You do realize there are three things you are selling when you sell your services, right? And I think we all work so darn hard getting a yes and for the credit card to be pulled out that we miss the boat with those last two (and even more critical things.)

Because if you stop ‘selling’ when you get the yes, your prospects miss out on the real thing they are buying. See, they aren’t buying YOUR services. They are after THEIR transformation.

But even though they want it….they still have to be sold on it.

Let’s start by taking it from the top.

The #1 mistake business owners make is trying to sell their services. Sounds crazy, but what you are selling really has nothing to do with you. It has everything to do with solving problems and serving at a really high level.

So instead of focusing on what you are selling, the shift is to begin to understand what your prospects are buying. This is one of the exercises in the upcoming Serving Without Selling program. We look here to start establishing the value you bring, because if you haven’t gotten this one nailed…you are going to be losing money! Period. It isn’t pretty, but it’s true.

Let me cover the things you need to be ‘selling’ other than your services.

1. Sell yourself on your own value. We touched on it above, but if there’s a little smidge of doubt that you deserve the $ you are asking for or wish you could receive; you will likely have a breakdown here. Ways around it? Get your best clients to tell you what they got as a result of the work you have done with them. Ask others, because if you are like most, you are under valuing yourself and are leaving a ton of money on the table and missing opportunities to help more people.

2. Sell them on the tangible transformation they receive from your work together. After you believe in your work, the goal is to help your prospect understand that they are not just buying xyz services. They are buying a transformation. Whatever biz you are in, you should really dive down and discover what is possible in terms of this. An interior designer? You could be transforming living spaces so there’s more peace, fun, and laughter in a home. Chiropractor/naturopath? You are transforming health so there’s increased energy to enjoy life and family. Business coach? Transforming someone’s business so it’s profitable enough to live the life desired. Instead of selling by the hour, or by the service, sell the transformation and you’ll get much further.

But here’s the thing with transformation….sometimes it’s messy!

Very often there are breakdowns, regressions, and it seems like nothing’s happening. That’s why #3 is so critical.

3. Sell the journey. Hey, we all want the fast, easy, get-it-right-the-first-time version. But that’s not how things go. I can unequivocally say that every single business I work with gets put through my DIG-EXCAVATE-RENOVATE™ process. That means that between the owner and the business, we have to dig up old things that are not working like beliefs, or systems, or business models. We then pull those blocks out to examine and rework them. This could mean that we have to re-do the website or look at marketing that isn’t matching them any longer. Very often it means that I’m pushing new parts and new skills that feel undefined so there’s a lack of confidence that shows up. Finally we renovate and rework it so the finished product is a good one.

But here’s the thing. I always explain the process. I explain that growth doesn’t happen in a straight line, and usually we go backwards to go forward. I sell the journey and advise that it may feel worse, get worse, and push them in a way that they haven’t been pushed before. (Think childbirth here!) If I didn’t explain and set this up as NORMAL, I’d have some unhappy clients! But because I set up the expectations in the beginning, when it gets a little hard or they are doing things outside their comfort zone, I don’t give up and won’t let them either. Knowing that the journey is what it is is very necessary in your client care, so think about how you could sell this part of the process in your own business. Look at the trajectory for the clients you work with. Are there stop/starts that happen? Regressions that naturally occur? Foundational work that needs to be in place first? Healing crises? Make sure you educate on this because one thing I always say is, that you have to teach people how to be clients and what to expect!

Once they have made it through the journey, there’s one final thing that you must be selling. Because if you don’t, you might not be getting hired for much longer!

Have you ever noticed that very often people are in a different place and they don’t realize how much they have changed? It’s like we are different but still stuck with the old identities or ideas of what we are and what we can achieve. That’s why #4 will justify keeping you, and allow the client to see their progress. You need to:

4. Sell the change. Too often the client is the LAST one who see the changes. Sure, if you are measuring things like increased income or number of new clients in the door it’s tangible and measurable. But we all know that most success has elements of the intangible as well. If your clients are very outwardly focused you will want to constantly remind them of the tiny little shifts/victories/successes that they have achieved. Ideally…tie it to working with you.

Many healing practitioners get very frustrated because their work is so subtle that often it takes months and months, and by then the client has moved on or found someone else, so the ‘credit’ isn’t ascribed to the right person if you will. This part of the ‘selling’ is to help validate the great work you have done, but mainly to get the client to own the new things they now have access to. I always “mark” things for my clients by pointing out that six months ago they would never have been able to do xyz. The folks in my Mastermind know that every call they will be asked to share a win or victory because it’s my commitment to always help them integrate/internalize the changes they are making.

Why is this so critical? Identity. We get tied to our old ways of being and have a hard time realizing that indeed, we are now different! So instead of assuming the client is seeing all the amazing growth, you need to punctuate it. Highlight and celebrate it! Because once you do, they will, and that’s the greatest gift you can give someone.

