One of our Books of the Month was “Selling the Invisible” by Harry Beckwith. One section of the book was particularly useful: How different is selling a service versus selling a product?
The answer is: very different because in services, the prospect can also be our competitor.
Besides choosing you or a competitor, the prospect has 2 other options: they can do it themselves, or they can do nothing at all. Therefore, you are competing with your prospect.
Sometimes it helps to think about concepts outside of my own industry. As a personal trainer, the client has three options besides using your service: use another trainer, train by themselves, or don’t work out.
In the world of services, the prospect is a competitor. You have to, in a way, compete against them, and demonstrate that you are the greatest provider of that service.
Your questions need to adapt to fetter out if the prospect is considering doing it themselves. Think about answers to if they say yes. How would you stack up?
For my training business, some clients can be competitors of mine. Leasing Directors hire me to train their leasing reps. When I field calls from Directors, I am cognizant that they are my competitor as well in a way. I have to ask the right questions and present myself in the way that highlights the value I bring compared to them simply training their reps themselves, or hiring someone else.
Tell me what you think!