The Value in Teaching
"People will pay more if they perceive there is greater value or a deeper reason for buying from one provider over another." – Chet Holmes, The Ultimate Sales Machine.
Think about what that quote means. It tells me that buying is not always about price. People will buy from your destruction company if you can give them a "deeper reason" to do so.
What do we mean by "deeper reason?" It certainly is not matching or beating your competitors’ prices.
The best way to give prospects a deeper reason for doing business with you is to teach them something valuable as opposed to selling them something. If you sell your service to your prospects, it becomes less about value and more about price. On the other hand, if you offer to teach them something of value, you will find that price will not be the deciding factor.
The reasons teaching works include:
• It creates buyer interest.
• If the information is useful, it positions you in the mind of the prospect as more of an expert than your competitors who are just selling.
• The information you provide will relate to your shredding service and will ultimately sell your service much better than directly pitching your company or service will.
Here are some suggestions for teaching your prospective clients:
• Get authorized NAID (National Association for Information Destruction) Compliance Toolkit training as soon as possible.
• Offer to write your prospects’ information destruction policies and procedures (and put a value on this service).
• Develop a story or message that applies to your market.
• Speak at trade shows and seminars.
• Write for industry publications.
• Conduct educational sessions with local business associations.
I am not going to tell you that price is not important, but I will tell you that it’s not THE factor as much as you might think. If you can help your prospects learn something they did not know before, they will reward you with a new account and a business relationship.
Ray Barry is VP of Total Product Destruction and president of Total Training Services, which operates The Shred School in Spartanburg, S.C. He has trained more than 220 companies in the document destruction industry. Barry can be contacted at raybarry@totaltrainingservices.com.
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