How to Sell Advice

Correctly categorizing
your products and services.

Is what we're going to talk
about today and I'll give you a

little story, a little anecdote.

Of what I recently had done to.

Re sort of categorize.

My Mindshare pro, which was,
I think previously I'd kinda

considered it an advanced community.

Uh, membership.

And it included some content
and some ongoing training.

And really what I realized was that
the crux of the value was number

one was all the templates and.

Resources that I offer my kind
of system, my suite of tools and

templates that I, that I offer.

For advisors particularly, but
also freelancers and agencies

are getting use out of it.

And I think so there was sort of this
one-time upfront value that mind share

pro members would get in the form of
all these templates and resources.

There was some light ongoing training, and
then there was a group coaching component

to it where you could ask questions
either we would do in the beginning.

It was a, you would submit a question.

I would answer it either in
the community or whatever.

And then it became, you could
book a call with me 15 minutes,

which often turned into 30.

And now I'm kind of evolving it slightly.

So.

The point I'm making is that by
labeling Mindshare pro as kind

of a, I mean, by categorizing it
advertently or inadvertently, I.

I ultimately.

Basically kind of, it's kind of
confused the value a little bit.

So the real true value is access
is a sounding board access to me

for advice, feedback, and guidance
on whatever your situation is.

So if you need that, At $99 a month,
which is where it started out, where

it's, where it is now currently.

It's a no, it's just a no-brainer option.

It comes with I'm in slack and you
can ask me questions and it makes

it easier to kind of communicate
and get feedback on things.

So for people that are kind of stuck.

And don't mind asking questions and
interacting in fact would benefit

would prefer to meet up with people.

In real life in real real time,
we do this once a month with

the free Mindshare community.

We have about eight to
10 people that show up.

And we just talk about a specific
topic, whether it's marketing.

Methodology.

Our business models, et cetera.

And if you're, by the way,
you're not registered for that.

And you're in the community.

Uh, registered for that.

If you want to register for that.

And you're not in the community,
email me, Kevin and kevin.me, and

I'll add you to the community and
you can get access to those meetups.

But anyway, so we basically.

You know, we're adding
some of those kinds of.

You know, conversational style group
coaching, where we can ask questions,

talk on a topic, learn a few things,
share ideas, give each other feedback.

And then, and then that's it.

So that's the current format
because the group is fairly small.

And.

So I think just the sort of takeaway
that I want to share with you is that

when you have a $99 membership, you
know, I had someone telling me who

joined that they, they pay, I think
2 50, 3 50 for an annual subscription

to an association that they belong to.

And.

There are other kind of, you know,
groups or memberships that they belong

to that are in that two to $500 per year.

Category.

Which makes sense for a membership.

And one day I might go back and do more
ongoing training and maybe price it.

You know, lower.

As a membership because
it's not about coaching.

It's about content.

And Bo connection and about the other
intangible benefits of, of memberships.

But I think that's kind of
core to what a membership is.

It's usually around content.

Maybe there's some light coaching
involved, but typically it's a content

driven thing and it is designed to
help you achieve a goal of some kind.

And there's often a community
component to it as well.

So we've got a community as a
category that that is free currently

and that's mind share.community and
you can sign up and join for free.

If you're a marketing
freelancer consultant.

Then you have the, uh,
So no longer exists.

I knock out call it group coaching.

That's group coaching
and it's $99 a month.

I can imagine that going higher, but
I'm just going to keep it there and see

how it goes to get a few people in the
door and, and work on that a little bit.

Now for $99 for a coaching
offer, that is a significantly.

Different value propositions.

So now, now it's no longer
an expensive membership.

It is an very inexpensive
form of coaching.

So for people who are looking for
a sounding board for looking for.

You know, T to get outside
perspective on their situation.

Usually the ideal people in this situation
are either plateaued or they're just

getting started and want some kind of
light kind of feedback and, and guidance,

and just sort of perspective on their
situation because it's really, we all need

this, in my opinion, it's really hard to
see what the situation from, with inside.

Your own business.

You know, the, read the
label within the bottle.

So that's why group coaching is valuable.

And so it's basically an over
enterprise and then it includes

access to me and others.

And then there's a slack component
and, and all the templates and

resources that, that come with, they
used to come with Mindshare pro.

So it's sort of a repositioning
into a group coaching versus a

membership model with a $99 price tag.

So instead of it being a really
expensive membership and they say

really expensive with air quotes.

It's it's a, it's now a, the
community is free, which is, should

be tremendous value, uh, in terms
of the content and hopefully the

connections that you make and there's
plans to make that even more robust.

