Video
Bain's B2B Elements of ValueSM are useful tools for companies to navigate digital disruption and commoditization in their industries. Jamie Cleghorn, a partner with Bain's Customer Strategy & Marketing practice, outlines how companies can better understand what their customers want and outgrow their competition.
Read the article: The B2B Elements of Value (HBR.org)
Read the transcript below.
JAMIE CLEGHORN: In the middle of the last century, [Abraham] Maslow posited that humans take action based on a hierarchy of needs. From the most simple, around food and warmth, to the highest level, around self-actualization. At Bain, we've built a tool to understand why customers―humans―take action. In a B2B setting, it's from the most simple, around price and functionality, to the highest level, around self-fulfillment and even self-transcendence.
At its core, there are 40 Elements of Value, organized into 10 building blocks. Companies perform well or not so well in those elements, and often times, it's over performance on just a few, one or two, that really drive disproportional growth and profit taking in a market.
We believe that the Elements of Value is a fundamental tool for navigating the waters of digital disruption and commoditization. It gives business leaders the ability to see over the horizon, to understand the deep why of what their customers want, to make bets in their markets to address those, and ultimately, to outgrow their competition.
The B2B Elements of Value
With 40 distinct kinds of value, B2B managers can identify what matters most to each set of important stakeholders.
Elements of Value® Insights
What do customers want? Bain's Elements of Value® represent the deeper aspirations behind the purchasing decisions of B2B and B2C customers. Our insights explore the ways companies can go beyond price to offer more value.