Put Your Money ( or Skills ) Where Your Mouth Is

I normally don't pay for courses or training from other entrepreneurs.? It's not because I'm cheap,? well maybe a little,? but mostly because I get pitched SO much and my appetite for training and services I think are worth trying,? far exceeds my budget for said products:-? ? So instead, I trade skills, form strategic partnerships, or do a mastermind for two with whoever I'm interested in working with.?

A few months ago I spoke to an UBER ,? probably delusionally confident "business coach " who told me my success was guaranteed,? right up until I made the same offer to him.?

I said " Why don't we teach one another?? You can help me with my blindspots, and what you're good at, and I'll do the same for you.? If you don't get the results,? you don't have to pay me.? But I'm only willing to do that if you'll do the same.? If I don't get any results, I don't have to pay you. "?

Suddenly,? his words didn't match the confidence expressed moments ago when he said " I don't do that. "? He CLAIMED to guarantee results, but he wasn't confident enough to back it up.

Unfortunately,? the default position of most entrepreneurs is either to take non-cash deals FAR less seriously so the all too often go nowhere or cash only deals.? I understand the latter,? everyone needs money to live.? But I don't understand the former.????

Psychologically,? I understand it just fine,? no cash, no product.? It feels like it's a favor for a friend, even though it's a TRADE,? value for value, or a partnership where we both get paid when their service or training delivers results.?

Of course, that also means NEITHER of us get paid if it doesn't work, but even then, it's BOTH directions.? If my training and services don't get them results,? I don't want or deserve to get paid either.

The typical get paid first frame is actually backward to what big dogs or most employers typically do.? When you're an employee,? you get paid only AFTER you work for two weeks to a month.?

When you're a contractor,? do your clients pay for the complete job in advance?? Perhaps a deposit for labor or materials,? but not the entire job before it's delivered.? Obviously, the conventions vary by industry, ? but unless you're prepared to give your customers a friction free 100% money back guarantee,? or at least your industry's equivalent to it,? what does that say about your confidence in your product?

I know a Ph.D. in Education whose courses ALL come with a guarantee.? It's something like " If you haven't made an extra $5,000 as a result of taking my course in the next six months I'll give you 100% of your money back. "? His courses are between $1,200 to about $2,000 each.? What does that tell you about his confidence in delivering more value than you paid?

If you don't have your own version of this, you should.? The metrics don't have to be dollars,? they just have to deliver something relevant and valuable enought to help close the deal.? If you're a social media marketer,? you can promise a specified percentage, maybe 10% more followers or connections month over month.

If you're a consultant like myself,? you may have to create a specific guarantee based on what your client needs.? One of my products is a webinar event template.? " Create Webinars That Convert More, Suck Less and Turn Attendees into Evangelists ".? To deliver on this I offer four alternatives depending on their preferences and whether they have baseline statistics from previous webinars.

I offer performance based and flat rate pricing for both.? The flat rate is based on the number of attendees that participate regardless of their conversion rate.? If it's performance based, it's a percentage of the total gross sales from attendees who convert.? With no baseline, this is the only practical option most of the time.

If they have statistics from previous events,? the flat rate is either based on the number of attendees who participate or the number of attendees who convert.? If they choose performance based.? I get a high percentage of the ADDITIONAL conversions beyond? their previous per capita base conversion rate.

In all cases my pay is tied to the value I bring.? If it's flat rate,? and the event is a big success, they'll hire me again, if not they won't.? If it's performance based, both my income and repeat business are dependent on the value I deliver.?

With 1:1 consulting my guarantee is either a pro rated , or full refund depending on the circumstances.?

Educational products,? it depends on the price and course structure.? One session, straight up refund if you feel I didn't deliver equal or more value than you paid.? Multi-session courses require between class application of what you've learned ( aka homework ), and proof thereof, if you ask for a refund.? Results NEVER come from lack of action and I won't refund laziness or lack of follow through,? that's on THEM.?

I make this CRYSTAL CLEAR at the outset, results require action.?

Unless you're famous, and even if you are,? giving the equivalent to a 100% guarantee for your industry and the specific situation will increase conversions, repeat business, reputation and any established fame you have.

Here's the catch,? if you are anything but COMPLETELY honorable and professional about a frictionless refund, it will cost you FAR more than said refund in lost reputation and future sales.?

But there's good news too.? The vast majority of customers, even the dissatisfied ones, rarely ask for a refund.? This is the status quo bias and social norms in action.? Unless MOST people ask for a refund, it's rare that ANYONE will ask for one.? The very act of asking requires additional action, outside the default ( status quo ), and most people won't act on it.

