Ep #66: Will My Offer Sell? Creating Proof of Concept

Written By Support at The Uncommon Way

Episode Summary

Jenna shares how to create clarity around your offer to ensure success. 


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Show Notes

Creating a proof of concept for your business is a crucial step in refining your offer, identifying your target market, and bridging the gap between the two. This week, we delve into some case studies highlighting instances where both major corporations and individual entrepreneurs faltered due to missteps in their proof of concept.

A proof of concept provides assurance that your ideal client will resonate with your offer. Join me as I explore common pitfalls in offer development and share why having clients in the early stages of offer formation is indispensable.

In this episode, you’ll learn the significance of acquiring clients while constructing your business. I share strategies to guarantee the success of your offer, three essential steps for a thriving service-based business, and more.

 

What You’ll Learn From This Episode:

  • How to ensure that your offer will be a success.

  • Some ways to identify your offer.

  • Three secrets for a successful service business.

  • Why your belief in your business won’t ensure success.

  • How to shorten the timeline of getting your business off the ground.

 

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Full Episode Transcript:

Wouldn't it be great to know before you even explain your offer to someone or put your offer on your website that it would sell? That's actually possible. I'm not talking about manifesting here. Jen’s business best practices, it's called proof of concept. It's how you validate your offer, and it's important whether you're a billion dollar corporation, or just starting out. It's what we'll be talking about today.

You're listening to The Uncommon Way Business and Life Coaching Podcast, the only podcast that helps you unlock your next level in business and life by prioritizing your clarity and your own Uncommon Way. You will learn to maximize your mindset, mission, messaging, and strategy in order to create a true legacy. Here's your host, top-ranked business coach, and reformed over-analyzer turned queen of clarity, Jenna Harrison.

Hey, everyone, welcome back to The Uncommon Way. Today, we're talking about creating certainty that your offer will sell. How can you be clear beforehand that this thing will even be successful? This is especially important for those of us that are creating businesses that have really never been done before, but it's necessary for all of us.

This is for any income level in business. For anyone launching a new offer. You might have launched offers before, or you might have been really successful with launching offers before, I still recommend you listen to this episode because I'm going to highlight a person who was in that exact circumstance and the offer didn't go so well.

As I'll share, I have seen new entrepreneurs that have gone years without selling an offer, or maybe they just had a sale or two. I was once one of them. I've seen some of the largest companies in the world having complete product flops, and everything in between. But nine times out of 10, all that happened was they skipped the crucial step of creating proof of concept. Meaning, that they've validated their offer and proven that their offer will sell.

But before we go into that, I want you to know that I am wrapping up my time in Mexico now, after our amazing Clarity Collective retreat. I really want you to visit me on Instagram. You absolutely have to, because it was so beautiful. I know, I know, I'm supposed to share right as things are happening, but when I'm traveling I want to be in the moment.

So, I don't think anybody's world will end if I waited a week or so to share the pictures with you. I don't know exactly when it'll be, probably the end of this week or next, we'll get them up. Seriously, this place was out of this world.

Also, a second bit of news, we are hiring. I am hiring a virtual assistant, who will be my personal assistant as well, and will hopefully grow into our COO one day. This will start out as a part time position, but it's perfect for somebody that harbors secret dreams of running a seven-figure or multiple seven-figure company one day, and they're willing to kind of work in a startup environment where you're building it as you're going.

You're willing to get your hands dirty. You'll never have a dull day. You'll be doing all sorts of different things, and will be really working collaboratively with the owner. Because my business now, is really at the stage where instead of it being my business baby, where I'm feeding it, it is starting to stand on its own. It's a beautiful thing.

But whoever comes on board with me, we are breathing our energy, putting our stamp on this business that is becoming its own thing, so that it is supporting us. This person I'm looking for is organized, but also has a love of the written language and words.

If it's starting to sound like someone you know, I have the job description posted on the website. So, check out TheUncommonWay.com/jointheteam. Alright.

So, again, having an offer that doesn't really land with your clients can happen at every level of business. Typically, it's because they've completely skipped creating proof of concept, or they've missed some part of that. That means they've missed making sure that it's an offer people actually want to buy and will buy.

Saying to your three best friends, “Hey, do you think this would be a great offer?” And they say, “Yeah, absolutely.” Or even not three best friends but three people you know, or three people that have even kind of been interested in what you've been talking about, and you're like, “Hey, do you think this would be a good offer?” And they say, “Oh, yeah, I'd be interested.” That's not proof of concept. It's a good sign.

