I have some amazingly talented friends. Friends who are talented at making and doing all sorts of things. Baking, sewing, cutting hair, knitting, taking pictures, teaching skills...the list goes on and on. But I've stumbled on something that bothers me...and it has to do with business. Don't get me wrong - I am no business guru, I have no degree in business or marketing. But I do understand the law of supply and demand. A LOT of these friends are in high demand because they have such AMAZING products or services. Here's what I struggle with - friends who don't see the same value in their product and are reluctant to follow through with commitments, or they offer their products/services at drastically reduced prices/rates.
**Please note that this post is NOT directed at any one individual, company or product. These experiences have occured in the last year to 18 months and with more people/companies/products than I can count on both my hands.**
I know that a lot of these friends are moms with small children. And I GET THAT. There never seem to be enough hours in the day, days in the week, weeks in the month, etc. But not returning emails or phone calls when someone is inquiring about a product or service isn't the right answer. Instead, let that person know how busy you are and that your time is a something you value. By doing that, you are allowing yourself a) freedom to give yourself grace with timelines; b) create an even higher value for your product or service; and c) create higher demand!
For example, if I was to call a friend and book an appointment for a haircut, I would appreciate a phone call in return. And if, during that phone call, she told me that she couldn't find childcare for her kids, and really no time before the date I needed her, I would ask her for a recommendation just this once and definitely come back to her. I would be so thankful to see her the next time and would definitely tip well because of the extra service help she provided rather than ignoring me. She has her priorities in line and I absolutely respect that. In the future, I would book further in advance to help alleviate the problem of last minute childcare and after seeing her, rave about how wonderful, amazing and talented she is. After all, her business is just that - a BUSINESS, and both she and it deserve to be treated with respect.
Instead, what I am finding is that phone calls, emails, website inquiries are not being returned at all and therefore I am stuck at square one, looking for something/someone new to fulfill my need and allowing them to wow me, possibly taking the place of the original talent just because they responded! In the future, who am I more likely to contact first? The person who didn't respond to my inquiry or the one who fulfilled my need?
The other issue I have is the provider who doesn't see the same value in themselves or their product, and almost gives it away for free. Don't get me wrong - I like a good sale or a discount for repeat purchases, but FRIENDS! We have to take pride in ourselves and our businesses and not feel the need to just break even! If you're selling at a deeply discounted rate it concerns me that you are not interested in what you are doing any more or that you are not passionate about it and I fear losing you and your talents or products.
I don't want to leave this post without some solutions. They are not amazing - I stated earlier that I am NOT your go-to business adviser. I'm not even going to touch the topic of work/life balance (okay, maybe in a future post, but I am not even close to dreaming of having that answer). Simple solutions of having basic, minimum set hours for your business, especially for responding to inquiries. Even if it's just one hour, twice a week when you check your business email and/or phone number and return those inquiries. Have a message on your phone stating that time, and an out of office notice on your email so that people can know when to expect a response. If you don't need the entire hour, awesome! You just got back some time to do whatever you need to do - take a bath, read a chapter of your neglected book, just BREATHE in this busy world that you live in.
And as far as discounting products, know your market value! If people are willing to pay full price then CHARGE IT. There is no need to discount just to make a sale. At times of the year you will need to move old stock to bring in new, or sell quickly to bring in some extra cash. Make sure you clearly promote these times as sales, using whatever verbage appeals to you. People will not come to expect reduced prices from you unless it is something you continually offer them.
Friends, I hope you all can take just a little nugget from this. You have something amazing that the world needs to know about. You may think it's small and insignificant, but it's making a difference in the lives of others. Whether filling the need for a unique product, providing a service that makes people feel better about themselves, or just helping people put one foot in front of the other and continue moving forwards, please know that you have value. Please take the time to put some simple systems in place to help manage your time effectively and stay true to who you are/what you represent. You have worked hard to get your product or service noticed, now is the time to be proud, stand behind it and it's price with no fear of the dollar amount the market has placed on it!
Much love to you all, and I hope to see you on my shopping ventures soon!
S
