The Expert Advantage: Why You Are the Product

Hello and welcome. Apologies because today's episode is a late night recording so I have to keep things down because everybody is asleep and I don't want the kids waking up or wifey waking up and wondering why is this guy talking to himself at midnight? OK, so today what we're going to look at on the podcast is why you are not selling a product, but rather you are selling your expertise. I repeat, there are lots of you who sell stuff.

You sell the product, you sell the service, you sell keyboards, you sell, I don't know, rice you sell fashion, you sell whatever it is, you sell sha. There are too many of you who are out there thinking you sell the product or you sell the service, but you don't realize that what you're selling actually is your expertise. And the reason why is this, if you've been listening to the show for any, you know, for the last maybe like 2-3 weeks, you already know about the conversations that I've been having with Cinderella.

That's not her real name, but she is a salesperson. OK, Cinderella is not her real name, but this is a real person. She's a salesperson for a company based in Lagos that right now I'm calling Linkin Park Solar. Again, that's not the company's real name. So Cinderella sells solar systems and, you know, inverters and batteries and protection panels and those sorts of things. It's a, it's a technical sale. Now, the thing we're trying to work through currently is this.

Cinderella feels like she's hamstrung when it comes to price because any small thing people say you're too expensive. You're double the quote that I received from the last guy, you know, wanting, wanting, wanting. So she's stuck on this price thing. And I'm currently trying to get her to move past it because now that she's stuck on this price thing, what she's been doing is if somebody says, oh, come on, you're too expensive, she tries to get the alternative quote.

And then she takes the quote back to her auger to say or how far, let's say we can match this thing. I don't want to lose this client. Now, that's not a bad approach actually to try and find the alternative quote or find whatever it is that people are comparing you to so that if you sell on behalf of someone else, you can go back and tell your boss, your Madam Madam. That's all we see. How well can we meet this price so that I don't lose this customer?

It's not a bad thing to do. Not bad. However, excuse me, there is a proper thing to do. Or rather, there is something that is much more fitting to do in this case. Now, Cinderella is already doing step one. Somebody says, says you're too expensive. She pushes back. She tries to compare. She tries to request for the other quote so that she can make a comparison. So that part Cinderella is doing very well. And if you're listening to the podcast for the first time, you haven't been doing that.

This is what you should do. Now, if somebody says you're too expensive, you say really, somebody gave you a cheaper quote. They say yes, no. Chukwudi said he will give it to me at 2005 per square meter. You say 2005 per square meter. And the person will talk some more. But The thing is you push back, you ask a couple of a couple of questions and then excuse me, you're going to be able to figure out a few things. What exactly are they comparing me to?

Now the next step is when you figure out what they are comparing you to or who they are comparing your product or service to, you distinguish or educate. Distinguish just means show why we are different. So if somebody says Chukudi says he will give it to me at 2 five per square meter, you are offering it to me at 5000 per square meter. You ask a couple of questions and then you distinguish. You say, ah Madam, that is why now Chukudi is offering you Courier cable.

We were offering you Singapore cable. Singapore is of a higher quality because Korea is copper, Singapore is black. You know, you educate the person, distinguish. This is why we're different. Then you educate. This is why we're better. So that's the next step. And please, for those of you who sell on behalf of someone else, you do all of this before you go back to yoga to say, can we match this price? So first push back, get some more information, ask questions,

request the other quote if you can, and then compare what are they comparing me to? Who are they comparing me to? When you figure out, distinguish, why are we different? Educate, Why are we better? Now for someone like Cinderella who is in the business, remember not a real name for someone like Cinderella who is in the business of selling inverters, batteries, solar panels, protection guard, you know one thing, one thing, you know, all these, all these things,

distinguishing and educating means eventually you get down to the conversation about brand. Oh, is it this particular brand they are giving you. We are giving you this brand because blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. These are the specifications where the guy don't give you Madam, the specs that we are giving you is one thing, one thing, one thing. So, so, so and so, so. OK Madam discuss the geta CBO, is he buying from the original equipment manufacturer?

