Value-added selling has been a popular concept for years. Now that the economy dictates we be smarter with our marketing, it is vital to add value to your product or service. Without adding value any product or service may be considered on price alone.

The challenge? When you are only selling on price you’ll never be able to sell any degree of high margin sales and that is where profitability, long term growth and sales success resides.

I’ve also seen that when a potential client or referral alliance doesn’t know the price of a service or product the assumption is that it is expensive, which is only a relative term anyway. However this assumption can stop potential clients contacting you or your referral sources from referring you.

At your next meeting I invite you to share with your group what your prices are AND how you add value to the service/products you offer clients.

Let’s take a look at 5 ways that you could add value to your product or service no matter what it is you sell. You may be questioning whether you can add value to your business. The truth is that everything can have value-added.

1. Provide expert advice and a high level of professionalism.
   Lots of accounting firms and professionals are paid a high sum for the level of advice that they provide. We are each experts in our own field. What advice can you share with your prospects and clients that would add to your existing offering?
2. Bundling and packaging. 
   I’m not only talking here about the way your product or service actually looks, I’m also talking about being able to put together desirable packages, purchasing levels and a series of added benefits that are significant in value and are, themselves, a whole lot more valuable than simply the product is by itself. How can you bundle your services/products in a new, valuable way?
3. Service levels.
   It is possible for you to differentiate yourself not only by providing a higher level of service but by adding different levels of service based upon someone’s size, frequency or amount of purchase. For example, you may want to have gold or platinum levels of service that people qualify for, are willing to pay for, and receive when they do business with you. What level of service do you currently provide? Could you raise this?
4. Education.
   As new customers come on board your business you may want to provide training to help them to be better able to utilize the products or services that you sell them. The more education they have related to those products or services the more capable they’ll be at utilizing them. What education could/do you offer clients when they buy from you?
5. Recognition and reward levels.
   People love to be recognised and appreciated. Gratitude goes along way in relationships and business, after all, is made up of allot of relationships. Is there a way you can recognise or reward your top or most valued clients?

This process requires creativity and innovation. However without added-value to your business price could continue to rule. Your challenge? Commit to spending time on asking ‘How can I add value to what I’m selling?’ this month.

If you have not thought about this before, you can use your group meeting to bounce around ideas and get feedback from your group.

Enjoy your meeting,
Vanessa
Connect with me at www.facebook.com/venusnetworkNZ

To support and inspire women committed to achieving personal and financial freedom
by building businesses around their passions.

Welcome to our first issue of Venus, a magazine launched to inspire and celebrate New Zealand women who have ventured in to the world of business ownership.

This magazine has been a dream of mine for almost two years. Ever since I can remember I have known deep inside that I was here for a reason. A reason that was greater than me and that would make a difference in the world. In the past four years since launching the Venus Network I have had the pleasure of meeting and sharing this journey of business with women throughout New Zealand who have this same inner drive and motivation to live life on purpose.

A woman on purpose is inspiring, engaging, enthusiastic and captivating. I thought how perfect to dedicate the first ever issue of Venus to purpose. The role it plays in our lives, the motivation it provides in our businesses and the enterprises that evolve from it. To me the word purpose has two meanings; to live one’s life ‘on purpose’ or be guided by a higher purpose and to be purposeful, to have an intention or a reason for taking action.

We are born for a reason; to contribute our uniqueness and fulfil our purpose in this world. Who you are is unique; your skills, passions, talents, abilities and interests all make up the unique and brilliant woman that you are.
It’s my job as a human to discover and fulfil my purpose. And as Oprah so beautifully put it ‘If you are still alive, you haven’t finished your purpose’.

What I clarified for myself earlier this year is that my purpose is to inspire and support women who are fulfilling their purpose through business. I am passionate about supporting and encouraging the feminine qualities of sharing, celebration, intuition, collaboration and community within business. This is the kind of business community that we’re building here within the Venus Network.
Venus magazine is here to support you as you start and grow a business of your own.

I am committed to your success in business. Through the Venus magazine I’ll be sharing inspiring stories of business women, strategies to help you navigate the road of business ownership, tools you can apply in your business and sharing secrets of success from women who have created financial freedom through their businesses.

I’m thrilled to be starting out on this journey with you.
Here’s to a wild and fun ride.

Vanessa

Read your copy here www.venusnetwork.co.nz/magazine

The end of 2011 is almost upon us and what a great opportunity to look back over the year that was and write down the wins and the lessons you have had in your business.

Please write the top 5 wins you have enjoyed/created and 5 lessons you have learned in your business this year. Bring this information to your meeting and share it in your 1 minute promo.