But proof of concept means that people actually buy it. You're assured that they'll buy it, because they have already told you they will pay money for this. We'll get into that a little more. Of course, in order for them to buy, they need to understand that it's the right solution for them. Meaning, you need to understand what they think that right solution is.

If you've been with me a while you know that I believe the secret to a successful service business lies in just dialing in three things. So, let's talk about where this whole proof of concept thing fits in with that. Now, again, the three components are: Know yourself, know your people, and then know how to speak about the connection between those two things, between you and your people.

So, number one, when you need to deeply know yourself. That is so you know what's aligned for you, and will bring the most satisfaction. Also, so that you can talk about your secret sauce and believe it.

This is the part that makes sure you're headed in the right direction, that you're not veering off track to people please or because you believe that's what the best offer will be. Or because you believe that that's what will sell the most. But because this is what you are about, what your business is really about.

That's going to give you the resilience and the motivation to stick with it, to help other people understand it, and be motivated to actually do all of this work, like taking some time for proof of concept, because you are so determined to get it right.

All right, number two, then you need to deeply know your people. So, that you can create a killer offer that makes them say, “That's exactly what I've been dreaming about.” Understanding what truly motivates them, this is the beginning work of proof of concept. It is an act of extreme love for you to take this time to actively listen and talk to and get to know your people on a deep level.

All right, number three, you need to know how to speak about the connection between you and your people. So, that you're articulating the value of working with you in ways they'll understand, and creating deep resonance. Hopefully, that's both conscious and subconscious resonance. I've talked about those in other episodes.

When they are moved by that and they actually buy, and you've had… I believe the magic number is three… when you've had three people buy, given the same type of language, with the same offer, that is true proof of concept in my opinion. I think one person might have been lucky. Two, who knows? Could be a coincidence. Maybe I'm just a bit risk averse in this area, I like to cross all my t's and dot all my i’s. But I'm like, “Let's go for three.”

When three people say yes to the same offer, with the same understanding and the same language, that's when you know that you're onto something, more people will buy, and you can start rolling out that business. That is viable for you.

Whenever there's a problem in your business it's because you're lacking clarity. Maybe you've moved out of alignment in one of these three areas. That's it. So, if you're missing number two, you'll struggle with number three. If you don't really know your people and what they think they want, then you're not going to be able to message to them.

If you haven't created the strong offer in response to your precise type of person, then the way you talk about it won't really land, or people will feel uncertain and you'll struggle to sell.

In the Clarity Accelerator, we develop expertise in all of these areas, and we revisit them whenever we develop a new offer, or even have a slight pivot in our niche; polarities and evolution. I still use these materials myself, because they're timeless and based on very sound business principles.

I'm just realizing, as I'm talking in this way, I just slip into this vocabulary so easily, but I'm realizing how left brained this episode is, which is good. We need the balance of left and right. We need agile ways of thinking that can flow from one to the other.

So, who knows? Maybe in the next episode we’ll go completely woo. We'll see where the wind takes me. But right now, strap in. We're thinking like business people in the 3D material plane, and we are going to talk about how to rock this.

Okay, I'm going to break down for you how this shows up in three different phases of business. Because it does look different, even though the ultimate result is the same, the ultimate result of no sales. So, let's start with one of the largest companies in the world, Coca-Cola.

In 2004, they launched a product called C2. They launched it with a $50 million advertising budget. Why am I mentioning that? Because sometimes we start thinking, “The reason that this didn't sell is because I'm not advertising it in a broad enough way. I'm not flashy enough on social media. If I had this kind of support, then the offer would sell.”

But here, even a $50 million advertising budget didn't make it sell. What happened was, Coca-Cola had been selling Diet Coke very well. But Diet Coke didn't really taste like Coke. It also had kind of a girly image. So, the execs decided they needed to have a comparable type of product for men. Because men also don't want all the sugar, and all the calories and carbs from regular Coke. “We need to give them something.”

They gave them a product which was half the carbs, and did tastes like Coke. They package it in a way that, I guess, would look more manly. But lo and behold, men didn't want half the cards, they wanted no carbs.

You might think, “How did Coca-Cola miss that?” These big companies, they do market research. Where businesses go wrong here, at this stage, is often a bit of arrogance or groupthink. They are so good at what they do, they're so big, and their drinks and their products are so loved, that they overlook the foundational principles. They know the principles. Like I said, Coca-Cola spends tons of money on focus groups and market research.

