your words, and not industry words. If customers say "clothes I can wear to the office and to a family dinner after", that phrase is worth more than "versatile modest fashion".
The supporting line says how, or for whom, or both. It adds the detail the headline left out. For Farah, a first attempt might be:
Headline: Workwear that covers what you want covered and still looks sharp in a meeting.
Supporting line: Modest blouses, dresses and trousers in breathable fabrics, cut for women who commute in Singapore heat and sit in air-conditioned offices all day.
For Priya's maths centre in Tampines, it might be:
Headline: Maths homework done before your child gets home.
Supporting line: Small-group classes for Primary 4 to 6 in Tampines, running until 9pm on weekdays for parents who work late.
Neither is clever. Both tell a stranger what is on offer and who it is for.
The third part is proof: a reason to believe the headline. Proof can take several forms. A number you can back up, such as "classes of no more than six". A named credential, such as a qualification a teacher actually holds. A review from a real customer, quoted with their permission. A guarantee, such as free exchanges on sizing within a set period.
Proof has to be specific and checkable. "Thousands of happy customers" is not proof unless you can show the number. "Trusted by parents" is not proof at all. For Farah, a useful piece of proof might be a short review saying "first work trousers I've found that don't need taking up", or a clear exchange policy for anyone unsure about size. For Priya, it might be the class size limit and a quote from a parent about homework.
Use only proof you can stand behind. If a parent asks for the result behind a claim, you should be able to show it.
Here is a simple test. Show your headline and supporting line to someone who has never heard of your business, then take it away. Ask them what you sell and who it is for. If they can't say, you have written a slogan.
Slogans have their place. Big brands with years of advertising behind them can use a short phrase that means something because people already know what the company does. A small business rarely has that luxury. Most of the people who see your page don't know you yet, so your words have to do the explaining.
"Elegance, redefined" fails the test. "Workwear that covers what you want covered and still looks sharp in a meeting" passes, even if a copywriter would want to polish it later.
You will rarely get it right on the first attempt. Most people find their best version by writing several, each starting from a different part of the job or a different piece of proof, and comparing them side by side. That is what the activity below asks for, so start by noting the two or three outcomes your customers mention most often.
Write three versions of a value proposition for your business, each with a headline, a supporting line and one piece of proof.
Junxiong-WFG Organisation is an authorised representative of AIA Financial Advisers Private Limited (Reg. No. 201715016G).