It’s time to Stop Negotiating Your Products/Services
Have you ever found yourself regretting a product and/or service you promised to offer? If the answer is yes, you know how draining that can become as a business owner and you are not alone.
It is pretty common for a new business owner to start negotiating the products and services they have available during the early stages of business. It happens quite subtly and can escalate very quickly.
This is how it happened to me…
As a new business owner, I was pretty clear what I was going to offer in the beginning. But then someone came along and asked, “Do you also offer …” I wanted the business and I wanted to keep my new potential customer happy. Besides what they were asking for was close to what we are already offering. So, I would respond with an enthusiastic, “Sure! I can do that …”
Then someone else came along and said, “What I am really look for is …” And that was pretty close to what I was doing too, so I added it to my list of offerings. Before I knew it, I had a huge list of products and services and was spending a lot of time, money and energy supporting many things I wasn’t passionate about.
Things got out of control and I was often struggling to keep up. That is when I decided it was time to stop negotiating my products and services!
My #1 Rule: Only offer the products and services I am 100% certain I want to offer and CAN offer in the most incredible way possible!
Yes, it is true that every business grows, and most expand their offerings at some point, but this growth and expansion can’t happen overnight if we want to remain in business and successful.
I learned this the hard way. There are countless times in the past when I found myself offering a product and/or service that I hated offering. Worst yet, these moments often brought out feelings of resentment as I knew I was spending time on something that just wasn’t my passion. I also often felt overwhelmed and taken advantage of. And this is never a good place to be.
How did I handle the “Do you offer …” moments
First, I was grateful for those who were interested in my business and asking for more. That’s a good thing. And while I didn’t want to offer up an immediate “Yes!” I also didn’t want to discount their idea without giving it a little thought.
Instead I listened to what they were looking for and thanked them for their suggestion. I let them know that I am always open to exploring new ideas and assured them I would make a point to reach out to them if and when I choose make this new product/service available.
By taking this approach I showed my customers that I was interested in their inputs, while protecting my time, money and energy. I also had some great new ideas to explore when I was ready to expand.
Have you had a similar situation? Share in the comments below how you handled it …