The Real Deal Offline Series: "Offline Clients Pay You $2,000 For Nothing?..."

Hey Offliners,

If someone had told me three years ago that a business owner would pay me $2,000 to simply present them with several marketing plan options, while they make the decision on which one to take, I would've balked and called them a liar.

But, a response from kaniganj to my thoughts that I shared yesterday titled "I Do Offline Marketing, NOT Business Coaching" yesteday made me start thinking.

I'm paraphrasing, but he said that he doesn't tell a client what to do, but presents the client with several recommendations and then allows the client to choose.

At first glance, I almost disagreed.

Why else would clients be willing to pay me thousands of dollars per month, if not for my specific advice on what to do and how to do it?

But, as I reflected back on how I work with my clients, I realized he was right. He had accurately described exactly how I work with my clients in 99% of the cases.

I allow my clients to choose the direction they want to go in, even if it means they might not get the maximum results they want from the strategy or option they chose.

Why?

Because, ultimately it's their business and it's their neck on the line if things go wrong. Secondly, I don't know everything about everything, so they could actually be right. I've learned to listen just as much as I advise.

And like kaniganj said, if things go terribly wrong, they will bash the crap out of you to anyone who will listen. However, if they chose the direction and package, then a sane business owner will be honest enough to shoulder the responsibility that something he wanted to do didn't work.

Business owners are in the risk game, so they know sometimes they pick winners and losers.

Thankfully, in most cases the option my clients choose is one of the several I was suggesting to them, but they just want the marketing strategies completed in a different order than I would've done it.

That's not a big enough issue to tick off a client about, so I go with the flow.

However...

If a client came through my marketing funnel and had already prequalified themselves by selecting a specific service, I simply complete the project they want.

For example, if a client hired me because they saw my ad for creating a optimized Google Places business listing that generates customers, then I already know what they want and I give it to them.

However, when it comes to the next marketing service that I would present to them because I believe it would really help their business, then I give them several options and allow them to choose.

So, as you begin to upsell your existing clients or start to work with clients who need several marketing services, present them with your options and your recommendation, but always allow them to choose the package they want.

Hope this helps,

Chris