Price versus Value - which wins?

I have spent many years with sales teams helping them to develop skills that would enable them to have a good career and life.
The UK has a tendency to devalue sales people but those who succeed tend to become well balanced in life as well as work.
I can think of two occasions when,against all obvious odds, I helped two young Men to go on to be the best sales people I ever met.
What contributed to them becoming such fine examples?
They had the ability to listen, wanted to learn and always tried an Idea before dismissing it.
Throughout the 1990s I created an exercise to help me Improve my Business results.
In training courses with sales people I then developed an exercise where i asked them to tick Five out of Ten items listed that they felt would be a customers primary objective.
Around 90% always listed price.
Over a period of meeting thousands of people by various methods I put the same question to them.(The Customer)
70% said they would pay a price for a product or service provided the benefits revealed it met the value paid.
The first lesson for me was to rule out the other 30% as my audience.
The real problem is that some sales people are Introduced to the Idea that you can get business on best price alone.
Such people are destined to fail.
Being a specialist salesperson needs Intelligence and being able to understand what is the best long term solution for the Customer makes the relationship stronger.
If you Invest in something you can see a return on, the added value is a bonus.
I was reading a trade magazine recently.
One of my Old Companies is still using the same advertising of 4-5 years ago.
Advertising is branding and seldom,in itself, brings business...but if you have nothing fresh to say its likely people will not find you Interesting or up to date!
Websites suffer the same approach.
If they are poor you just stop visiting.
Question your thinking before you decide on an action.
Think strategically and ask appropriate questions to determine what your Customer really needs.
Too many suppliers supply but never explore or advise.
Make your relationships strong and you protect your business.
Half the fun is sending a message to your competitor that you keep your customers based on meeting their needs and never letting them down.
The average, very average, salesman will never see things as you do and will soon give up!