A great question! Alejandro La Rocca asked me, ”Paul, that was an altogether definition of outcome! My question is what’s the difference between outcome and benefit?”
So, here are my thoughts. But I’m keen to get some other input for Alejandro.
The first difference is point of view. A benefit tends to focus on a product. An outcome focuses on the customer’s situation. Customers are much more interested in their situation.
The second is timeframe. I think about a benefit as a short-term win. An outcome creates a new to-be state – something that should last.
Third is complexity. A product can give you a direct benefit. But in B2B, achieving an outcome requires more – processes, systems, people skills, partners and supporting elements.
Fourth, I think you can get a benefit without getting a good outcome. But if you get a good outcome, you will enjoy benefits. To use a medical metaphor, a pain killer can give you the benefit of reduced pain. But if you have a more serious medical condition, a pain killer won’t create the outcome of making you healthy. However, if you are cured, a by-product should be that you are pain-free.
Please add your thoughts.
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