WHO SHOULD ATTEND

B2B marketing and sales professionals, marketing communications specialists, product managers, business development leaders, and anyone seeking effectiveness in persuasive business communication.

WHAT YOU LEARN

1. Master Value Language and Elements: Command the precise language of “Customer Value” and “Winning Customer Value Propositions,” understanding value as customer-specific, measured in currency, and compared to best alternatives.
2. Apply Visual Frameworks: Use visual tools to explain value elements from both seller and customer perspectives, and deploy ISBM’s proven value taxonomy for decision-making, pricing, and communication.
3. Build Winning Propositions: Work through a powerful step-by-step framework—line by line—to develop focused, customer-centric propositions that move beyond seller-focused “Selling Propositions.”
4. Distinguish Effective from Weak: Recognize what separates winning value propositions from unfocused, confusing, or seller-centric statements, using real B2B case examples.
5. Coach and Apply Broadly: Gain ability to guide teams through the proposition development process, and apply concepts across diverse situations including new offerings, sales scenarios, and communications.

WHAT YOU GET

1. ISBM’s proven Value Proposition Framework and step-by-step VP development tools
2. Visual frameworks and value taxonomy graphics for explaining value clearly
3. Development worksheets guiding proposition creation –  line by line
4. Real-world B2B case examples illustrating what makes propositions “win”
5. Implementation guidance and coaching techniques for leading teams
6. Tips, Traps, and Tricks drawn from real B2B situations
7. Resources for ongoing support in managing and communicating customer value

INSTRUCTOR

Dr. Ralph Oliva is the Emeritus Executive Director of the Institute for the Study of Business Markets, and Professor of Marketing in the Smeal College of Business Administration at Penn State University.  He is driving the growth of the ISBM as the leading academic center devoted to advancing knowledge and practice in Business-to-Business marketing worldwide.  Since 1997, Ralph has been working with B-to-B firms in building better, more profitable business marketing practice by creating direct connections from practitioners to leading-edge researchers, through the design and implementation of educational programs spanning the practice of B-to-B, and in building networked communities of learning. He is a regular columnist for Marketing Management magazine, and a professor at the Smeal College MBA program, where he received the “Excellence in Teaching Award” multiple times.

Before joining Penn State, Ralph spent 23 years in B2B and consumer marketing, and established a “Virtual University” for marketing at Texas Instruments.  He has served as V.P. of Market Communications and Design for TI worldwide, and leader of the TI.com web Team. 

Ralph holds a Ph.D. and M.S. in Solid State Physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and a B.S. in Physics from Fordham University.