The other day I went to a gathering, and was speaking to a woman I just met. Several of us in the circle admired her gold silk dress. She nodded and looked a little uncomfortable for a moment. Then she said, “Gotta tell you, Salvation Army all the way!”
Just stop and check in for a moment – I’m curious how that statement hits you. In the past, I might have a type of “High five sister, I’m there too” response. This is exactly what she mentioned when I inquired further, too. She make the salvation statement because she figured she was talking to her people, like-minded bargain hunters or similar kin. Maybe it was a way to level the ground with her beauty, versus stand out for a bit. And everybody loves a deal, so the saying goes, right?
I couldn’t NOT comment though, and asked her how that sharing worked for her. She was fast, and said, yes, it made her feel poor. In fact, she has a lot of expensive things she doesn’t wear. In fact, she has some money struggles. In fact, what she might have said instead, and it would have left a much better taste in her psyche, would have been, “Thank You”. Big breath… silence. Receive the compliment… just bask in the glow of the gold dress and your beauty being admired, which the dress is just a layer of.
Words and deeds are so powerful. Let’s look at how your bargain hunter might impact how your clients hire and pay you. I was reminded of this at a workshop in July that Pamela Bruner gave. I can still hear the echo of my “Doh!” and my own desire to reform my inner bargain hunter a wee bit.
YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR
Another common statement that defies the bargain logic – you get what you pay for. You get cheap prices, you’ll get cheap products. Built to last – not anymore it seems. “Built to require you to buy newer better models to replace your current model, and fill our burgeoning landfills” is more the norm in the latest cycle of the industrial revolution. Good quality is now rare, and thus stands out.
BUYING AND SELLING STYLE, AND HOW YOUR CLIENTS REFLECT YOUR INNER GERTRUDE
Let’s look at some possible buying styles, some corresponding selling styles, and how they might influence client sign ups to your services and programs.
The Bargain Hunter:
“All hail! Look at what I found at Good Will!” Okay, calm down Gertrude (might be good to give your Inner Bargain Hunter(IBH) a funky name, and see her dressed up in fitting fashions – (establish some distance!) Good job Gertrude. Can you take a (back) seat for a moment?
The bargain hunter is always looking for the lowest price. Quality can be considered, but also can be compromised at times. It takes a lot of time to dig out those best bargains sometimes, sometimes you get lucky. After a while, buying something at the “regular” or in the “normal” price range feels like a transgression, or just something you don’t ever do. And, your income may match that.
When you are selling, and trying to attract clients, what do you think happens if your IBH is your expense account driver? Well, if our clients sometimes/often reflect what you are putting out, they might be looking for cheaper providers. They might like what they see, but say to themselves, “Well, I don’t buy full priced items/services. I need to find a bargain, some huge discount to feel good about that purchase.” After all, let’s hope you’re not the cheapest kid on the block. And if you are, guess what. These bargain hunters will find a lower price. Or if they hire you, they might not be the most ideal clients to work with.
The Endless Market Researcher
Google can be a good thing, but internet research can be an endless process for some. If you need to buy a mattress or a car, and you research it to the extent that it could turn out to be a published scientific study, what’s going on there? Again, like all of these buying/selling styles, they can have a good side, and this one can be certainly more informed than the more impulsive buyer. The down side? There’s a point when the research is a front for deeper anxiety and worth issues, as many of these styles are.
When you have this buying style and are selling programs or services, you may have a hard time getting the offer out the door. You may tirelessly compare your program and services to what’s out there, and lose confidence or momentum. You may get so bogged down in the details, that you pass this on to your client, and kind of lose the forest (the solution you offer), for the trees (the features). If this is your buying style, you may get a lot of “I need to take more time to think about this” at the end of your sales conversations.
The Second Guesser
While decision making is a straightforward affair for some of you, there are those of you who might feel that the door is open for ahem, negotiation, even renegging, after decisions are made. You take the leap, but you’re constantly looking back. Your regrets or questions and wonderings tend to deter you from the diamond focus needed to back up your leap with clear action and further progress.
You know how uncomfortable it can be to support someone who is ruminating and going over and over a decision? Luckily there are tools that help with this. If you have this style, don’t be surprised if you see a bit of hemming and hawing in your work to attract clients. Unfortunately, this second guessing may not stop once your hired, in these cases. This can be a bummer when you have that joy at enrolling someone, followed by that pain of refunding or renegotiating a sale.
OH BUGGERS – WHAT TO DO?
In the sacred and spiritual path of business, that ol’ soul mastery with business dance, looking at your own buying style is a powerful practice in informing your process of enrolling and attracting clients. If it’s all good, no worries, and wow – give yourself a lot of credit. And yes, teach a class for us, okay?
If you have some of the above influences that may be impeding your empowered purchasing as well as your client income stream, here are two actions to take:
Step one: Awareness
Watch the next time you need to buy something. Whether it’s a small or large item, it can give lots of good information. Some things are simple and easy – regular practices of food buying for example – might seem untroubled. But it’s funny how certain price ranges might be off limits, out of the question or off the chart of possibility for us. So just watch, especially with big purchases, really track the details of the process. Watch the emotions, fears, ease, and the insight you gain about how your client attraction might be impacted.
A key point here to check out – do you buy your own services? If you’re a massage therapist or a coach, do you purchase these services for yourself? And if so, how do you do that? If not, what is your reasoning? Inquire within and even with potential clients – is your own rationale being mirrored by the clients showing up, or walking past, your door?
Step two: Shapeshifting
If you do identify less than ideal buying patterns for yourself, and name the fears under them, play with a new approach. Start small. For example with grocery shopping, if an item is off limits, try buying it for a change. Take on the identity, and expand or shape shift into who’d you be if buying that was a bit easier and less out of reach. I don’t advocate going overboard here if you’re working with limited funds, but there is a truth about many successful business people that is relevant here. Many have to invest money they don’t have to take a leap. Now in these cases, their ROI (return of investment) is often calculate ahead of time, and the second guessing is replaced by right action that leads to positive returns. So design a few shape shifting experiments, and loosen the identification you have with your old style, if it’s based on scarcity, competition and/or fear.
Soul Savvy Bottom Line:
It’s one thing to be thrifty and you know I commend living within your means as a empowering spiritual practice. Just the other day I cancelled a hair appointment when I found out that the price would be higher than my usual standard. The good news here was, I’d done the work with the spending plan, and really wanted to stick with it.
That said, if you are having trouble attracting clients, this little window of inquiring about your own buying style can be a rewarding and profitable study. If you are in need of buying services to strengthen your own business, or invest in your own health, keep an eye on how this stretch comes back to your business zone, and pays you forward.
Bows to your soul, blessings to your business,
Denise Barnes