What a value proposition is, and what it is not
“Proposition de valeur” (value proposition) is searched 1,000 times a month in France. It is the answer, in one or two sentences, to the question every visitor asks on arrival: what do you do for me, and why you?
A good value proposition contains four elements:
- who it is for: the target customer, often with their area (“in Lyon”, “for property holding companies”, “for Shopify stores”);
- what: the service or product, in the words the customer uses;
- the concrete result: the problem solved, the lead time, what they get;
- the proof or the difference: a verifiable fact that sets you apart (a real guarantee, a qualification you hold, a data point, a lead time you keep).
It is not a slogan: a slogan is remembered, a value proposition is understood. Nor is it a list of your qualities (“reliable, responsive, attentive”): those words are on every website and prove nothing.
The method in five steps
- List your customers’ questions: France Num, the French government’s digital programme for small businesses, advises starting from the three questions they ask you most often before buying or signing. Those are the words of your proposition.
- Name the main problem: what makes them search (a leak, a tax inspection, online sales that never take off).
- Write the result, not the means: “fuse board brought up to standard in one day” rather than “we carry out electrical work”.
- Add a true proof: a lead time you keep, a displayed price, a qualification you actually hold, a sourced figure. Never an invented review or figure.
- Cut: one sentence that fits on a phone screen, with no vague adjective. If it applies to your competitors too, it is not finished.
Value proposition examples
The examples below are fictional templates, to rewrite with your own services, areas and real terms:
- Plumber: “Plumber in Nantes: leaks fixed the same day on weekdays, price given before the job.”
- Accountant: “Accountant for family property companies in Bordeaux: accounts, tax return and filings, annual fee fixed in advance.”
- Lawyer: “Employment lawyer in Lille for employees: first appointment within a week, fees explained in writing.”
- Online shop: “Organic cotton baby sleeping bags made in France: 48-hour delivery, free returns within 30 days.”
- B2B service: “Scheduling software for cleaning companies: your teams and your sites on one screen, free trial with no card required.”
Our own tagline, as an example: “Get found on Google and cited by ChatGPT.” It states the expected result in the customer’s words; it is up to the rest of the page to bring the proof, the price and the lead time.
Where to put the value proposition on your website
It must be read before anything else, by visitors and by search engines alike. Google recommends a page title that is unique to the page, clear and concise, and that accurately describes its content, and one of its quality questions is: “Does the title clearly summarise the content of the page?”.
- The page title (title tag): the short version, with the service and the area.
- The H1: the proposition itself, visible at the top of the screen.
- The first sentence: the one that answers, complete enough to be quoted on its own by Google or an AI assistant.
- The button just below: the action that follows from the promise.
- The description of your Google Business Profile and your social profiles: the same promise, in the same words.
- with no single H1 that says what the business sells
- 45 %
- with no single H1 that says what the business sells
- with no page title of 25 to 65 characters
- 41 %
- with no page title of 25 to 65 characters
- with no meta description of 70 to 165 characters
- 50 %
- with no meta description of 70 to 165 characters
How to test your value proposition
France Num suggests two simple tests. First: within three seconds, does a visitor understand what you do, who you do it for and what they can do next? Second: ask someone who does not know your sector to browse your site for two minutes, and watch where they get stuck.
Then the numbers: in Google Search Console, the click-through rate of the home page on its main queries tells you whether the title makes people want to click; in Google Analytics, the page’s engagement rate tells you whether the promise holds on to the people who arrive. Change one thing at a time and compare over several weeks.
Frequently asked questions
What is a value proposition?
It is the sentence that says what you deliver, to whom, and why customers should choose you over a competitor. It names the customer, the service, the concrete result and a verifiable proof.
What is the difference between a value proposition and a slogan?
A slogan aims to be remembered; a value proposition aims to be understood. A website can have both, but it is the value proposition that belongs in the title and the first sentence of the page.
How do you write a value proposition?
Start from the questions your customers ask before buying, name their main problem, write the result you deliver rather than your means, add a true proof, then cut it down to one sentence.
Where should the value proposition go on a website?
In the page title, the H1 and the first sentence, with the main button just below. Repeat the same promise on your Google Business Profile.
What is a unique value proposition?
It is a value proposition whose proof or difference belongs to you alone: a lead time, a speciality, a guarantee, a data point. If a competitor could write the same sentence, it is not unique yet.