There’s a simple way writers can work less and earn more: Productize your services.
That service you deliver as a bespoke solution that’s handcrafted for each individual client? That one.
The one your clients demand most.
That’s the service we’ll productize first.
“Work less and earn Company Email List more” might sound too good to be true.
But almost any service business can be productized to make it easier and faster to deliver.
Your clients won’t notice the difference — they’ll just think you’re super organized.
It’ll be our little secret, OK?
Read on.
How to start turning your services into products
To start, review your sales.
Notice what service your customers purchase most often from you.
It’s smart to select your best-selling service. Productizing a service that has high sales volume will make a noticeable difference in your business.
Developing a process for the service you deliver most is the first step toward working less and earning more.
Looking for Content Marketing Services?
Digital Commerce Partners is the agency division of Copyblogger, and we specialize in delivering targeted organic traffic for growing digital businesses.
LEARN MORE
Look for the constants
Even ultra-customized services have a few tasks in common.
Once you know which service you want to productize, your job is to look for those consistent tasks and create repeatable processes around them (just like you do when carving out creative time for your business).
The more you can systematize your service, the faster and more efficient it will be to deliver it.
That means that over time, you’ll work less time and earn the same amount of money. You could even take on more work if you lock in processes for repeatable tasks.
Repeatable process examples:
Create a checklist with a standard series of questions you ask every client in your initial meeting.
Have your client fill in a form to give you the majority of the information you need to be able to deliver the service.
Create a process for setting up the new project in your project management software.
Use templates for your estimates, your contracts, and your welcome, follow up, and wrap-up emails.
This “observe-and-note-the-constants” step is crucial and it’s something only you can do.
Any time you find yourself repeating a task, make a note so you can create a repeatable process.
It’s the foundation for productizing your service.
It’s not sexy — it’s systems
One of the most challenging parts about delivering a creative service is that clients have a difficult time understanding how you create their solutions.
Your process isn’t visible for the most part.
Your clients describe what they need and somehow (maybe by magic?) you appear at the agreed-upon date with the solution.
“How did that happen?” they wonder.
Creating and following systems as you deliver your service makes the process feel more tangible. You may find your clients are relieved to not only see that you know how to create digital products, but that you also have a process. It’s reassuring to work with a creative person with a plan and a method they follow.