And then you have the coaching, the group
coaching, and then a step above that

is, is my one-to-one private coaching.

Now I had a mastermind program before
and we ran one of those and it was great

problem with the mastermind is that unless
there's a new cohort ready to sign up,

you then have this problem of, well,
you know, people are on waiting lists,

waiting to sign up, or one more, two
people get in the group and then there's.

Not enough.

Uh, To justify the price
relative to the work.

And also the experience is not
enough to justify a new group.

So it becomes very difficult to
roll out without a big audience.

And I don't have a massive audience.

So, um, so essentially now we have an
expensive one-to-one coaching offer.

We have a inexpensive group coaching
offer of no brainer pricing on that one.

And then you have a free,
a free thing altogether.

Now because some people would still,
I can tell because a few people signed

up, got the dial, you know, got all the
templates and then left within a couple

months after signing up for Mindshare pro.

And then having spoken to them,
the content, the resources, the

templates and stuff were valuable.

And many of them are using them.

And some people it's mind blowing
and some people, they they're able

to see things in different way.

Great.

Now I'm going to sell that as a product.

So you've got now knowledge products, and
I don't know what I'm going to call it.

Maybe Mindshare toolkit
or Mindshow system.

I'm sure.

Operating says, I don't know, but.

That's going to be sold as a
product as a one-time purchase.

So you'll have all those
templates and maybe, maybe

there'll be different versions.

So you buy at the current version and
then version 2.0, will be something else.

Maybe you can upgrade,
maybe you get access to it.

For free for a year.

I don't know.

There'll be some, some model with
that, but that's a knowledge product.

That's a product and you purchase that.

It's a one-time thing.

So that way we're unpacking.

You know, those that need
that, just the templates.

Uh, that's a categorically, that's
an, a knowledge product that's

templates and training and resources.

Then you have categorically a
membership, which is content and

community, or, sorry, I guess.

Yeah.

Membership it's free.

It's content, the community.

And then you have a group coaching.

Kind of program and that's
where I'll be teaching stuff.

And also we'll be doing the interaction in
real and real time and online with slack.

Uh, and then you have the one-to-one.

So what that does is it allows
each category to be independently

viewed and not compared to.

Other similar kinds of
companies or, or offers.

Within, uh, within the incorrect category.

Because what it does is it focuses
the value in the wrong place.

So for a hundred bucks a month,
once you've gotten the initial

content, it's not worth it.

Just to sign up for light.

Uh, additional training and content.

Uh, unless you, unless
you get the coaching.

So just the content alone to me,
wasn't, wasn't quite worth it.

And frankly, Now that I look at it
in retrospect, I was looking at the

coaching as the true value, but if
it's positioned as a membership,

then people see the content as the
true value and, and, and what not.

So.

Uh, so, you know, so this is kind of
how I'm just sort of viewing the world

and this can be applied in other ways.

So I don't want to just
make this about me.

I just, I'm just wanting to share this
as a thought process because because

many of us are in a similar situation.

And it can become very easy to blend.

You know, how much content do
you include with your membership

or your coaching and whatever.

But I think if you break them
into the discrete parts, the

content coaching, the membership.

Uh, and group coaching, whatever, then
you can decide to access them together.

So maybe members of my private coaching
get also access to the group, the group

stuff, as well as the, the, the, the
product, the knowledge product, or end,

or the free membership to the community.

So maybe they get all that
rolled into it as part of value

adds with their membership.

Uh, but those are options.

So you can kind of deconstruct
it or bring it back together.

The alternative to this of course,
is that you can just have everything

rolled into one big coaching
program with a bunch of content.

And there's other styles of
say group coaching or even

one-on-one coaching where.

It's much more premium.

Maybe it's cohort-based
maybe it's fixed length.

Maybe it's ongoing.

Maybe it's training, maybe
it's advisory kind of stuff.

Uh, Maybe it's one-to-one group.

There's lots of things you can assist.

Some people we'll package that
into one main, big service and

charge a lot of money for it.

And that's another
totally fine way to do it.

But at least you kind of know what
category things are in, whether

it's, you know, a coaching.

Like a premium coaching service.

Or one of the other things
that I just described.

Now, this can apply in
a few different ways.

So, you know, in a lot of ways,
every single service model or

product that you offer is its own
little unique kind of business.

So yes, there is kind
of an ascending ladder.

If you will, a product or service
ladder where people can choose,

well, how much engagement do I
want and how much do I want to pay?

And then there's value at
all levels of the chain.

