Selling Hopes and Dreams

Emma Jane Hogbinwww.designtotheme.com@emmajanedotnet

drupal.org

• emmajane

• uid: 1773

• First look at the Drupal code base: 2003ish. I stole the i18n table structure.

• First Drupal site “for pay”: 2006ish.

• First Drupal socks: 2007.

• First DrupalCon conference: Szeged in 2008.

• First Drupal book: 2009.

• First Drupal core patch: 2010.Removed the “welcome” screen.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mortendk/1439332466/

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www.designtotheme.com/responsive-workshopRegister now. Class starts December 1.

process

I am a process junkie.

selling

For years I sold process to process-loving companies.

pivot

Times changed.

empowerment

Then I sold empowerment and control to woman-led businesses.

pivot

Times changed.

dreams

Now I sell hopes and dreams to entrepreneurs.

sell skills

Most open source companies I know sell skills.

don’t buy

In a recession, people don’t buy skills.

buy outcomes

In a recession, people buy outcomes.

value

A recession forces you to build and sell valuable outcomes not a grocery list of skills.

outcome

The value of the outcome you build matters.

focus

If you are focused on task-based skills, you are not selling outcomes to clients.

selling training

“I need to learn Drupal right away.”

“Take this workshop. It’s about theming for Drupal.”

“I don’t have time. I told you I need to learn Drupal.”

“Okay, what about this workshop on Panels and Views?”

“Look. I don’t have time. I need to learn Drupal.”

real story

“I’m about to lose my house. Please help me pay the mortgage.”

features

New buyers are not qualified to have an opinion on features.

not an expert

Note: if your client can’t install Drupal, they are a “new buyer.”

benefits

Buyers know what outcomes will save their job or house or reputation.

outcome

Right product for the right market.

pivot

Change the product or the market until you find a pair that clicks.

outcomes

To new markets: sell outcomes and benefits, not features.

I care.

Answer the question: who cares?

process

But most companies still sell process and skills.

pay

Your process might pay your mortgage, but does it pay your client’s?

mismatch

Clients who don’t want to plan, haven’t bought your process.

luxury

Process-based sales is a luxury. It is not for recessions.

marketing

A recession forces you to get really good at marketing.

excel

To excel at marketing, you must know the value of what you’re offering.

pain

You must know what pain you will take away from your prospects.

features

In the open source world we tend to sell features.

experts

Experts buy features. Proprietary software users aren’t experts at open source.

investment

An IT team who’s invested in their certification doesn’t want your features.

problems

Newbies buy solutions to problems.

benefits

Converting someone to open source requires “benefit” language.

transition

My transition to selling benefits was rocky.

target market

I asked my target market questions.

people lie

When you ask people questions. They lie.

truth

To learn the truth, ask people about their fears, hopes and dreams.

questions

You need to ask the right questions.

wrong

“What training do you need?”

better

“How does Drupal make you feel?”

winner

“What is preventing you from building exceptional Drupal sites?”

id pain

“What are you doing when you wish you were having a root canal instead?”

3 workshops

Build Your Dream Web SiteSite Building ExtravaganzaResponsive Web Design

Selling Hopes and Dreams

Emma Jane HogbinDrupal Trainer and Authorwww.designtotheme.com@emmajanedotnet