As a service provider who only works with other service providers, I would like to highlight just how much I appreciate these hardworking business owners. It’s the month to be thankful, and I really don’t think service-based businesses get enough thanks.
Service businesses have the unique challenge of needing to describe what they do without showing a physical representation of their outcomes (even the most obscure product is still something that people can actually look at). If a service is easily recognizable, then you can be sure there is a lot of competition in the market. I talk with service providers every day who are working hard to connect with the right clients who will benefit from both their service and their unique value as a provider. It’s not easy!
Keep the Service in Service Businesses
A growing trend in the service industry that presents a new challenge to business owners is the pressure to turn your service into a product. What does that mean?
Essentially, the idea is based on the fact that every business has a capacity, or a limit to the number of clients it can serve at any given time. By turning its service into some kind of self-service automation, a business can serve unlimited clients at any time. This usually looks like online courses, monthly content subscriptions, ebooks, and DIY guides.
Obviously, there is a market for all of these things. And many of them serve a great purpose. But the bottom line is that they are only as good as a client’s motivation to use and apply them. As most service providers know, the average client doesn’t actually want to take instructions and apply it on their own. They want a service to do the work with or for them. When service providers shift to a fully “productized” service, the marketplace loses a vital resource.
Most of us who provide a service get into it because we have a talent for what we do and a passion for the people we help. That combination is what makes the service effective! The outcomes we help clients achieve require our direct involvement.
My encouragement to all small service business owners this season is to keep your personalized service in your business. Adding a few automated enhancements might be a great way to boost your margins and streamline a few processes. Just keep in mind that those tools don’t compare to the value that you provide to each and every client just by doing what you do best.
It’s Not Just Business; It’s Personal
We’ve all heard the phrase, “It’s not personal; it’s just business.” I think many of us would like to believe that business can be impersonal, but it almost never is.
Humans are hard-wired for relationships and personal interaction. We greatly benefit from the dynamics of communicating and working with others. Of course we can learn from a book or an online source, and we can purchase services from an online platform. When we do that, though, we are limited by the parameters of the source. A book is self-contained. An online course or portal can’t answer a nuanced question.
We need to work with other people in order to fully benefit from a service. Without another person, we can only consume. When we get together with someone else, we can collaborate.
Let’s look at 2 examples:
1. Call a local insurance agent or shop online with a national provider.
When you speak to the local agent, they will likely know something about where you live and work. You can talk to them about your past experience with a claim, or you can describe a particular concern, and they will tailor their advice based on that information. They know the questions to ask based on your situation and the information you provide them. This means you can make policy decisions based on your actual priorities, and you have someone who will always answer questions and help you update your plans.
The national provider is going to collect the facts and respond with options that you will have to consider in the context of your circumstances. There’s no assurance or confirmation about the choice you will make.
Which policy is more likely to make you feel like you have what you need for your unique situation?
2. Make some lifestyle changes by working with a health coach or buying an online course.
If you work directly with the coach, you will get a customized plan that takes your habits, specific targets, and medical history into account. You’ll get personal support and accountability along the way, and you’ll be able to adjust as you go with your coach’s help.
If you simply buy the course, you have to rely on your own willpower to watch the videos, follow the steps, and track your own progress.
Which one is more likely to bear positive results over time?
Ultimately, every service-based business is personal. For the business to achieve its mission, it must deliver personal service tailored to the needs of real people. This is why most service providers get into their work in the first place, and it’s what makes them grow and thrive in their market.
Your Business - Your People
One of the reasons I always come back to the importance of building a persona in order to create your marketing strategy and messaging is because it really is all so personal. As I already mentioned, every business owner has a limited capacity to serve. They need to optimize that capacity by serving the right people for their business.
When you apply your talent for your work, your passion for people, and your messaging to the most compatible people, you will deliver your absolute best service every time (okay, we’re all human, so most of the time).
Working with people is a highly rewarding, but also highly challenging career choice. People can be difficult, chaotic, elusive, and complicated. But they can also be generous, endearing, gracious, and inspiring. I love to work with people who work with people. It’s a true calling, and I respect the dedication and fortitude it takes.
In this season of Thanksgiving, I simply want to offer my thanks to all of you business owners out there who live to serve. You are doing amazing work to invest in others and keep the world connected.
Happy Thanksgiving from Marketing to Mission!
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