Your Expertise, Not Just Your Product, Is Valuable.
The other day, I was talking to a friend who opened a restaurant out here in Denver. We were talking about how “the sausage is made” (pun intended) and the trials and tribulations that come with opening a new restaurant concept. The conversation turned to all the contractors he had to work with and how he liked some and others he could take or leave. I asked him about his experience with his favorite contractor and he told me a story of their first meeting.
“I started just rattling off my requirements, and all of a sudden the guy cuts me off and says to me: ‘Why don’t you start with how you got into this business? Then tell me about what you’re trying to accomplish.’”
He goes on to tell me how it really floored him that someone cared enough to ask him about the origins of not just the restaurant, but also about how he got into being a chef in the first place. In the end, the additional context not only helped the contractor build a better relationship with my friend, but also allowed the contractor to solve problems more effectively than previous contractors.
I tell this story because I believe it to be incredibly relevant to the payments industry, and it’s something we should be doing better.
I don’t need to tell you that payments is an incredibly competitive space, with dozens of solutions for each piece of the payments funnel. You likely have a unique piece to your product or value add services. That’s a given, or your company probably wouldn’t exist. However, for the layperson, much of this differentiation can seem to be of marginal value, or not be understood at all. That’s where the value-add from your service comes into play.
Your strategic insights, understanding, and helping your customers with their problems is equally as valuable as the product you’re selling.
Think about it this way, if a customer buys a solution that is a bad fit, not only have they wasted money, but they’ve also wasted their time. In this way, your truthful and helpful guidance is inherently valuable. If you guide them towards actually solving their payments needs by taking a step back and truly understanding their problem and goals, you’ll build a relationship and help your company — whether you’re a VAR, an ISO, or an ISV — stand out from the crowd.
Food for thought.