If most DO ask, you have a serious problem and should refund all who ask.? Now SPRINT back to the drawing board and start over.? I've never heard of that happening.

Even IFF nobody asks, it might be better if you OFFER a refund to dissatisfied customers.? How will you know?? ASK,? obviously.? You do that right?? Ask ALL customers at the end of the transaction or some appropriate point in the future.??

Follow up and ask previous customers how satisfied they were with your product.? If they say they aren't, offer them a FULL refund.? This will PAY you long term returns for sure,? unless your product sucks,? in which case you should fix it,? or get out of the business before it fails.

Assuming your product is good,? refunding a dissatisfied customer is usually a great investment.? Imagine this situation.? They try your product, but they're unhappy with it.? You tell them you will be happy to refund their money. Then ask them to participate in a short "refund survey" designed to improve customers satisfaction. You ask them for open ended specifics.? By that I mean use wh questions to learn what they were unhappy with.

Wh questions usually start with:?

Who_______________________?

What______________________?

Why_______________________?

When______________________?

Where______________________?

How_______________________?

Which______________________?

Asking open ended questions is very important for three reasons.

1 ) It helps you avoid priming the person you're asking.?

Priming is when the words you choose influence the answers they give. It's like " Putting words in their mouth."? only it’s closer to " Putting different thoughts or meanings into their heads. "

" What made you ask for a refund? " elicits THEIR answer.?

But if you say,? " Did it break / not work / underperform or fail ? " Each of those words may nudge them toward an answer that is less accurate to the real reason, but a better fit to the word you chose.?

Fail ≠Break≠Not Work≠Underperform

The above words all have different meanings and associations.

Even when using wh, minimize the words, and / or use the customer's vocabulary to prevent priming.

Instead of? " Why did it fail. " when they said "...didn't work" say " Why didn't it work?"

Leave the wh questions neutral, short and use their vocabulary as much as possible.? This WILL take practice, preparation or both.

2 )? You will learn things you didn't think to ask about.

I ALMOST used the following unique value proposition for KaiZen Business Science.

Science + Action = R2esults

Can you see why I didn't?

S+A=R2

If a marketing agency had sent me this for my rebranding they could ask.?

" What caused you to ask for a refund? "

I would have said " I don't like the association of the unique value proposition. "

Then they could say " What association is that ? "

To which I would have said " S+A=R2 looks like SARS ( Sudden Acute Respiratory Syndrome ) in a pre-COVID world,? it probably wouldn't have mattered, but now it does.?

Wh questions may give you information you couldn't have even imagined you wanted or needed.

3 ) Answers to wh questions require more than a potentially conversation ending " yes " or " no ".

By using wh,? it keeps the conversation going and gives you more information upon which to ask "chain" questions.

C = customer

C: " I want my money back. "

Okay we'll be happy to give you your money back Mr. Green.? Do you have five minutes to answer a few questions so we can improve our products?

C:" Okay. "

" What specifically made you decide to ask for your money back? " DON'T? start with why, it sounds accusatory.

C: " I didn't like it. "

" What didn't you like about it? "

C: " It was hard to use. "

" How so? "

C: " The lid didn't fit right. "

" Was it defective? " ( Sometimes yes / no answers more efficiently direct the conversation by identifying or confirming specific information. )

C: "No, it wasn't defective, but it was confusing to put on."

" How was it confusing to put on? "

C: " It can go on with the chute closer or further from the handle,? but it only closes one way.? I accidentally put it on backward and it broke the lid.? Now the lid won't disengage the safety switch so I can't even turn it on! "

" I understand Mr. Green.? I'm issuing you the refund right now.? It may take a few minutes before you see it.? Refresh you browser in half and hour and if you still haven't seen it, please call me back directly at 555-555-5555 my name is Tim.? Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions Mr. Green.? Good Bye. "

Each question is a link in the chain of questions that continues until you learn why they're asking for a refund. It may unearth opportunities to improve your product.

Being a company that stands behind their products and issues refunds, sometimes even when they're not asked for, may turn unhappy customers into evangelists.

If you guarantee results, you need to stand up and PROVE IT. Along the way you may gain valuable insight about how to reduce returns and otherwise improve your products.

Remember, most customers won't complain to you OR ask for a refund, they'll tell thousands on social media instead. Making refunds easy, and honoring them immediately is cheaper than the lost sales and may even flip that message into a testimonial about your company's fast and easy refund policy.

tim #bgreen??

P.S. How Do You Stand Behind Your Products?

P.P.S. My Next Article: Match the Mentor to the Goal