Dear Service Provider, What Are You Offering?
Who’s a service provider?
A service provider is someone who’s offering his/her services, based on skill set, expertise, knowledge, and experience, in exchange for fees (or money). This can be a consultant, a coach, a therapist, an accountant, a lawyer, a freelancer, a designer, an artist, etc.
Are you a service provider?
What have you got on offer that you feel is good enough to attract new prospects to your business?
Just something to think about.
Let’s get into the main gist…
The marketplace
There’s no denying the fact that the service based industry is saturated, and in order for a service provider to get ahead, he/she needs to “stand out” from the crowd (especially online).
Getting clients online is not always about the platform you use as a service provider, but it’s about what you’re offering. The truth is, most of these online platforms work very well for service providers if used properly, but if your offer does not resonate with the people you’re marketing/advertising to, nothing will happen.
The starting point…
In order to ensure your offer is what people want/need, start with a research and find out the problem(s) your ideal prospect is facing and how you can solve it/them for him/her, before going down the marketing path, as opposed to telling people “Hey, my service is the best or the cheapest!”
If you really want to scale your service based business, please avoid competing on price. Be bold and brave when it comes to pricing and don’t waver. Anyone who feels you’re too “expensive” is probably not your ideal client. It’s not about how much you charge or if they can pay. It’s about the value you’re providing.
I had to digress a bit (needed to make the points above); back to the mediums…
The mediums you use to distribute your contents or run your campaigns (paid or free) are a means to an end, but the real results can be derived from the solutions you create as a service provider, through these mediums. The main goal is positioning yourself as a trusted service provider, in the midst of all the noise.
Change approach
The “I offer that too” mindset will always hinder one’s progress in business, because it puts you in a position of constant competition (most of the time on price). That’s not to say competition or market saturation doesn’t exist (as I stated earlier on this post), but focusing on them all the time is not healthy for business.
It’s okay to acknowledge that they exist, learn about them, and then create a differentiator within your business in order to set yourself apart from everyone else.
For example, in the web design space, there are those who reduce their fees as low as possible in order to get clients. Some may think that’s “disruptive”, but that’s just undervaluing your industry. When this happens, other web designers will then feel the need to follow suit or become frustrated and angry at those who only use pricing as a way of getting business.
That shouldn’t be the case. A service provider in any industry can consider creating an “umbrella or signature service”, which could serve as the core income generator for his/her business.
Another web designer example: he/she could consult on topics such as SEO best practices; web content structure or blogging; getting monthly web traffic; increasing website speed; how to reduce bounce rates; lead generation tactics on the website; ecommerce; sales automation, etc.
A graphics designer could look at creating a guide or advisory service for businesses looking to rebuild their brand or create awareness through visuals.
A business consultant could think of better ways to add value to his/her clients using resources available to him her. This could be a video training course, webinar series, an event/workshop/seminar, a mastermind group, etc.
These are just ideas one could play with, and it’s possible to come up with something even better if you put your mind to it.
Care about your clients
When clients know you have their best interest at heart by offering something others in your space are not offering or willing to offer, and it’s of value to them, you’re more likely to keep them loyal and also get referrals.
Client retention is not a walk in the park, so as a service provider, it’s important to understand that your clients will constantly seek advise, help and support. How you approach this will determine if they’ll stay with you or move on to someone else.
That said, it’s frustrating for service providers when clients misuse their generosity or goodwill. To avoid this, it’s important to be more selective of the type of clients you want to work with. Trying to please everyone or take everyone on board as a client will not help you make progress. Create a “selection process” within your funnel prior to working with clients. This will help you bring on board the right individuals.
Let’s conclude
So, before you spend money on another campaign, first of all look at what you’re offering and see how to make it more valuable to your ideal prospects, and do your best to make it different from what other service providers in your industry are doing.
Please be sure to leave a comment below, and also share this post.
To your success!
P.S. If you need help with creating a signature service, and how to market it effectively online to get leads/sales, then schedule a 60 minutes strategy session (for only £65) with me to discuss and also map out a new service structure for your business. Click here to book your session.
