A high-value customer is someone to whom you deliver significant value, without it costing you disproportionate effort. And who gladly pays premium for that value.

Delivering high value also means you can charge higher prices. High-value customers don't just pay for what you do, but also for business reliability and consistent quality.

Take HubSpot as an example.

HubSpot has a complex product. That's why it takes just under a year to acquire a new customer, costing approximately €8,000. And once that customer is on board, they generate €40-60k (2012 figures).

Their strategy was clear: deliver enormous value, even when someone isn't a customer yet. It took years to get the total revenue per customer 3x higher than the cost of acquiring that customer.

That discipline worked. Once they had this healthy profit margin through their perfect "value machine," HubSpot shifted focus to expansion. That resulted in 10x revenues.

What if you do deliver high value but your customer doesn't (or no longer) see that value?

Often a mismatch develops between the value you deliver and the value the customer perceives, that costs you a lot of money and energy. Why does this happen? The market moves continuously; standard work is getting cheaper every day. AI and automation make more services accessible to everyone, for a fraction of the price. You'll never win that race. The result is that your business isn't profitable or barely manages to stay afloat.

When the balance between giving and receiving value is completely disrupted, the value machine grinds to a halt. High-value customers only pay for what _can't_ be (easily) automated or robotized: specific expertise, experience in a market, strategic sparring and advice. The rest they buy cheaper elsewhere.

With my own clients? Some have already generated over a million euros in lifetime value for me. Because I actively think along at partner level. Because I know my client's market. Because I keep delivering value that makes the difference for my clients.

What strategic choice would you make today if you were starting your business all over again?