Part 1 describes the issues Matterform Media was facing in 2013. Coaching began by defining and prioritizing problems.
Transformation Begins
The easiest issue to start with was improving Herrick’s
office environment. Overall, he liked being in the Sunshine building, but he
needed to clear out the clutter that was intruding into his work. He decided to
buy a large oak cabinet to hide away office debris and find an executive desk
with plenty of clear work space which could face the door, look more
professional, and take advantage of his great views.
Herrick debated between buying a cheap desk versus an
expansive executive model he had located on Craigslist at a good, though still
expensive, price. The issue was deeper than office furniture. Did he believe he
was going to be able to raise his revenues enough to justify the investment in
himself?
He took a leap of faith and bought the executive desk.
He also cleaned out his second room and started to advertise
a co-working space for lease. Until he expands enough again to need employees,
he can solve the problem of isolation and generate some extra cash flow.
Ideally he will find a tenant or two in a related business who can help with
each other’s work prospects. We identified some ideal partners, like graphic
designers or web developers, to target. He had been thinking of putting the
extra space for rent for awhile, but hadn’t found the motivation until he
started Mariposa coaching.
Moving Out of a Sunset Industry
The next problem was more challenging. How could Herrick
generate a better rate of pay? He hadn’t priced his competitors in a while.
Looking online he realized the services he was promoting were dropping in pay.
It was time to figure out the highest and best use of his skills.
Every business owner should set aside time, preferably at
least annually, to ask themselves—Am I doing the right thing, in the right
place, at the right time?
We started to visualize his ideal customer. Who benefited
the most from his expertise? Herrick realized his best skill was the consulting
he provided while developing technical applications and integration.
A New Approach
Herrick searched online until he found a business model that
best described his skills—Line of Business (LoB) applications. With more
research he learned that while larger corporations had begun to embrace the
concept, his ideal customer wasn’t being served. No one seemed to be marketing
LoB to smaller organizations. Herrick had been selling LoB, but hadn’t used the
terminology.
We began to work on getting Herrick to stop talking about
the cool gadgets he could offer, and focus on how LoB could solve his
customer’s problems. We worked on his 30 second elevator pitch. He could answer
the question of what he did for a living by remarking that he offered Line of
Business solutions. In the past he often launched into “Inspector Gadget” mode
of talking about all the complicated stuff people could buy from him, which I
suspect left the impression he was going to make their lives miserable with new
technology they would have to learn.
Instead, he worked on introducing LoB, then waiting for the
person to ask him to explain. Rather than talk gadget, he worked on asking
people if they had problems in their business that needed solved.
Herrick further refined the process. He realized that he
should never quote an hourly price for his services. Instead, he should price
by the week or by the project. Furthermore, when he created a proposal, he
would start by showing his potential customer where he could save them money,
thereby making his services more than pay for itself. He wasn’t going to cost
them money; he was going to increase their cash flow with his products.
Mariposa Goal
We decided Herrick’s number one goal for coaching should be
to land a new major account by the end of the year. Everything he did would be
benchmarked as to whether it helped him reach his goal or not.
Herrick wasn’t ready to start on sales calls yet, though.
His website hadn’t been updated in years. Nor was he utilizing social media for
marketing. With a new way to talk about his work, he was able to update his
marketing content.
He wrote a detailed case study of his best client, so as to
attract more of the same. We also talked about ways he could gain better exposure.
It’s easier to date before getting married. Herrick’s services involve a small
enterprise owner handing over all critical operations for integration. He
needed to work on building trust and taking small steps towards building future
relationships.
We identified some potential openings, such as offering
competitive market analysis for a fee. He could then start to weed out who
seemed serious and was willing to pay for his work. We also looked at some other
ways to get in front of an audience, such as offering talks and workshops.
With a redesigned website and new marketing direction,
Herrick was ready to start working on sales.
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