The of role a Value-Based Sales approach in different business cultures

For three and a half years I was part of the team that was responsible for creating and operating the value-based sales support unit in a major global SW company in the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East and Africa). During the unit formation, I had the opportunity to be part of a team formed by senior consultants coming from top strategy consulting firms. Our initial objective was to adapt the value-based sales tools developed by our USA colleagues to the extremely diverse and complex business environment of EMEA. It was the first time that we confronted the question of how far the value-based sales tools could be standardized (which was critical to leverage the efforts of the whole EMEA team) or if it was necessary to tailor the value-based sales materials to each specific market according to its business culture (in order to maximize local sales effectiveness).

At the end, we were able to design a value-based sales tool set that was flexible enough to allow adaptations to different business contexts with very few changes, and standard enough to allow the team to lever their efforts across the different geographies. However, there was a permanent discussion among us about how the value-based sales approach itself played a different role depending on the business culture of the country (not all of us were aware at the moment, but by business culture we were referring to the kind of dimensions described in the work of Prof. Geert Hofstede – see http://www.geert-hofstede.com/). 

Based on those discussions and on over 20 interviews and conversations held with account executives, business building managers, and sales managers from different countries during the last 18 months – the vast majority from the software industry - I bring this analysis to share with you.

In the countries on the left side of the chart, good client contacts will probably allow you to be received faster for a meeting. However, if you don’t present your product or services under a value creating perspective for the client, you have a minimal chance to sell something. Primarily because leading vendors have already adopted a value-based sales approach, but also because buyers are more focused on “value creation” as a key driver for decision making.

On the other side, we have countries where it is extremely difficult to be received by a potential client if you don’t have “friends” in the company, you don’t represent a leading brand, or both (note that these countries are positioned high in Hoftede’s “Uncertainty Avoidance” index and some of them also high in the “Power Distance” index). However, once received by the client, a value-based sales approach can be a powerful resource to accelerate sales closure by providing the decision makers the rational elements to internally justify the investment.


In conclusion, a value-based sales approach is always important. However, while in some places it is a “must-have” in others places it is more a “competitive differentiator”.

*  *  *  *  *

For basic concepts on value-based sales see here: http://valuesearchteam.com/think.php  and here http://valuesearchteam.com/vbs_enablement.php