So ... What Are We Selling?

I bet you probably said "my products and services."  But is that really accurate - or is it perhaps more accurate to think along the lines of selling our reputations, our knowledge and experience, even if we're actually giving someone a product in exchange for their money?  Well think about it, you have competitors, we all do.  Some of us have more than others.  From a customer's point of view, they're all the same for the most part.  The customer doesn't care about you or your competitors past their research into which one of you (if any) they should choose.  The customer is focused on him or herself and gaining their own customers.  So, how do you prove to them you're not the same as your competitors, that you are the better choice?  You build your relationship with the customer first.  While your competitor is trying to sell product, you're getting acquainted.  You're building trust, you're being given more and more opportunities to show the customer, that they don't want your competitor, they want you. It's all about how you tell your story, how you prove to them that you and your product fulfill their needs.  It's all about proving to them you have knowledge and experience.  After all, without this experience of their needs or their industry; you couldn't have created this wonderful product that is sure to fulfill their needs.  How would you have known what your product needed to be if you didn't have that experience? The key take-away point here is ... stop focusing on your products and services.  Most companies make that mistake, they talk about themselves, the features of their products, what their services entail, how their software works.  Ok, at some point, this will be useful information to a potential customer ... eventually, but not up front.  Customers tend to respond best when they can learn something useful to their own businesses, get something up front (even if just helpful suggestions) and through this path of education and guidance, be led to the point of purchase, to the product information.  Think of how you think when you're researching a potential purchase.  You're like most of the potential customers in the world these days, you're savvy, you have questions, you want interaction and you really appreciate when you get helpful advice even without purchasing first.  If you didn't, you wouldn't have subscribed to this newsletter :).  Customers are more likely to choose you over your competitor because you were helpful, you educated them, informed them and not just about yourself and what you're selling, but about information that can really help them beyond what they can buy from you.  When your message speaks to the audience in a way that makes them think "oh yeah, that's me," then you've got them! And guess what ... while building this relationship with your audience ... you've proven to them that you really know what you're doing, that you're really and truly there for them, you understand them and their needs and how to deliver results ... ... you've turned your audience into your customers.