Download our worksheet to help you with this weeks topic here:
Marketing Module: My Business Review 2011 – Wins, Challenges and Lessons

How things would be different if we looked at our challenges, issues or mistakes as lessons. With this mindset we can build on and improve from the lessons learnt this year as we prepare for 2012.
I have also given you some tools to use while on holiday over summer to prepare for the year ahead. It is when your life slows down a little that your creative mind has a chance to play. You can make the most of this slower pace and enjoy some blue sky thinking and strategic planning for your 2012.

Our first topic for the New Year is One Page Growth Plan. Your members want to support you in your growth and by writing your growth plans down for the year ahead they can support you while helping you to be accountable for your plans.

Download our worksheet to help you get started with your Growth Plan:
One Page Growth Plan

Don’t Sell Your Services; that’s Not What People Buy

Believe it or not, no one actually buys your service. No one buys coaching. No one buys consulting. No one buys financial planning. So what do people buy? Well, there are, in fact, two things people buy.

The first thing people buy is a solution to a problem. People buy a service only because they believe it will solve certain problems and give them certain results.

For this weeks meeting share what problems do you solve for people.

They are not buying the “how” of a service. Your service is simply the “how” you do it. Your service is the tool or method you use to solve problems and deliver results. Do you buy a hammer because you just want a hammer? Do you buy a car because you just want a car? Do you go to the dentist because you happen to feel like being drilled?

These examples show you that you are buying a solution to a problem; you are buying a result. You would not buy a hammer, a car or go to the dentist unless they all solved problems and delivered results. Just suppose you focus on telling someone all about “how” your coaching and consulting service works and what it is.

At the end of the conversation (if they are still listening), they will have a good understanding of your “how” but they’ll be left wondering what problems you will solve for them and what results you will deliver. If people do not know what problems you will solve for them and the results you will deliver, it is highly unlikely that they will buy your service.

If however you focus on understanding their problems and the results they will get, you will be focussing on what people are buying and your chances of success will be dramatically increased.

The second thing people buy is YOU

Once someone has decided they have a problem they want solved, they then make a decision as to who will solve it for them.

If you have focused the conversation on telling them all about your “how” and what your service is, they will feel that you are focussed on yourself and your needs. When the focus is on you, people get the sense that you have your own best interest at heart and don’t really care about them. They will start to think you are simply trying to sell them something, and all sorts of sales resistance will surface.

If you have been focussing the conversation on understanding their problems, they will feel that you have their best interests at heart.
They will start to trust you and open up to you. They will naturally decide you are the person to solve their problems (assuming of course there are problems to be solved, etc).

So in summary, don’t focus on selling your services.

Instead, have conversations where you focus on understanding problems and then people will assume you know “how” to deliver results. The more you focus on understanding their problems, the more they will trust that you are the one they should be working with.

For your group to develop a greater understanding about your business and the services and products you offer this week we’re inviting you to bring something along to ‘Show and Tell’ to your members.

Show and tell is the process of showing an audience something and telling them about it. It is usually done in a classroom as an early school technique for teaching children the skills of public speaking. With Venus we are using it as another tool for educating your members about an aspect of your business.

A number of us are visual and kinaesthetic learners – we learn by seeing and touching. This exercise will help your members, your sales force, to understand more fully an aspect of your business.

We had this as a meeting topic back in March and it was so widely enjoyed that we thought, lets have it again. The only limit is your imagination. Allow yourself to get creative with this.

The idea is to provide your members with a sensory experience either visual or kinaesthetic. Better yet – if you can provide something that your members can take away then they’ll definitely remember you and your product or service over the next few weeks.

Examples of what you could bring in your Show and Tell:

• Graphic designer –bring a selection of brochures they have designed
• Image consultant –bring their colour swatches to explain the different range of colours in each group
• Real Estate Agent – bring their 5 top listings with photos, descriptions to read
• Accountant – bring a few case studies of the $$ they have saved clients or a top 10 list of business expenses you can claim through your business
• Massage Therapist – bring a range of their oils for her group to smell and show her group a small technique they could use to relieve stress in their day to day life
• Travel Agent – bring a photo display of one of their trips or provide a colourful brochure for their group to take away with them to look through
• BNZ –bring their range of ‘in a box’ series and talk about them as they pass them around
• Marketing – bring examples of some great marketing ideas and in comparison some not so great ones
• Mortgage Broker – Bring a visual diagram of the amount of money they have saved a few ‘case study’ clients by finding them the best mortgage deal

Have fun,

Vanessa

Providing an opportunity for your potential clients to experience your brand can help with both the referral and sales process. This can make it easier for potential clients to choose whether they want to do business with you or not.

