How do you run your website, Online business, social profiles, and overall Web strategy? Are you simply accepting money for services rendered, or do you sell shovels?
Selling shovels means you teach people how to learn a skill they can replicate over and over.
Here’s some of the solutions people actively search for Online:
- Blog Creation and Development
- eCommerce Solutions
- Product Marketing
The traditional business model is to bring the customer in, ask questions about their needs, and agree to do the leg work for an agreed price. Now we see businesses selling ‘How-To’ or ‘Step-By-Step’ guides for solving your own problem.
That’s a good thing, but there’s a few caveats you should consider before offering a ‘How-To’ guide for sale:
Speak in Plain English
Just because you understand a topic through and through doesn’t mean your customer does. Speak in simple terms that entry level users will be able to digest.
Sell the Platform, Teach Usability
What’s the point of selling people a guide to website design that no one will practically use? If you want to teach your community how to blog, sell them a well designed, SEO optimized blog to go with your blogging lessons (if you want to teach someone to fish, they’re going to need a fishing pole first).
One-Off vs Recurring Revenue
One time sales are easy. If you sell someone a guide to blogging then it’s likely a simple transactional process that puts a few dollars in your pocket — but this could be a huge mistake.
Subscriptions Build Communities of Fans and Customers
One-off sales often fail to endear people to your brand/business/services and are far less effective at building a community. I liken this to going to the grocery store, picking up a box of cereal, paying and leaving. Not much value added, and I can make the transaction at any grocery store.
The alternative is to provide an ongoing service, usually in the form of a monthly subscription service (we can thank magazines for this business model). The benefits to ‘selling shovels’ on a continuing basis is you get to develop an ongoing conversation and provide value to prospective fans and customers.
Further, subscription services offer you a livable wage in the form of recurring revenue each month. It’s true you need to provide a higher level of service and care, but I find it’s worth the extra effort (My personal example is Social Brand Solutions). If you’re looking to start an Online business, I recommend the subscription model.
How will you sell your own shovels?