Of course you want to ask you why you say because we we get from the OEM, we get them direct from Belgium, direct from Germany, direct from USA. Because of that we are giving warranty of blah, blah, blah or we are giving guarantee of blah, blah, blah. Or because we are buying directly from the original equipment manufacturer, we are offering this kind of after sales service, that kind of after sales service. For those of you who sell on behalf of someone else, you do all of these before you go back to your orga to say ORGA.

Can we match the price? And by the way, even for those of you who you know you're self-employed, so you sell for yourself, the process is the same. Now, the more we spoke about these things with Cinderella, the more I spoke with her, rather, excuse me, I realized that it was a symptom. It was a symptom of a larger problem in Cinderella's mind, in her mind, because, you know, she has sold before and she has sold in the technical space.

Because of that, I assumed that she knows what's up on a couple of things, but actually there are a few things she needs to learn. She assumes that because she's been in the technical sale before, because she's a very bright young lady, you know, is it civil engineering and being mechanical engineering, technical, blah, blah, blah. You know, now as in master's educated, you know, schooled abroad as in correct babe, correct chick.

She thinks she is in the business of selling equipment. In the last place that she worked, she was selling technical equipment. This current place where she is working, she is selling solar equipment. Now the problem be that she thinks she's selling equipment. She doesn't realize the the reality is or the reality should be. She is selling her expertise, her experience, her level of education, her level of sophistication.

That is what she should be selling because today we're in a period of hyper competition. It is something my client complained about because of the Internet. Now anybody can go and do research on YouTube about solar panels because of access to the markets. Now you know you can buy direct from China whatever anybody has access to buy equipment. So the Internet has made it easy for any Tom they can hurry to be in the solar business.

Sit down on YouTube today. Today give yourself three weeks, you can educate yourself on solar. Well, if you have money, you can start buying your products direct from Singapore, Germany, China, wherever you will buy it. Anybody can be a roadside installer. Now. The competition is fierce because the competition is fierce. If you think that you are selling equipment, you are putting yourself up for a very big fight because at the end of the day, the customer cannot tell the difference between the equipment that you have and the equipment that the other person has.

The distinguishing factor in this case has to be you because you are the subject matter expert. You are the one who knows what's up and you should position yourself accordingly. The reason why somebody should go with you is because when they talk to you, it is clear that you are the expert. You are the professional. The other person is a roadside installer or the other person is a jam bite. The other person is a neophyte.

The other person is new in this space. You are the one who has the chops. So if you are in the position of Cinderella, doesn't matter whatever it is you sell, you are not selling equipment, you are selling your expertise, you are selling your experience, you're selling your education, you are selling your certifications, you are selling your every, every because competition day. Now in the market, anybody that you approach will put you under severe price pressure from the beginning.

The good day price you down immediate and if you get involved in that game, it is a losing game. Hear me Well, it is a losing game. Me and Cinderella, you know we were quarrelling. She was saying price, price, price, price. I said I told her now look this particular client you say price, you started at 5.5, you dropped the price to 4.5, now you've dropped the price to 3.9. If price was the issue this guy for don't buy since of course in the red I didn't get it but you that are listening, I hope you get it.

You say price is the main thing, no problem. If price is the main thing, we started at 5.5 million, you drop the price to 4.5. That means you have removed what one meal? If price was the issue you don't think the guy would have moved Then you now move from 4.5 to 3.9. What is the gap between 5.5 and 3.9? No be too envy. That isn't often like 2,000,000. If price was the thing, that guy would have moved since clearly he is not buying because it is not just the price at play.

Those of you who are listening now and you like to be stubborn, any small thing, price, price, price, price, price. Look, believe me, price is not the only factor. I was begging Cinderella. She's not getting it and I'll continue. But I'm begging you and I hope you get it. When put, when people put you under pressure for the price, when did they go down on price? No, you go up on your expertise, you hear me? When they try to push you down on price, you go up on your expertise.

If you follow them and play this game, they'll press you down or press you anyhow. Anyhow, this thing that I'm telling you is real life. I'm at this conversation. I'm happening to see. I'm making this podcast recording now, midnight. This conversation that I had, the thing has been burning on my chest since like 10 in the morning. I say Cinderella went from 5.5 to 4.5 to 3.9 million. That guiding by when they push you down on price, I beg go up on your experience because you are the expert.