This week share with your group how their referrals and your prospects can experience your product or service before deciding to buy. In Venus Network we offer a free guest visit so that women can experience a Venus meeting and meet the members of their potential group.

A few other examples are:

Catering company: free tastings
Printers: a selection of printed material – examples of their work
Beauty therapist: small bottle of hand cream
Accountant: free report on how to manage your money
Childcare centre: free tour of the facility or a free session
Lawyer: first 20 minutes free consultation

From a referral point of view we’ll find it easier to refer you if we can offer a way for our contact to experience your business. It is an easy way into a conversation when we can say ‘Here is a way you can trial their services.’

If you are not sure how you could offer a free trial/sample/experience ask the group in your one minute to share some ideas and brainstorm for you.

Enjoy
Vanessa

Setting short term goals or targets are an effective way to stay focused and on track to reaching your bigger goals and wins. I thought this week could be a great opportunity to sit down and spend some reflection time thinking about what you would like to achieve with the last 12 weeks, 84 days until Christmas.

I’m not quite sure where the year has gone to. It feels like Christmas and the summer holidays should not be upon us so soon. However this is a good time to reflect and refocus for the remainder of the year. Take the time before your next meeting to put some goals and targets down so that you finish your year strong.

At your meeting share your  3-7  top goals for the next 12 weeks.

Your members can support you in achieving these goals and it’s a great way to hold yourself accountable, by sharing these with your group.

In January this year we sent out a One Page Growth Plan which is an excellent way to, in one page, have clarity about where you are growing your business. We suggest each quarter to re look at this plan and refocus on the next three months creating new targets.

We have included this One Page Growth Plan here for you to use. We’ve explained the different sections and provided a template to print out. This will help you choose goals that will help you grow towards your main vision for your company.

One-Page-Growth-Plan-Meeitng-Topic.pdf

Have fun!

Vanessa,
Venus HQ

Writing case studies about your business are an effective means of sharing success stories with potential clients and your fellow members. First and foremost case studies build credibility. They are also a great way to promote your products and services. A well written case study can build awareness of your product or service and create a context for people to understand the value you provide clients.

Write a case study or two and share it with your group at your next meeting. You’ll give your members an opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of how you work with clients and the successes you have had with past or current clients.

HOW DO I WRITE ONE?
Choose case-study subjects that are topical and interesting, perhaps one of your top or most favourite clients. If you would like some guidance around creating a case study you can use this three step method;

1. The Customer and the Challenge
   What need did your client have before they met you, what problem did they have?
2. The Journey
   How did you work with them, what was the solution you provided, what steps did you take to solve the problem?
3. The Results
   How well did your product or service solve your customer’s problem? What was made possible after you worked with them? What were the benefits they received from working with you?

Case studies tell the story of a great product or service and a happy customer. Often (ideally) the customer is interviewed and quoted in the article.

Case Studies are an effective tool you can use to promote your products and services. They promise real-life solutions and insider tips on how your business works. At Venus we put our case studies mixed in with our testimonials on our website for potential members to read. Check them out here

This weeks meeting please share the journey you have had so far in your business. How you came to be where you are and why you chose the business you chose.

This is an opportunity for you to show your experience or qualifications, your passions and what is the drive behind your growth.

People love stories. They can identify with them. They also help people to get to know you, hopefully trust you and like you as they learn more about you.

A well-crafted business story also connects prospects to your business on a deeper level than traditional benefit-orientated marketing. Why? We are wired to enjoy and pay attention to stories. More importantly for your business, we become personally invested in engaging stories and their outcomes.

Tell the personal story behind your business. Both potential clients and your referral alliances (Venus members) respond best to your authenticity and passion – so let this shine. Did your business grow out of a personal loss or a difficult challenge? What was the business’ original mission?

By painting a personal, human picture of your business, you remind us that your business is built by a person with whom they can relate and connect to.

Enjoy,
Vanessa

Collectively the Venus Network has a wealth of information and wisdom held in the minds of our members around New Zealand. For this weeks meeting topic lets share this information amongst one another so we can make smart marketing choices and benefit from one anothers lessons.

At your meeting this week please share your most successful marketing activities. Your facilitator will take notes and send them to me.  At the end of the fortnight I will compile a report of the Venus Member’s Top Marketing Ideas and will email you a copy.

Referrals are one part of a great marketing strategy. What other ideas/activities have you engaged in that have been stunningly successful?