Mountains of Arizona
Cloudy 46 Degrees
2:23 p.m.
On a call with a client yesterday, we talked about a “menu of services” and why I don’t think it’s a smart idea to have one.
Why does a restaurant have a menu?
They have one so customers know what’s available and what they can order.
While the clarity that provides is a good thing, it also shifts the dynamics of the relationship.
Does a restaurant tell you what to eat?
No.
Who makes the decision about the food?
The customer does.
But if you’re a consultant, or a healer, or a web designer whose work helps lead clients to places they can’t otherwise get on their own, then having the client ORDER from your menu is bass ackwards if you actually care about getting them where they want to go.
The reason clients WORK with you is to get help navigating to a place they can’t go without you.
So then providing them with a menu from which they can pick and choose things for their journey is simply not in their best interest and it’s certainly not in yours either.
Think about how a doctor might deal with this. They don’t have a menu on the wall with everything itemized and available for purchase.
You wouldn’t walk in and ask for your broken bone to be reset but then explain you’re not in the mood for a cast.
That would be nuts. And it would run counter to the doctor’s aim of helping you get back to a healthier state.
If you want to be treated like a vendor, have a menu of services.
If you want to be treated like an Incomparable Expert, know that services are only a vehicle to a result.
Create your offerings so that it is literally impossible for anyone to choose something from you that would leave them “half served.”