The Value Path

About The Value Path

The Value Path is a comprehensive methodology series exploring the 8-stage customer progression framework—from Audience through Champion—that replaces traditional funnel thinking with natural human behavior recognition. Joshua Oakes guides deep dives into each Value Path stage, teaching the Path to Value toolkit (traps, gates, signposts) that enables organizations to support authentic customer progression rather than forcing people through artificial qualification stages.

What You’ll Learn

• The Value Path Framework: Understanding the 8 natural stages of human progression (Audience → Researcher → Hand Raiser → Buyer → Value Creator → Adopter → Advocate → Champion)
• Path to Value Toolkit: Practical implementation using traps (obstacles to avoid), gates (progression indicators), and signposts (what customers need at each stage)
• Natural Progression Support: How to enable rather than force customer movement through recognition-based approaches
• Stage-Specific Strategies: Practical approaches for supporting customers at each specific Value Path stage
• Replacing Funnel Thinking: Moving from control-focused qualification to recognition-focused support

Core Topics

• The 8 Value Path stages in depth
• Traps, gates, and signposts implementation
• Natural human buying behavior patterns
• Customer-centric pipeline architecture
• Data structures supporting Value Path progression
• Stage recognition vs. stage forcing
• Practical HubSpot implementation patterns
• Real-world Value Path application and results

Who Should Watch

This show is essential for:

• Sales and marketing leaders implementing Value-First methodology
• RevOps professionals architecting customer progression systems
• Business strategists moving beyond funnel thinking
• Customer success teams supporting natural progression
• Anyone frustrated with traditional “lead” approaches
• Organizations committed to customer-centric transformation
• Teams implementing Value-First principles in practice

Framework Focus

The Value Path centers on Customer within the Value-First framework, providing the foundational methodology for understanding natural human progression. This bi-weekly series serves as comprehensive education on the core framework that enables everything else Value-First teaches—replacing industrial-age funnel thinking with recognition of how humans actually discover, evaluate, and create value together.

New episodes bi-weekly. Comprehensive methodology for natural customer progression.