That's one way to look at it.

Uh, another way to look at it is, so let's
say you were a web developer and so on

the one end, you've got a website support
retainer, and maybe, or maybe you've

got hourly work, which ad hoc hourly.

And it's not the best way to run it,
but maybe have some sort of hourly

rate for just independent tasks.

Maybe you've got a maintenance plan.

So you update and maintain the website.

Maybe you've got a support plans
that you, and that includes maybe the

maintenance plan and some number of hours.

And that's your support plan?

And then maybe you've got
like an advisory plan.

That's part of the support.

So you can be on.

Available to answer questions and stuff.

And maybe that gets packaged in as an
add-on to one of your support plans.

But now you're basically seeing,
okay, we've got maintenance.

We've got support.

We've got, we've got ad hoc hourly.

We, so that's just ad hoc.

Uh, we've then got, um,
Access, you know, for.

For, you know, to discuss the
project and to work on things.

And then you've got maybe
productized websites and then

maybe you've got custom websites.

So there's a big range.

Now, any one of those could be
independently viable as a business.

Some people have just maintenance
businesses, somebody love maintenance

support and support businesses.

Some people have maintenance support
and customer development, and some

people just do productize websites.

And so by knowing what category
you're optimizing for and by pricing

it and delivering it according
to the category of belongs to.

It allows you to be more competitive
to be compared with the right things.

For people to see the value in
what you're doing and not be

confused about where the value is.

So if I'm, if I'm buying.

A productized website.

I'm not expecting to be
fully customed to my needs.

I'm expecting there to be some
flexibility, but I'm expecting

the process to be efficient.

To be low cost.

And restrictive a little bit
and constrained in terms of what

I'm able to do within, within
the, the money that I spend.

Those are the trade-offs of a semi-custom.

Uh, productized website in that case.

However from buying a custom website.

I should expect it to cost more,
take longer and be more suitable

to my exact specifications.

And then for cost more.

Uh, and if I'm looking for support,
That's a whole different thing

altogether and different people
buy support, that kind of stuff.

So I think it's really just
important about how we categorize

things and therefore it tells not
only the market, where to point

their, their value in their.

They're focused on where the value
should come from, which is important.

And it allows you to position it
against your peers and not things

in different categories because
something is either a very expensive.

So-and-so or very inexpensive something
else, depending on how you look at it.

And.

So as long as you have those clear
delineations and allows you and

your, and your potential and current
and prospective clients to know,

okay, here's where the value is.

I understand it.

I can compare what the right things and
you, as the person who's running, it knows

how to design that product or service in
alignment with the category of belongs to.

So it was group coaching.

That means it's not one-to-one coaching,
which means the constraint is it

has to be done in a group setting.

If it's a private coaching, it's,
it's private and therefore there's

going to be other demands and needs.

And it's going to be priced accordingly.

If it's custom.

Uh, you're also going to have
a different process versus if

it's a productized service.

Oh, if it's support, you're going to
have a whole other different workflow.

Uh, price point delivery model
and maybe packaging of different

items, like access to you for
conversations about their project.

And or maintenance and or reporting.

Putting all into one, one kind of
support advisory retainer with some

number of hours, that's an option for
you, but that's the sort of support

maintenance end of the spectrum.

So I think.

By having by understanding clearly where
your categories are, it allows you to

create basically a, an infrastructure
and a taxonomy with your services, your

products, and your intellectual property.

And that's just what I wanted
to share with you today, because

if it's incorrectly categorized,
people will get confused.

Relative to others in that category,
you're going to look very expensive or

inexpensive, and that's not a good thing.

Necessarily, unless that's your strategy.

And it allows, it just allows people
to better understand what genre is.

Seth Godin would say what category
you belong to and therefore be

able to buy it with a little
more certainty and a little more.

A little more, uh, care and understanding
of where the value comes from.

So hope that helps.

It'll also help you to
shape what you're doing.

So if you're kind of confused, if you're
in the mushy middle between between

a product and a service and people,
aren't going to get an understanding

where the value should come from.

It's maybe a positioning problem and
maybe even a categorical positioning.

So I just wanted to share this idea
with you and, uh, hope it helps.

And if you're interested in any
of those affirmation products

and services, I'm always around.

Otherwise.

Uh, stay tuned.

I hope you join us for the monthly mind.

Share meetups.

Get in the community.

And if you're not kevin.me,
Kevin, that kevin.me is my email.

And, uh, I'd be happy to let you in.

Thank you so much and i look forward
to talking to you soon bye for now