What do you think?
Rate this book
The Three Value Conversations: How to Create, Elevate, and Capture Customer Value at Every Stage of the Long-Lead Sale
Bestselling authors reveal how B2B sale pros must engage with customers to command and control every step of long lead buying cycle
The most successful salespeople understand that they are fundamentally storytellers. The reality is that to succeed in sales, you need to master the art of customer conversation. The best story told in the best way will always win. Being remarkable and memorable in your conversations is very important—but it goes beyond great delivery. You must be able to articulate value.
The Three Value Conversations provides the tools and methods you need to differentiate yourself and your solutions from the competition, elevate value to the right decision maker, and maximize all sales opportunities across the entire long lead buying cycle. The audiobook teaches you how to:
• Create value for your prospects by identifying and advising them on problems, potential threats and missed opportunities
• Articulate why your prospects need to choose you over rival competitors
• Elevate the value of your offering to your prospect’s senior-level decision-makers
• Demonstrate the business and financial acumen required to make a compelling, credible business case for your solution
• Identify unconsidered needs that only your solution solves
• Embrace the natural tension that occurs between buyers and sellers to capture and protect the value of your opportunity from unnecessary discounting
Not just another sales process book, The Three Value Conversations equips you with practical, hands-on concepts for engaging prospects and customers at any moment in the buying cycle with the specific stories and skills to create, elevate, and capture value.
The most successful salespeople understand that they are fundamentally storytellers. The reality is that to succeed in sales, you need to master the art of customer conversation. The best story told in the best way will always win. Being remarkable and memorable in your conversations is very important—but it goes beyond great delivery. You must be able to articulate value.
The Three Value Conversations provides the tools and methods you need to differentiate yourself and your solutions from the competition, elevate value to the right decision maker, and maximize all sales opportunities across the entire long lead buying cycle. The audiobook teaches you how to:
• Create value for your prospects by identifying and advising them on problems, potential threats and missed opportunities
• Articulate why your prospects need to choose you over rival competitors
• Elevate the value of your offering to your prospect’s senior-level decision-makers
• Demonstrate the business and financial acumen required to make a compelling, credible business case for your solution
• Identify unconsidered needs that only your solution solves
• Embrace the natural tension that occurs between buyers and sellers to capture and protect the value of your opportunity from unnecessary discounting
Not just another sales process book, The Three Value Conversations equips you with practical, hands-on concepts for engaging prospects and customers at any moment in the buying cycle with the specific stories and skills to create, elevate, and capture value.
Audio CD
First published June 5, 2015
45 people are currently reading
154 people want to read
About the author
Erik Peterson
64 books4 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 13, 2025
There are some good ideas in this book. The core concept that there are 3 conversations to have with a client and what they are is insightful.
But the tactics of how to do each conversation well were all things other books have already explained--and done so better.
And then about halfway through the book I realized that all the examples and tactics apply to large public companies. That's not bad, per se, but I wish they had been clear on that from the beginning.
All that would have given them 4 stars, but the last third of the book included a long, boring section explaining public company accounting. (The idea of knowing these numbers as sales opportunities is interesting, but stopping to write a chapter to teach us the basics was distracting from the core book content and dry to read.)
All in all, it's not wrong, but I'd recommend other sales books over this one every time.
But the tactics of how to do each conversation well were all things other books have already explained--and done so better.
And then about halfway through the book I realized that all the examples and tactics apply to large public companies. That's not bad, per se, but I wish they had been clear on that from the beginning.
All that would have given them 4 stars, but the last third of the book included a long, boring section explaining public company accounting. (The idea of knowing these numbers as sales opportunities is interesting, but stopping to write a chapter to teach us the basics was distracting from the core book content and dry to read.)
All in all, it's not wrong, but I'd recommend other sales books over this one every time.
September 19, 2017
I found the first section, on differentiation, to be quite well done, interesting, and valuable. It gives pointers about messaging, and includes commentary on the techniques of using whiteboards instead of PowerPoints, as well as the specifics of how to focus your messaging. I found some new things to think about in this section. The sections on justification and maximization were more Sales 101. Justification was generally about knowing the details of your customer’s business, especially using sources like financial statements. The maximization section was about how to position your offers.
August 27, 2019
It was a pretty good book.
I added it after attending a presentation by Corporate Visions at a conference. I was hoping the book will give me some additional insights into marketing writing and storytelling, but it really was very specific to sales conversations. I got an idea or two out of it - would recommend it to sales people as it goes in depth into negotiations and other elements of conversations that occur during different phases of the sales cycle.
If you're a marketer, you can probably pass on it or read just the first half.
I added it after attending a presentation by Corporate Visions at a conference. I was hoping the book will give me some additional insights into marketing writing and storytelling, but it really was very specific to sales conversations. I got an idea or two out of it - would recommend it to sales people as it goes in depth into negotiations and other elements of conversations that occur during different phases of the sales cycle.
If you're a marketer, you can probably pass on it or read just the first half.
February 13, 2025
Was recommend this book by an absolute sales legend. It was marked as one out of 2 that made all the the difference in this persons career. I totally understand why. Must read for anyone selling in todays world. Highlights were the part on creating the buying vision and the status quo as your main competitor. Also the part of status and how it is negotiated in interpersonal relationships (buyer-seller) was highly enlightening.
