How to make customers appreciate you

Recently, my kids have been playing a Parking Simulator.

It’s exactly what it sounds like. You try to drive a car to a parking spot and park it without hitting anything.

It’s a far cry from the action of Fortnite.

You know what isn’t?

Cooking Simulator.

This one’s fast and furious. My teenage son was yelling like Gordon Ramsey, freaking out about budgets, onion chopping technique, timing all the dishes to be served together, and proper presentation.

It’s hilarious to watch, even if I think it’s a complete waste of time.

Or is it?

After he played it…

A funny thing happened.

All of a sudden, he appreciated how much work it is for me to make three different breakfasts every morning.

He likes cheesy scrambled eggs, super fluffy. My daughter? Sausage-y eggs. Kristi and I? Loads of veggies.

It didn’t matter how many times I’ve said “I hope you appreciate the work I do to make you each your own breakfasts.” All they had to do was try it themselves, and then they got it. Then they appreciated it.

Here’s the takeaway:

When I’ve toured manufacturers and see how much work goes into producing a specialty component, I have a new appreciation for it and its higher-than-average cost.

When I know a restaurant is buying local, fresh, organic ingredients rather than generic frozen blocks of processed foods off a Sysco truck, I’ll not only go out of my way to eat there, but I won’t care about the prices.

If you’re charging more for your products, do your customers understand why?

Do they see all of the care and effort you put into making them better?

If not, quit telling them.

Start showing them.

But, how?

Here are three examples:

  1. Invite an influencer to your factory to try their hand at making your product. I did this at Allied Cycles and can tell you first hand that laying up a carbon fiber bicycle tube is way, way harder than they make it look…but it took my experience to give it perspective.
  2. Have your CEO or founder walk through the process and explain the special techniques, materials, etc., that separates your process and product from others.
  3. Create social posts showing the small steps, ingredients, or processes that people don’t expect.

These methods illustrate it without you having to tell them. It lets them see it for themselves (seeing is believing!), and make the connections for themselves, which makes it memorable.

Show, don’t tell.

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