Are you one of those people that needs to have everything right and ready to take action? Did you wait until you had business cards printed, a website created and your products built before you went out there to find clients? If you answered yes to these questions you are in the majority of small start up businesses that probably will take a long time to start monetising their business.
I was blessed to learn this early on my journey and have followed this recipe the whole way through for the past 6 years in business. The concept of SELLING AN IDEA OF A PRODUCT OR SERVICE AND THEN BUILDING AND CREATING IT.
Why do I do that? A few key reasons:
- If I put out a proposal/offer out there and have a call to action where no one seems to be taking the bite then that is my sign that there probably isn't a market for my idea so don't bother creating it.
- I don't like to waste my time unless I have been already paid to build the product or service delivery
- I like to have others fund my ideas to come to life
- It kills the procrastination that lives within all of us because I have promised a due date
- Gets me to focus and deliver at a speed ten times faster than if I had not launched it
I have done this for small priced items and high value programs. Initially I would do it for the pre-sales of books I was writing and still to this day I do that, I have done it when selling my licensed programs and when I launched my Ultimate 48 Hour Author retreats which was my million dollar idea.
How did I do it? All I normally do is create a spreadsheet of what my offer will include and I generally create three levels of choice. I add in as much value as possible to turn the offer into a no brainer decision. I include tangibles, intangibles, support, an experience and I price it up with options of different payments to make it easy for people considering it. Nothing more. I then go out networking, announce it to my community and start talking to people.
After speaking to many people I get better at the languaging and when the first person decides to invest in what I am proposing I get to work. I do have a launch date that I would share with others so they know when this will come into reality and I work towards that to deliver on time. During the creation of it, I continue to network, talk, educate and offer my new product or service so that I deliver to more people the first time.
It is always hardest to sell something that is brand new and you haven't shown success with it. That is why you may start of pricing it lower to test it and give those first clients an awesome deal for trusting you with being the first to come. I remember when I was promoting my Ultimate 48 Hour Author retreat back in 2013, so many doubted what I proposed to do and asked me 'Have you done this before?' to which all I could answer is that I had done it for myself.
Those that were the first to grab hold of my idea and join me at our 1st retreat also had the most amazing deal at the time. They knew me, liked me and trusted me (which is generally who will be your first takers on something brand new). After I had the score on the board and as I like to say Proof in the Pudding the retreats grew and grew and the brand has reached super heights now in 2016.
Most importantly I had to trust myself and be able to communicate my vision to the masses. I had to do it with passion and enthusiasm and conviction that I could help people write their books in 48 hours.
You don't need anything to start building your business. You Just need yourself, the best version of you that has confidence, certainty, conviction and enthusiasm with what you have to offer. To this day I use the simplest spreadsheet to share my offer with my potential clients. Its nothing designed in a fancy way. I know I am enough, I know people buy people and that in time I will certainly keep working on my branding, website and other collateral.
Don't get caught up in those things, go out and meet people, talk, hustle and create opportunities as your business needs cashflow to grow and prosper so that you can have it longer and viable.
Love Nat x