January 29, 2016
A lot more than just yet another sales book, would be a fair description of this book, which looks at adding value and impact to sales conversations throughout the buying cycle: all by, it has to be said, just engaging your mind before you open your mouth.
The authors emphasis from the beginning that the successful salesperson is not just selling something, they are leading a conversation, telling a story and articulating value to the prospective customer along their purchasing journey. Nothing underhand need happen, just knowledgeable, enthusiastic, authoritative leadership-led sales conversations take place. Through this book, the authors promise a range of tools and methods to help the salesperson differentiate themselves from the competition, pushing value to the right decision maker and maximising all sales opportunities across the entire long lead buying cycle.
It was certainly a lot better than your run-of-the-mill sales books. It drew you in and kept delivering insight after insight. Of course, a lot of this insight is not necessarily rocket science or so unique, yet on the other hand it must be since far too many people don’t even grasp the simple elements that could enhance their salesmanship. You won’t notice where the time goes when you read this book, since it is far too easy to be taken in and several hours later you are still reading, thinking and planning and it is way past your bedtime. Positively addictive!
Even if you are not directly involved in sales, this book could potentially still add value to your daily business and personal life with a modest amount of adaptation and consideration to how you communicate. It is, potentially, that good!
The authors emphasis from the beginning that the successful salesperson is not just selling something, they are leading a conversation, telling a story and articulating value to the prospective customer along their purchasing journey. Nothing underhand need happen, just knowledgeable, enthusiastic, authoritative leadership-led sales conversations take place. Through this book, the authors promise a range of tools and methods to help the salesperson differentiate themselves from the competition, pushing value to the right decision maker and maximising all sales opportunities across the entire long lead buying cycle.
It was certainly a lot better than your run-of-the-mill sales books. It drew you in and kept delivering insight after insight. Of course, a lot of this insight is not necessarily rocket science or so unique, yet on the other hand it must be since far too many people don’t even grasp the simple elements that could enhance their salesmanship. You won’t notice where the time goes when you read this book, since it is far too easy to be taken in and several hours later you are still reading, thinking and planning and it is way past your bedtime. Positively addictive!
Even if you are not directly involved in sales, this book could potentially still add value to your daily business and personal life with a modest amount of adaptation and consideration to how you communicate. It is, potentially, that good!
August 22, 2016
In June of this year I was fortunate to be part of Corporate Visions' "Three Value Conversation" workshop. The presenter from Corporate Visions was Erik Peterson, one of the authors of this book. After the 90 minute presentation I was more than ready to purchase The Three Value Conversations book. The approach, ideas and considerations in the presentation were eye opening, yet the book takes these aspects into a much greater detail coupled with countless visuals and examples.
The premise of the book is to create, elevate and capture value. It delves into many areas in how to achieve this: simply by asking the right questions, presenting differently and/or discovering unconsidered needs thereby gaining more of the customer's attention. It also provides step by step approaches for all concepts outlined.
This would have to be one of the better books I have read this year. For example, I have worked in the sales world for many years and this book has helped me focus on areas to improve and in the process capture more value; for both the customer and the sale.
Three key takeaways from the book:
1. A great conversation is the combinations of having the right message, using the right tools and leveraging the right skills. Sometimes we engage way too fast with the wrong tools at the wrong time with the wrong people. Therefore it is important to sharpen the saw in this area prior to engaging.
2. Whiteboarding is far superior in increasing the attention and retention of your customers versus powerpoint or zen presentations
3. Commoditised conversations should be avoided in a competitive sales cycle
The premise of the book is to create, elevate and capture value. It delves into many areas in how to achieve this: simply by asking the right questions, presenting differently and/or discovering unconsidered needs thereby gaining more of the customer's attention. It also provides step by step approaches for all concepts outlined.
This would have to be one of the better books I have read this year. For example, I have worked in the sales world for many years and this book has helped me focus on areas to improve and in the process capture more value; for both the customer and the sale.
Three key takeaways from the book:
1. A great conversation is the combinations of having the right message, using the right tools and leveraging the right skills. Sometimes we engage way too fast with the wrong tools at the wrong time with the wrong people. Therefore it is important to sharpen the saw in this area prior to engaging.
2. Whiteboarding is far superior in increasing the attention and retention of your customers versus powerpoint or zen presentations
3. Commoditised conversations should be avoided in a competitive sales cycle
April 1, 2016
some good simple home truths about every errors of message and focus that I can see all around me - helped and reminded me of things I already knew but had lazily stopped doing and also allowed me to adopt some of the models to put into practice in what I use with sales methods and what I pass to others.
October 16, 2015
Must read for any SSN/CVI disciple.
March 6, 2016
I was (am) a big fan of The Challenger Sale, but I loved that this book called it out. You can take a lot from all sales frameworks, but I love how thorough this is with practical examples.
July 30, 2016
The section on differentiation earns a 6 star review. Totally changed my thinking about how to craft a message and think of our product. I'll never approach an offering the same again.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews