Transforming traditional services into productized offerings is proving to be the way forward in our fast-paced digital landscape. If you're wondering how to turn your skills into a productized service agency, this guide is for you.
1. Carve out your speciality
What are you good at? Graphic design, content creation, video editing, web development, animation? They all have the potential to be productized. Start by pinpointing what you excel at and then zero-in on a niche market that aligns with your strengths. Hunter Hammonds, founder of Assembly and creative-led business guru, puts it real simple:
Service + Niche + Clear Price = Easy to Buy
2. Craft your offerings
Ensure clients can easily understand what they're signing up for. Clearly outline your deliverables, whether that's based on the volume of work or specific timelines. For instance, if you’re a copywriter, you could include services like ads, email marketing, landing pages, and more to ensure you are attracting a wide customer base.
3. Set the right price
Again, Hunter Hammonds puts this real simply: (Operational Costs * 4) / Number of Projects = Base Price. You need a healthy profit margin in order to scale this business properly. If you undervalue your business, you undervalue your self-worth, and so will customers. Know your worth!
4. Brand yourself
Branding is more than just a logo; it's the emotional and psychological relationship you establish with your clients. Prioritize creating an authentic and trustworthy brand identity. Branding is personality, so follow the same advice for a first date: Be yourself and attract the people you want to build relationships with for the long-term.
5. Set up your business & bank account
In order for customers to start paying you, you may want to hook up something like Stripe or Lemon Squeezy or Gumroad to accept payments easily. But in order to set up a payment processor like Stripe, you’ll need a business bank account. And in order to set up a business bank account, you’ll need to register your business — which isn’t cheap. Stripe Atlas (we’re not sponsored by Stripe, even though it sure sounds like we are) can set you up, but it’s about $500.
Check out this blog post to get a realistic breakdown of costs for running your business using Stripe and all the other things you’ll need to think about (taxes, registered agent, accountants/bookkeeping, etc).
6. Show off your work
A robust portfolio proves your credibility. If you're in the early stages, reach out to friends for projects, do free work for a nonprofit or charity, or ask to partner with someone else in the field so you can add real-world projects to your site. Don’t be afraid to include personal projects as past work! And as your experience grows, be sure to recalibrate your pricing structure accordingly.
7. Establish a lead generation strategy
Utilize platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Youtube for lead acquisition. To build a robust client pipeline:
- Share insights and valuable content.
- Engage in targeted outreach, such as cold emails or DMs (we know, it can be scary)
- Immerse yourself in communities related to your niche and position yourself as a helpful expert.
8. Onboard your initial clients
Transparency and honesty are key. Initiate conversations by understanding client needs, and then highlight the value you bring to the table. This helps to build trust, establish clear lines of communication, and ensure that all your hard work is being delivered in the best way.
9. Uphold your commitments
This is probably the most crucial point: Do good work and communicate well with your customers. Stay in touch with customers throughout a project’s lifecycle. From sharing updates to seeking feedback, ensure that clients are always in the loop. Share early, share often.
10. Expand and evolve
After fine-tuning your offerings and nailing down efficient processes (more on this later), consider scaling up. Experiment with different growth strategies, gather feedback, and adjust your offerings to meet evolving market needs. You’ll often find that in building your own business, more business ideas and opportunities tend to spring up. Don’t be afraid to pull on those threads a bit.
Wrapping up
Pivoting to a productized service model is a game-changer for both independent professionals and small firms. By transforming your unique skills into straightforward offerings, you not only streamline the client acquisition process, but also lay the foundation for a scalable business. You set your schedule, you determine your worth, and you own it all. So dive in, and set your service business on a trajectory of growth!