But they were kind of phoning it in. They were going through the motions to fit into what they already believed. So, apparently, it had started to take on a life of its own within Coca-Cola. People believed in this product so much internally; there was all of this hype. The market researchers, or those analyzing the market research, were looking for what they wanted to believe.

It even filtered down into the types of questions they were asking people, kind of leading questions. We've got to ask people very, very clean questions to make sure that we're not influencing.

So, now let's talk about an example of somebody at over $300,000 in business. I sat on a call recently, and this person had just launched a new offer but it wasn't selling and she couldn't figure out why. In careful detail, she explained why her people needed this offer, how it would change their lives, and why she believed in it so much.

Which showed me exactly why it wasn't selling. Because she couldn't explain in equally careful detail, why they think they need this offer, and how they think it will change their lives and why they believe in it so much. So, what I've seen with entrepreneurs in these stages, is that they never really learned the foundational principles of business, let alone set up their own strong foundations in their business.

Now, sometimes you can get lucky with a first offer, especially if you're selling to exactly who you were a few months ago or a year ago. Or exactly the people that you've already been serving in your day job, and then you, for instance, start freelancing.

You have a high level of understanding and a high level of the language that's used and you kind of fall into it. You don't realize that at the time. You think you're really great at business. No offense, you are in many ways, but not in this one. But it's only because you never learned it. How would you know what you don't know?

Just because you've been making good money doesn't mean you can transfer that success to another offer. You need to really know what makes service businesses work and what makes offers work. If you want a flexible business that you can grow with as you evolve, and where you know you can adapt to any market changes, you need to get really good at determining proof of concept and creating compelling offers and messaging.

Okay, now let's talk about business owners launching their first offer. Obviously, they don't know what they don't know. We're not taught this in school. I don't even think a lot of business coaches talk about this; maybe there are sexier topics, I don't know.

I think that it's really sexy to develop this level of understanding about your people, and this level of certainty for yourself, and really create a resonant offer, something that's so you and so them. I find that just so mystical and amazing that that's possible.

Well, that's another thing, I think it's just amazing that we can even create things out of our head and offer it, with no inventory or no other business structure, and earn money from that. I mean, this is amazing. But maybe that's just me.

So, this is how it typically shows up when you're starting out. Maybe you'll get paralyzed because there are just so many things you think you could be doing or maybe you should be doing, that it would just be impossible to do everything. You don't feel any clarity or certainty that your offer will sell. You don't know what steps to take in what order.

It's like, you know what you want your business to be eventually, but you don't know how to get there. How do we get from here to there? So, maybe you start one thing, and then you try a different thing, and maybe throw some spaghetti at the wall over here, and you just keep spinning, but you're not really going anywhere.

Or maybe you feel exhausted and demoralized with all of the work you've been putting in; you should be seeing some damn results by now. I spoke with someone in this situation. She had spent a fortune on a website, and it took quite a long time to develop. She also had invested in a pretty high-end email system for herself. She had a personal assistant that was pushing out social media posts across several platforms. But she still wasn't seeing the clients coming in.

What's going on in both of those things that I just described, is that you're focusing on everything but what you really need to be focusing on. You aren't constraining yourself to what's most important and the best use of your time.

My clients, and me, we're all multi-talented and big thinkers, so we work on the beauty of constraint quite a lot. It will change your life. When you're starting out in business, the only thing you need to focus on is getting clients.

Now, I can just imagine people saying, “Well, duh. That's exactly why I'm building this website, getting the glamor shots, posting on Instagram, and building the funnel. I'm trying to get clients.” But I would challenge you on that, because of what you're doing, and each step of what you're doing, is that the most direct way of finding clients?

I think the most direct way is to say to a person, “Do you want to work with me? Do you want this offer?” Meaning, you should be spending your time figuring out what your people actually want to buy and will actually pay for. Because otherwise, what are you putting on your website? Do you know what colors and images work for your brand and your offer, and what your people need to hear, including the tone of how you're delivering that in your emails and social media posts?

I was talking with a client the other day, and she had always imagined that the tone of her words needed to be very empathetic because her people were in a lot of pain. She had been there before, but also, deep down it felt heavy for her to be using that tone all the time, when she really was no longer in that place.

As we started laying into possibility of a different type of client, that still on the outside has the same circumstances, but really is more feeling the excitement and thrill of what's next rather than what is behind her, she felt that very kind of inspirational, aspirational, tone start to come about. She just said it felt so good. Right?

Those are the people that she really wants to talk to, ask some very important questions to hear how they answer, and really get into their thought process. Because I have a feeling those might be her ideal clients.

