What Are You Teaching Your Customers?
Last week, I was fortunate enough to be in West Palm Beach, FL, training with my mentor, Bob Burg, and my fellow Go-Giver coaches.
If you are familiar with the book, The Go-Giver, by Bob Burg, and John David Mann, then you know the first law of stratospheric success states: “Your true worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you take in payment.”
We were talking about how some people get value confused with discounted prices. Discounts do not equal quality of service. This made me think of something that is happening in my own business right now.
You may or may not know that I own 2 franchise stores. There was another franchise, the same as mine, located about 20 minutes from one of my stores that recently went out of business. The day after this store closed I started getting her clients in my store and calling on the telephone, and they all wanted the same thing, a discount.
I know the owner of the closed store, and she had been complaining about not making any money for as long as I have known her. From what the clients were saying, they never paid full price for the product they bought from her. Her clients told me her prices were cheaper, she always gave them a discount, and why wouldn’t I do the same?
I won’t do the same because I provide value to my customers by providing high quality product that is fresh, most of it hand-made with great care, at a reasonable price. I provide value in that my staff provides on time delivery for our orders every time. We provide value by giving quality service to our customers, hopefully with a smile. And I know what margins I need to maintain in order to keep the doors open, pay my awesome staff, while still making a profit. After all, no profits equals out of business. She believed that her customers would not pay for her products unless they were discounted. She had trained her customers that in her store, discounts equaled quality of service. She discounted herself right out of business.
Now, I am not saying that I never offer discounts, because I do. I offer discounts to my corporate clients and regular clients when they ordered in quantity. But I understand, as any good business owner does, that if you provide more in value than you take in payment, you will have a successful business, it’s the law.
So that brings me back to my original question. What are you teaching your customers about your business? Please share below.
Tags: bloggers, Bob Burg, Business Coaching, Coaches, Customers, Discounts, Franchise, Go-Giver, Help for small business owners, Jean Kuhn, marketing, Profits, Teaching Your Customers
Great law and great example of practicing it. So glad to meet you in person at Go Giver Retreat.
Hi Doug, It was great meeting you at the Go-Giver Retreat also. Thank you for commenting.
Jean, I love how you can make decisions with such a logical mindset. Discounts “seem” like a good idea at the time, yet they CAN put us right out of business. The value you provide is not only in your product and service, but also in the running of your business as a business…so you can be there for your (or others’) customers today, tomorrow and next year!
Hey Linda,
You are right about staying in business for your customers. There was a business identical (same products, floor plan the same, I mean identical, just a different name) to mine that opened up a about 6 stores down from me on the other side of the street. I chose to really really step up our customer service as my way of competing with them. They went out of business about 2 years after they opened. That was 3 years ago. Do you know I still have people coming in my store asking where they went. That means their customers only found value in them every 2 or 3 years. Yet I was thriving just a half a block from them. Thanks for pointing that out.
Jean,
Loved seeing you at The Go-Giver Retreat. Excellent article. It is absolutely true. We do teach people how to treat us…and customers are definitely people! If we try to “buy” the business, we teach our customers to ignore the value. This is a great value story.
Be well,
Dondi
Hi Dondi,
Thank you for your comment. I missed it so my apologies in the lateness of my response. I love the reframing about “buying” the business. Meeting you in person was a highlight of my weekend. Have a great weekend.
Powerful, Powerful, Powerful article!!
Bob,
Thank you for that comment. It is such a simple law, yet we all struggle with it. But once we understand it, it offers us a sense of freedom over ourselves on the way we run our businesses. Meaning that we dont have to worry about what our competition does. Although its a good idea to know what they are doing we don’t have to worry about it. Thanks again.
I run a customs clearing agent…many times I get customers who demand discounts and are always comparing my charges to others.Guess this is a great lesson on creating a balance hey?Thanky you.
Brian, thank you for commenting. You need to educate your clients on your value. How are you different than your competition. What can you add to your customer’s experience that doesn’t cost you any money?
Jean, what a perfect demonstration of the difference between “cheaper” and “more valuable.” How many of us have “discounted ourselves right out of business” because we didn’t understand, or could not articulate the value that our customers receive when they pay full price for our products and services? (and your products ROCK! I had plenty for me and to share and they were MUCH appreciated. The truffles, especially, were YUM and I could taste the difference between fresh made and factory produced!)
Thank you Dixie. I’m glad you enjoyed the chocolates.
What a great post Jean!!! Like Larry Winget would say “it’s our own damn fault” when we allow things to happen to our business because we have showed our clients what we will do. This can be for good or bad. LOVE it!!!!
Thanks Christie, LOL, it is our fault when we try to compete on price alone. I can hear Larry’s voice now saying that.
Excellent Jean – I had the same thing happen in my business and when the other store closed, they wanted the same “deal” – I explained that they closed because they didn’t have enough cash flow to pay their bills, and that I couldn’t sell at those prices because I wanted to stay in business. They bought from me at my price and have been back several times since.
Thank you Barb. Nice talking to you today. I think I will go raise my prices. Just kidding.