Your coaching challenge would be to look at the 4 places you really must be selling in and start making these shifts. This is where clients will get better results, you’ll be retained longer, and feel really justified in charging the money you would like. I’d love to hear your perspective on this, so comment on the blog, or shoot me an email sharing your ideas about selling.

Peace!

Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” ~Steve Jobs

Don’t you love that quote? This is why I’m so passionate about working with and empowering entrepreneurs to get out of their own way and break free from limitations that hold them back from being the change. Those of us who have heard the call and said yes to its whisper are the ones courageous enough to leave our jobs, step away from the perception of security, risk falling and failing, and ultimately undergo huge personal transformation….all in service of that deep dream that lives inside.

But it takes courage to play at this level. Courage to keep going when those around you chide you for being so ‘crazy’ as to wanting to do it on your own. And more courage yet to stay strong when the cash flow is weak and you might be swimming in fear and doubt, or can’t find the way to take your business to the next level. And it often takes even bigger amounts of courage to step up and sell your services and ask for rates that you really deserve.

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” ~Steve Jobs

Let me clarify what I mean by entrepreneurial courage. I define it as your ability to BOLDY express who you are in your business, sell your services, make decisions based on your strengths and gifts, and the willingness to go against the grain – to stand out and listen to your own inner voice and vision versus following along with what everyone else is doing.

And that takes guts, let me tell ya! If you are to be a successful business owner you must be a leader! This is where the courage comes in. As an employee, it is very likely that you were given work or told what to do. But when it’s your own business, you are responsible for creating all of it. While you may have a team, ultimately, the success or failure you experience is on your shoulders.

That’s why this entrepreneurial journey is not for the faint of heart!

If you talk with anyone who has been on the path for a while, they’ll likely share with you the steps they took and what they bumped into to finally own their brilliance and build a business around it. You’ve likely heard my story….I had a master’s degree in counseling, practiced for 25 years, yet felt that was a liability as a business coach! I had coaching training and certification and coached and trained with some of the industries finest to integrate the business building, marketing, sales, branding, copywriting that I know today, but because I had been a therapist I still felt like it wasn’t enough, so I had a really hard time selling my services.

The journey for me to really decide to build my brand and my business on the fact that I am an expert in this mindset and inner game area was a painful one to be sure. Why? Because as I often say….“Your Brilliance Lives In Your Blind Spot.” So in my case all my mentors and business girlfriends could clearly see where my business positioning needed to be, but I, 1) didn’t value it, 2) couldn’t figure out how to market it, and 3) had no idea how to weave it through my business model. And that experience has lead me to the path I am on today, and formed the foundation for the Serving Without Selling program and all the work I do with clients.

The craziest part? Just as in life, very often the thing we struggle with the most is where our gifts are and what we are actually here to teach. So guess what I’m teaching now? Yeah! How to get that brilliance out of your blind spot and own your value! How to have the courage to let YOU show up in your business, and how to make money doing what you love, and are good at.

“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.” ~Steve Jobs

But how do you get courage? How do you risk putting yourself out there when it’s new or it’s scary? The #1 thing – get support! Truly. The issue lies in that you can’t see what you can’t see.

That’s why it’s my theory that your brilliance lives in your blind spot. Here’s what happens when it’s living there:

• You can’t believe anyone would pay for it, so you can’t sell your services
• You can’t charge appropriately for it because it “comes so easy” to you
• You think everyone has it or can do it, so why do they need you?
• You can’t figure out how to make it a business that makes money

I have worked with loads of business owners who were not loving their businesses because they weren’t marketing and selling the thing they should have been. They were listening to what someone else told them they should do, ‘selling out’ on their dream or chickening out and just taking the easy money.

And there’s nothing wrong with doing things to get some cash in the door! But is it costing you? If you are working with people that are costing you energy, it’s not worth it! Sometime we just have to make choices based on revenue, but if you are to have a satisfying and fulfilling business, it has to weave YOU in it.

But what kind of support do you want? Not just someone who rubber stamps your ideas. No, find someone who will challenge you to show up BIGGER than you are currently comfortable with. Find someone who will call you on your ‘stuff’ when you start backing down, and someone who takes the time with you to discover what you should be marketing and selling based on your unique gifts and talents and values.

The next step to get more courage is to create an empowering environment. Reading Steve Jobs quotes are inspiring and stimulating. Reading the Enquirer not so much! Listen to fellow entrepreneurs who have blazed the trail to show you that it’s possible. You must keep as much positivity in your environment as you can as you make the transition from just having a business to being the kind of business owner who’s making a difference in the world. It’s a big shift, so set yourself up for success by having an environment that pulls you forward. This is where vision boards and inspiring books, goal setting or affirmations, and coaching work well.

And once you make the commitment to have a business you love, based on your gift and unique talents, it’s a whole lot more rewarding.

“Almost everything–all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure–these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.” ~Steve Jobs

I couldn’t have said it better. Thanks Steve and thank YOU my readers for showing up and doing the great work you do in the world.

Peace and blessings!