Then, this is just the beginning because there are so many other pieces of your business that layer on top of this. But you need to know this first. Your offer is the cornerstone. Usually, what I think is really going on is that people don't want to have the single focus of creating proof of concept for their offer. Another way you could say that, is creating sales for one particular thing.

So, our brains create distractions or complications; ask me how I know. I hung out there too, in the beginning. It's really uncomfortable to think, “Well, how am I going to find these people to talk to? I don't even know how to invite them to talk. Won’t it be intrusive if I ask them these kinds of questions? Won't they think I'm being salesy? I can't put myself out there because I don't have a website, so they'll definitely think A or B, or C.”

“When I do get to the point of offering something? Can't I just do that in a call to action or on a website? Because I do not want to risk rejection.” Which are all totally natural things to think. Oh, and I know another one, it just feels uncomfortable to be putting your eggs in that basket, right? We want the extra activity of doing multiple things rather than just spending more time doubling down on the one thing we need to be doing.

I had a coach who talks about the very uncomfortable feeling from moving from a manual transmission car to an automatic car, it just feels like you should be doing more shit. It would feel safer to be moving levers and doing things.

That's how it is in our business. It's very uncomfortable, very vulnerable, to be starting a business. Especially for women, because of how we've been socialized. But all of the extra time, money, and brain space you spend on things other than this in the beginning, just elongates the time that it will take to get past this point.

Although, I never feel like I will finish with the market research. It becomes a way of being in that I am always actively listening. We have another podcast, we'll link to it, but I'm talking about some of the thoughts you need to build around this.

One of them is the understanding that even if you have a solid offer that is selling, that market still evolves. Customers become more sophisticated; all different things happen. So, I am always actively listening. I'm actively listening to the people that come on sales calls with me. I'm listening to my current clients, especially when they first start.

I'm very actively listening to their language. I'm listening to the themes and the pulse of what's going on in other entrepreneur groups that I'm in. So, I would never want to be done with this, but there is a moment in which you do start working on other things in your business rather than just this.

Despite all of that good rationale, our brains will cleverly keep us in avoidance. It's like when my son was learning to ride a bicycle. It was challenging for him, so I would hear him saying things like, “No, I just really feel like riding my scooter. I do.” But now, of course that he's gained mastery on the bicycle, we can't get him off the bicycle. The scooter just isn't as interesting.

But in the moment, if I would say something like, “Well, honey, I'll help you. Honey, this is how you're going to get really great at the bicycle,” or whatever I would say, hinting that maybe he was avoiding the bicycle, he would always come back with, “No, Mama, I really like the scooter.”

Those are the things that our brains will do. “No, I just really enjoy the graphic aspects of Canva. I just really think that this is the better way to build it out. That my people will, of course, really want that type of thing. Where it's this standalone product that they can buy off the internet rather than working with me.”

So many people that I speak to, right in the beginning, they want to go straight to a course. It's possible, can absolutely do it. But a lot of times it's really avoidance. We just want to be clean on that before we build an entire business around it. We don't want our business to be built on avoidance or fear or conditioning from our past or any of the other things.

We want to be clean and moving in alignment towards the best use of our gifts in this world. And in the way in which it will most benefit our future clients.

When we're in that place of either doing lots of things and creating busyness for ourselves, so we don't have to face the discomfort or the vulnerability or the uncertainty, or we're not taking any action at all because then we're not risking the discomfort that we're afraid will happen, we think in those moments that we're saving ourselves from discomfort.

But we're just postponing it, because wait until you have been seeing the lackluster results for long enough. That is going to create a very, very high discomfort. Those of you who are there, or were there, you feel me when I say that, right? Those of us who have been there we know.

The alternative is that we lean into this growth edge, we learn to manage our minds around discomfort and rejection, so that we can evolve as women. Again, entrepreneurship is the single greatest personal development journey for a woman.

You start wondering, “Why does this sting so much? Why does this ‘no’ sting so much? Why am I feeling rejection? What am I making it all mean?” When we lean into that we evolve as women, and we drastically shorten our timeline for getting our businesses off the ground.

We also become so skilled and comfortable with the work of deeply understanding our people, the connection between us and our people, and how to translate that into an irresistible offer and into powerful words, that we become extremely agile entrepreneurs. Who are not only rich, but we know that we can always shift into other offers, if necessary. Like, if market conditions change.

Here's another thing that happens. If deep down you're feeling like a bit of an imposter, your brain will direct you to compensate for that, to put up all the trappings in order to seem legit. But that's usually unnecessary complication. I've seen this at all different levels.