And by the way, if you're not the expert, don't worry, everybody comes in you at some point. You have a couple of things to learn, but you will get there. So when people begin to press you anyhow, push back, ask some questions. You're too expensive. Yeah, actually, we're more expensive than other people in the market. But I hope you don't mind me asking when you say we're too expensive. Compared to who? Or compared to what?

Oh, yeah, I get it. Lots of people tell us that we're too expensive and that's because other suppliers usually call corners when it comes to quality and specs and things like that. I hope you don't mind. Can I have a look at the quote that you have? You don't have to do business with us, but I just want to make sure that, you know, because Madam, you're my person. I like you. I just want to make sure that you don't go and buy something that will just cause you to hook.

So let me just read this quote. We'll just compare it, you know, spec by spec and I will give you my own opinion, but no, be bad force, Madam, you don't have to buy from. In fact, Madam, don't worry, I withdraw my quotes. Don't worry, this one now and I just is just a favor, Madam, just because I like you. Let me just look at the quote and let's just talk things through. That's the level. Get that quote, request that quote.

Look at that quote. When you see it, begin the distinguish and start educating. This is why it is different. This is why it is cheaper. This is why it is more expensive. This is why it is better. This is why it is this. This is why it is that. By the way, This is why you have to be the subject matter expert. Because someone like me, now I'm not an expert in sonar. So if you give me the 2 quotes, one quote on the left, one quote on the right, what do I know?

I can't do anything but you, that you are the expert. You'll be able to look at the quota and say, ah, mommy, this person is trying to trap you. You see this line item here? This is where they're trapping you. And in the meeting that Cinderella and I had with Olga, it's the very first thing yoga said. Yoga said, which campaign will be this 750 Watt? Ah, OK, let's look at the accessories court. And the guy said, no, this thing is not is not pure.

I said, how do you know it's not pure? I said because even if you're going to use just normal fabrication on the roof, at the very least you should be spending blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. This is this, you know, the guy just do small mathematics and say this thing is not correct, that based on the size of this panel should be using this kind rack. We can't see this rack in the coat. So that means this guy just wants to go and do local fabrication to put this thing up on the roof.

This is the reason why you have to be the subject matter expert so that when you're having this conversation with the Madam and they're saying go down on price, you go up on your expertise. You show them your expertise just by looking at this thing. You say Madam, this is the trap that they want to set for you, this panel that don't put on your roof, don't go and do local fabrication. What you need Madam is a blah, blah, blah, blah, blah frame.

You say, hey, what's the difference? You will now educate her when they push you down on price. Go hop on your expertise. I beg all of you, Hear me well and save yourself all the heartbreak. The last thing I just want to say is please hear me. I beg, hear me if you don't hear anything else, hear me on this one. No matter what you sell. Consulting service, Podcast production, Bluetooth keyboard, Tesla cyber truck, engineering,

solar panels. What else? Whatever it is you sell, times have changed. The product is not the distinguishing factor. Again, you are the distinguishing factor, you hear me? The product is not the distinguishing factor. Again, you at the distinguishing factor before. Before you could form as if the product is the main thing you say, ah, I got this one direct from USA. Nowadays everybody is buying from the USA. Now what you are the distinguishing factor before before you could say this thing.

I'm buying at the buyer direct Belgium. But guess what, nowadays everybody is buying direct Belgium. Now what? You are the distinguishing factor even this thing of buying from the original equipment manufacturer. Like I said, you think you're the only one who is buying from the original equipment manufacturer of the people are buying from the original equipment manufacturer as well. The distinguishing factor has to be you, the salesperson.

So when you say Bros, not the vex, yes, I'm vexing. Seriously, too many of you are cheating. Cheating yourselves out of profits, cheating yourselves out of career advancement, cheating yourselves out of, you know, simple self respect, self regard, self esteem. No, they follow all these customer play, all these price games. You hear me? No, they follow them. Play all these price games at all. Know your worth. You are the distinguishing factor.

You are not selling a product. You are selling your expertise, your experience, your education. That's what you're selling. So that's all for today. If you'd love to connect with me, call me, send me a text message or WhatsApp message on 0806466 2140. Yeah, so that I'm out. I'll catch you guys at the next episode.