In several training sessions or webinars where I was a speaker, the question always arose “how to choose a product or service for my business?”. People often fall into the trap of choosing products based on seeing the success of other people managing businesses with certain products or services. Indeed, it can be quite tempting because what you can see is the success. But they don’t realize that behind producing these products or services there is effort, energy and thought that must be devoted to making the business successful. In this article I will provide tips on how to choose products or services to sell in this business.

I always believe that when building a business, no one ever thinks that the business they are running will only last one or two years. Of course you want it to be long lasting or even grow. A person’s reasons for opening a business must be very strong, and not just a matter of earning income. Income is the final result of all the efforts made. Businesses that survive always have one thing in running their business, namely ” Purpose” and/or “Vision” which is not just about making money. Why is it necessary to have a Vision or Purpose in a business. Because this vision and purpose will keep the businessman focused on his goals. When running a business, you don’t always have to be at the top. Up and down conditions will definitely occur. And if someone has a strong purpose, it will be easier to face this condition, because he will be able to make connections about what can be learned from the ups and downs experienced.

The question I always ask during coaching sessions for business people or training is “What made you choose this product or service to become a source of income in the business you manage?” When someone can answer eloquently what is the basis for choosing the product/service, not just income or joining in, it will be seen that he or she has a ” strong relationship” with the product/service. This strong relationship is what a businessman needs to have with the products or services he sells. I invite you to reflect back with yourself when you want to buy something, for example you want to buy a device or gadget . When you enter shop A, you ask the shop owner or his employees, and they can eloquently explain. And you also see that the shop owner or employee uses the type of device you want to have. Because you want to compare first, you move first to shop B. When you ask the shop owner or employee, they are not fluent in explaining the gadget product you want to have but they are promoting the type of gadget you want to have by mentioning its advantages. Then you see the shop owner or employee not using the type of device they are promoting. When you ask, they will tell you the shortcomings of the device. Of the two shops, which shop will you finally buy the device from? For myself, I would be better off going back to shop A, because shop A really knows the product and can explain it neutrally and they have experience using the same item. So that the feeling of “attachment” or “similarity” exists.

Likewise, when you choose a product or service that you want to sell as part of your business, you must have a ” strong relationship ” or I often say a ” feeling or memory of love ” for that product. If you have it then when you sell the item, you will be able to smoothly create story telling because that is what is on your mind every day. But if you don’t have that feeling of love, then you won’t be able to create a story telling from that item, because it’s not connected.

Below are tips so that the product or service you choose is the right product for your business:

GET TO KNOW THE PRODUCT OR SERVICE

If you want to ATM (Observe, Imitate, Modify) a product or service that is already being sold by many people, get to know that product. Starting with the character of the product or service, what challenges are experienced by business people in that field. And how the product or service connects with you.

Do some self-reflection by asking yourself the 3 questions below:

• Have you ever purchased, used or been in the business of managing these products or services?
• What makes me feel like I should be the one selling the product or service? You need to ask yourself this, so that if your potential customer asks, you can explain why it is better to buy from you and not someone else.
• What makes me feel that I should sell that product or service now?

If you can answer the three questions above, then that is your capital for telling stories to your potential customers.

GET TO KNOW THE PROCESS

To produce a product or provide a service, there is a process that must be carried out. The product is not something that just appears, but there is a production process behind it. Services do not appear immediately but require a process in providing certain services. For example, as a trainer, what I sell is providing training services. And to create training, there is a discussion process with clients, determining the syllabus for the modules that will be given, sometimes research is needed, providing training and also conducting evaluations and/or reports. All of this takes time. If I don’t take the time into account, what will happen is that I will overpromise or even feel overwhelmed so that the quality provided will not be as good as my client wants.

Get to know the process by:

• Learn from businesses that are already running how the production process is, how to get the raw materials. What kind of sales process occurs?
• Recognize the challenges in carrying out the production process or providing services.
• And think about what you can do to make modifications to the product or service provided.

When you recognize the process for producing a product or service, it will be easier for you to identify challenges and also whether the type of product or service matches what you want to make a process in your business.

One of the experiences I got when coaching business people was that there was a business person who realized that he didn’t like carrying out the process of controlling stock. He felt frustrated when he had to check stock conditions, and only then realized that this was what made him fail several times in business due to miscalculations or being taken advantage of by employees and suppliers. From the session with me, he finally decided that it was better to run a business as a “broker” who didn’t need to have stock. Because this will make it easier for him to manage the business and minimize the risk of loss.

From the story above, when running a business, a person must be familiar with the product or service being sold and the process. Without being aware of the sales process and introducing the products being sold, someone will have difficulty carrying out the process when the business is down. Expand your knowledge by reading lots of books or joining communities to get all the information about the products or services that will be part of your business. Remember the saying “If you don’t know, you won’t love it”, so get to know your product to be able to love your product.