As technology advances, the value of mediocre (even pretty good) art will approach zero. Why would I buy a holiday card from you if I can go choose from literally thousands of designs from TinyPrints? Have you design my logo and website? I can get a logo for $150 from The Logo Company and a website on Intuit for $8 a month. Pay you thousands for floorplans, 3D renderings, etc.? I can go crazy and buy SketchUp from Google for $495, do it myself or hire a high school art student to give it his best shot.
Make you angry? Feel like what you offer is so much different and more valuable than what these (cut-rate) services offer? Maybe you are right, but will you be right a year from now? Two years? My guess is you will be dead wrong in five. And the more you focus on the end-result the more wrong you will be. The new new thing has an ever-shrinking shelf-life. Your ability to own the innovation does not exist and your imitators will be sure and swift (read: light speed). Think about how fast fashion designers see their red-carpet couture looks for sale at retail? Oh, yes, they are inspired looks so the designer gets exactly zero for their sale. You-Tube makes that cool choreography of the bridal party dancing down the aisle cliché before it ever has a chance to go mainstream.
Creative businesses do not sell products or services, they sell process, emotion, connection and trust. If you refuse to do the work to hone how it is that you, your creative business and your art relate to your clients on every level, you are going to be left behind. Why? See above. You may be that good today, but you will not be tomorrow. What is intractable, intrinsically valuable and an eternal basis for growth is relationship. How do you go about earning your client’s trust? Please note it is not by showing them pretty pictures and tell them they should. What do you deliver and when do you deliver it? Where are the dichotomies? If you say you pride yourself on customer service, why does a digital operator answer the phone? Nothing is ever perfect and I would even say perfect is boring. However, consistency, integrity and your willingness to get and demand respect will always create value in spite of, and maybe because of, imperfections.
Look for where you have made it all about something other than process, emotion, connection and trust. Price? Product? Service? Ask yourself why and if you were the client would that persuade you to use you. Hard conversations are hard for a reason. You have to talk about things you would rather ignore – money, time, deliverables, mistakes, etc. If you don’t get the client or feel like you would lose them if you did, what does that say about you and your creative business? The corollary to making your business wholly about process, emotion, connection and trust is the notion that your clients willingly and honestly give all of their power to you. You drive the bus not because you force them to, but because they ask you to. If you help them understand the value of asking by speaking and acting transparently, they will just ask louder and for more. Say what you do and do what you say. The rest will take care of itself.
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love your blog, thank you for sharing and inspiration! I’ve had clients tell me they hire me because I get just as excited to learn about their wedding as they are to share .. in addition to liking my services! {creative professionals who don’t get this are in the wrong business!}
I like the driving the bus analogy–that helps me frame the conversation with the client–esp in the service industry. I completely understand what you are saying Sean…where I get a disconnect is the “how.” You say we need to hone how it is we relate our art/process to our client–I’d like to see a process on how to do that! I sort of know what makes my process special, but how to convey that in a way that upholds my integrity is tough for me.
I have reached a certain success in my field and pretty much achieved the financial and artistic goals I set out to…and now I am in that honing process. I am starting to look at bigger picture things–like what does all this mean for me and my client? What does the next achievement/step look like? (answer is not more money it turns out!).
I am currently reading Michael Ports book called “book yourself solid.” I didn’t buy it because I wanted to be more booked, what sold me was the tagline for the book which read something like “even if you hate marketing….” And turns out the book should be called “You are not a photographer…it’s much bigger than that.” (Ok–clearly, I should not be in the book naming business). So I have a few tools/ideas…but I feel like there has got to be a way that is perfect for me. ??? I need a road map!
I like your emphasis on trustworthiness and reliability. I agree that those are hugely important and yet rarely mentioned.
Very well said, Sean. In my business, I sell process, emotion, connection, relatability and trust above all else. I refuse to be a commodity. Great post.
I’m selling the magic. You can get all the products I sell anywhere, online or down the street sometimes cheaper and faster. It’s the way I put it all together that is unique and special. That’s what I’m really selling. It is a challenge to market that and it takes time to build that trust and prove that you DO have the magic.