I've had clients that are very successful in business, but now they're launching into some new level, right? It's an even bigger offer. All of a sudden, those same things come up again. “Am I legit enough to do this? What will those people think of me? Do I need to be more credentialed? Do I need to present myself in this way?”

For people starting out, I've seen they need this certification, or this website, or these regular social media posts. But those things most frequently are a reflection of what you think makes people look legit, rather than what actually is legitimate. So, what I usually see is that the website, or the certification or degree or whatever, is something you do so that you can feel legitimate. But it is never what makes you legit.

Maybe I've used this example before, but pick your favorite coach or virtual mentor, maybe Brené Brown or Tony Robbins or Brooke Castillo. Imagine you met them in a conference or on the street or in line at Starbucks. You've never heard of them, but you happen to say something that they respond to. Then, after a little bit of time spent with them, you just know you want to work with them.

Now think, what did they say to create the result of you wanting to work with them? How did they show up? How did you come up with the thought, “They're the real deal, they can definitely help me?”

None of that had to do with the things you're currently busying yourself with in your business. You need to talk to real people. You need to ask them smart, strategic questions that pertain to the kind of business you're building. You need to be willing to sit with them and dig deeper, and question; why, what made you think that, have you actually tried something else, and what happened?

Then you need to take everything they say, making sure that they are someone that you really want to work with, and you need to overlay that with your way of thinking about their problem. Come up with ways that you can both use their words and their way of thinking, but still be aligned with your integrity.

When you create your offer, it will be because ‘they have told me this is exactly what they want.’ It's such an act of love to meet them exactly where they are. Then of course, help them go all the way, that you are capable of helping them go, and beyond that.

Okay, my friends, if you would like to learn how to work through these things methodically for your specific business, so that you have both a solid foundation that allows your business to flourish, but also the solid skill set so you have true business acumen and can create new offers that will actually sell? Come and join us in the Clarity Accelerator.

It doesn't matter where you are in terms of business revenue, this group is very, very different in this way. All that matters is that you want to work on what is truly key and important and foundational in your business. Because you understand that that's what everything else builds upon. And, that is what will truly bring the simplicity and the security that you're ultimately looking for.

That's what saves you headaches and detours and unnecessary expenses, because you've built your business so seamlessly. Then, when you're not seeing the results that you want in business, you'll know how to problem solve quickly and without drama by revisiting these fundamentals and getting clear on where the breakdown is happening.

That is the foundation, the structure that allows for this life of flow and ease that you want. Honestly, if you're just in flow all the time, it can end up looking like a shit-show. We don't do shit-show businesses at The Uncommon Way. It's that structure, it's that masculine, a logical, left brain energetic, that then allows our intuition and our spontaneity and our creativity, and all of the other things that we shine in, right? It's what really gives it the weight of flourish.

“How can I be creative…” about what? We need some constraints there. Some structure in order to channel our creativity through to something else. That, all together, all of it holistically all together, that is what lets us receive and create ease, and ultimately manifest such uncommon businesses and lives.

If you are called to create that, then why aren't you in the Clarity Accelerator? I think it's time we talked. Yeah? It's so easy. You just open up the show notes on your phone, you scroll to the link, and you book a call. Before long we'll be talking in person about your business.

And even if we don't end up working together for some reason, you'll walk away with so much more clarity and direction than when you first got on the call. I love being on your side of the call when I'm talking to a new coach. I always learn so much. Someone asks me a question, I answer, then I'm like, “I’ve never expressed it in that way before.”

That's what I want for you, too. I want us to combine brains, combine energy, with this focused time on your business; these calls are 90 minutes long. We're going to focus in on your business, your truth, and decide where we go from there. So, that is awaiting for you, my friends, right at your fingertips. I can't wait to talk to you.

Remember, you know who you are. And each day, you're stepping further into what you're here to create.

Hey, if you want true clarity about your secret sauce, your people, your best way of doing business, and how you talk about your offer, then I invite you to join us in the Clarity Accelerator. I'll teach you to connect all the dots, the dots that have always been there for you, so that you can show up like you were born for exactly this.

Come join us and supercharge every other tool or tactic you'll ever learn, from Facebook ads to manifestation. Just go to TheUncommonWay.com/schedule and set up a time to talk. I can't wait to be your coach.

Thanks for joining us here at The Uncommon Way. If you want more tips and resources for developing clarity in your business and life, including the Clarity First Strategy for growing and scaling your business, visit TheUncommonWay.com. See you next time.

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