If you can’t quite get high-quality prospects “over the hump” and into a buying decision fast enough, then here’s an important concept that will allow you to set yourself apart in a major way: A ROCK-SOLID GUARANTEE.
Everyone has made poor purchasing decisions in the past, and as a result, most of us are a little gun-shy when it comes to trying a new company. A guarantee is a powerful way to reduce the risk in your prospect’s mind, thereby eliminating the doubt and fear that might be preventing them from spending money with you. As a result, the barrier of entry becomes smaller, and you empower them to say, “Why not – let’s go for it!”
For best results, your guarantee should be as bold and generous as possible – one that impresses your prospects with its confidence and makes your offers irresistible.
Depending on your offerings and your prospects’ needs, here are some of the types of things you can guarantee…
- Make a promise to meet or beat any competitor’s price (HINT: this is often the weakest type of guarantee!).
- Free trial. If possible, give your prospects 7 or 10 days with your product or service WITHOUT paying for it — then bill them automatically once the trial period is up. This is a fantastic strategy that works for the same reason car dealerships let you take a test drive: customers begin to feel a sense of ownership and attachment to your product, even before they’ve paid for it. As a result, it almost always improves sales!
- Risk-free trial. This is a powerful variation on the tactic above if a free trial isn’t practical (or if you really want to blow your prospects’ minds, offer BOTH!). Here, your prospects pay for the product or service upfront…but are granted 30-90 days during which they can return it for a full, no-hassle refund. And here’s a nifty little secret: the longer your trial period is, the more impressive it appears – but the fewer returns you’ll get, because things like this tend to slip from people’s minds over time!
- On-time guarantees. Are you in an industry where time is of the essence? Consider an on-time guarantee to set yourself apart from the crowd. I once heard of a professional printer who guaranteed that all jobs would be completed according to the agreed-upon deadline, or the customer could take 10% off the final price for each day it was late. This guarantee was so powerful, it actually became his entire USP…and he built a hugely successful enterprise based on this one premise.
- Provide a basic warranty at no additional charge that goes above and beyond your industry’s minimum standards. Then, offer an extended warranty for an additional price. Besides the peace of mind, extended warranties provide your prospects, they can be an extremely profitable way to generate more revenue.
Concerned that offering such bold and generous guarantees will put you at too much risk? Don’t be! As long as your products and services are as good as you say they are, guarantees always pay for themselves – and then some!
(IMPORTANT NOTE: if you’re NOT really confident in your business offerings, then you’ve got a bigger problem than just struggling to attract enough customers!)
After all, when you implement a strong guarantee, you’ll find that the increased business you receive far surpasses the cost of returns or repairs you might have to honour. What’s more, I’ve found that only a small percentage of customers will ever take you up on it – even when the guarantee has played a significant role in helping them make the decision to buy in the first place!
Call to Action:
Research your competitors’ guarantees and warranties. Then come up with something that blows them out of the water – and give yourself a strong competitive edge in the market.
Of course, if you have any questions on how you can apply this information specifically to your business, don’t hesitate to get in touch with me. You can reply to this email.
Or if you’d like more about how business coaching can help in growing your business, get in touch with me. You can book an initial complimentary 15-minute call with me at www.TimeWithShane.com.
