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In this video we talk about defining our value proposition so we don’t drown ourselves in the crowd. We also look at our customer segments and what information we need from these sections for our business plans.
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Let's start with my value proposition.
0:00
I don't want to just list that I run a web
design business.
0:03
That's the easiest way to drown myself in
the crowd.
0:06
What am I good at and what am I going to
focus on?
0:10
In all the work I've done, I've enjoyed
working with small to mid size businesses.
0:13
Their needs were simple and I usually
dealt with one point person or
0:18
two, not entire committees that stagnated
the project, led to scope creep and
0:22
missed deadlines.
0:27
I'm also really good at using WordPress,
whether it's writing custom themes or
0:29
building plugins.
0:33
So, the core of my value proposition is
that
0:35
I run a web design business that works
with small to
0:37
mid size clients to deliver their
solutions using WordPress as a platform.
0:41
Now, I also do other things, like logo
design and
0:46
some occasional SEO work, but those are
add-on services if the client desires.
0:49
Including all these little things I do in
my value proposition can make
0:54
it confusing.
0:57
We want it to be specific, so we hone in
on our strategy.
0:59
Now I have a value [SOUND] proposition
[SOUND] but
1:03
if a customer ends up finding me,
1:05
my value proposition doesn't effectively
tell them why they should pick me.
1:07
[SOUND] I need to frame this value
proposition around the problem I'm
1:11
solving or the needs and wants that I'm
satisfying.
1:15
I'm going to focus the value proposition
to say that I build websites for
1:18
clients who don't have any sort of online
presence.
1:22
This means that I might have to engage in
activities like marketing or
1:26
helping establish a social media presence
for them as well.
1:30
But my value proposition directly speaks
to a small business owner who wants to
1:33
market himself online, but
1:38
doesn't know where to start since he's
never had a website before.
1:40
As much as I can, I need to think in terms
of what the customer is looking for.
1:44
But in order for
1:49
me to do that, I need to figure out what
my typical customer is like.
1:49
This brings me to the next section, my
customer segments.
1:53
I'm targeting somewhat of a niche market.
1:58
Small to mid size businesses can be
considered a mass market since there's so
2:01
many of them,
2:05
but I really want to focus on companies
that have no online presence whatsoever.
2:06
Since these customers don't have any
online presence,
2:12
we can say that our customers aren't
really tech savvy.
2:15
This means that they're going to be
looking in some of
2:18
the more traditional places for help.
2:20
I can dig deeper and define my customers
in more detail to understand their
2:22
preferences, habits and how I can target
them better.
2:27
But I'm not gonna undertake that task in
this video.
2:30
I'm just going to use what I've learned to
build on my strategy.
2:34
Now, if you don't know what your typical
customer [SOUND] looks like,
2:38
then go out and meet them.
2:41
Find a potential customer and talk to them
about their needs and
2:43
wants, what their workflow is like and the
places that they look for help.
2:46
It should be easy to find a client.
2:51
If it isn't, then you probably need to
change your focus.
2:53
Having that steady stream of clients is
pretty important for a freelance business.
2:57
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