Imagine this: Your company offers customs services. It could be consulting. It could be custom-built software. Or whatever other custom services you offer.
Certainly, my services fit into this category, too. So, let’s take a look.
My Realization (And Yours, Too?)
Over time I realize:
- Clients love what I offer. What I offer makes a difference to them.
- Yet, I can only serve a very limited number of customers.
- I have to be there all the time. No one can take my seat and give me a break. – I LOVE what I do. And still, how do I get time off?
- Selling the business someday is also gonna be tough! (impossible, really) – unless I do something about it.
I go to bed. I get up and take a shower. I ponder my situation.
Then it hit me: I need to work on productizing my services.
Truth be told: I work with many of my clients on this very matter. And furthermore, it is time that I do something about this myself. These, I said it! 🙂
The Conclusion: Let’s Built a Product
I decided to build a product.
Step 1: I will launch an online course about Brilliance Extraction™. I already held a live workshop to roll out the material of the course, and to get feedback. It was phenomenal! Thank you to the volunteers who gave me a whole Saturday to learn and give me feedback.
The Shift Has Many Rewards
I now want to shift from my story to yours. Which services do you offer that could be productized?
The shift from a custom service to something that acts more like a packaged product has many rewards:
- You can serve more customers.
- You make more money.
- More customers can afford you. Custom solutions tend to be more expensive than “off-the-shelf” ones.
- Customers who were scared to buy from you now are comfortable buying from you. Custom solutions could be scary because who will support them should your company go out of business (think of custom software, for example)?
- You can take a vacation, and take time to create new inventions.
- Your business is now sellable. You are more likely to get a “best-of-class” price.
- You have made your brilliance immortal rather than taking it to the grave. By “brilliance” I mean your unique combination of experience. expertise and wisdom that you employ to run the company.
How to Build the Product
Converting custom solutions into off-the-shelf products involves figuring out the answers to several questions:
- What results do you produce for your customers?
- What is the process for creating these results? – How do you do it? In which order do you do it?
- How can you standardize the process? – You need to create one or a few products from the continuum of custom options you are currently offering.
- Will the product require customization and configuration for each end user (common in high-end software solutions, as an example)? – If yes, what training materials will you need to train consultants who do this work?
I’m Curious
Which custom service/s are offering that could be made into a product? What does this look like for you?
If you feel inspired, jot down some ideas. You can use the four questions as a guide. Drop me a line if you like. I’d like to hear what you are thinking.
