Value proposition

Definition and verification

A value proposition is a verifiable statement about the result obtained by the customer. It is not a line of commercial material. The value proposition glossary entry provides the term for reference.

Use this question to examine it: if the product disappeared tomorrow, what exactly would stop happening in the customer's operation? A concrete task, an avoided cost or generated revenue gives the statement something that can be checked against real usage. A vague answer leaves the proposition decorative.

Where it matters in practice

Verification compares the promised result with what customers actually do in the product. A promise of faster decisions conflicts with usage evidence showing that nobody opens the report supporting those decisions.

This distinction matters at renewal. In the guide's maintenance example, the communicated promise concerned reducing unplanned stoppages. Actual usage centred on recording work orders rather than the predictive module supporting that promise. The communicated proposition did not describe the use driving renewal.

Related terms and CPM-E preparation

The chain of the reason to buy connects the problem, result, justification of a budget line and consequence of disappearance. The value proposition states the customer result. The chain places that result within the reason to pay. Value erosion is the loss of that reason without a change in price, quality or satisfaction.

For preparation for the CPM-E certification, practise connecting claims to evidence. The guide's verification script records each link in the chain, its supporting usage evidence and the date checked. Value proposition and business model is an assessment domain. Study the definition together with how to verify it.