I have a new analogy. And it's food related (what a surprise!).
It explains how you use your signature system to work out your products, services and programs.
You don't use the entire cupboard of ingredients—you play like "Ready Steady Cook" and use the 5 (or 3 or 7) key favourite ingredients your clients need that you have in your signature system.
Your signature system is the steps you do your Thing in; it's how you take your clients through a process, or is the essential elements or principles of how your Thing works. My signature system is T.H.I.N.G (Time to find your Thing, Have a Fame Name, Interesting Stories Sell, Nothing is Impossible, Get in your Spotlight).
Back to the cooking...
If you're not familiar with the classic (!) bit of Telly that "Ready Steady Cook" is - let me explain. It's a 'battle' of two chefs to make the best dishes during the show and includes a chef's challenge to make as many different dishes as possible from a handful of favourite ingredients provided by the two guests (one guest per chef). This where we see what you really can make from 5 key ingredients and still have variety—sometimes the chefs use all the ingredients, sometimes just 1 or 2 of them in each dish.
The point of this analogy is that the chefs are not making hundreds of different dishes from a vast list of ingredients, they are basing every dish on the small number of favourite ingredients they have but still show off a variety of dishes and cooking skills.
When you have a signature system you can make lots of different products, services and programmes using some, one or all of your key ingredients (the steps in the system). Your clients can clearly see how each of the products, services and programmes has been put together with the component parts of the system, and they can also see what's missing (i.e. what else they might need to buy).
If you go ahead and make products and services that 'do everything' and 'include everything' it can be much harder to sell them. When the chefs on "Ready Steady Cook" work with the handful of 'favourite ingredients' from their guest they know everything they make the guest will like. Same with your clients.
Stick to your signature work, and make different combinations of it available. If you are attracting clients that want what you do, don't confuse them with endless different flavours and varieties. Instead, combine the favourite ingredients you know they like and need and make up your dishes—your products, services and programmes—that way.
So the only question that remains is are you a red tomato or a green pepper? :)
Want to talk more about this?
Thank you lucy, that was helpful. I’m struggling with exactly WHAT to put in my content (the therapies) as there is so much, so your plog post has got me a step closer, thank you!
No Chinese Take Away menus of 400 dishes! All about the best dishes you can serve, not EVERY dish :)
Nice clean reminder of how to add value by creating more from less – thanks Lucy.
You’re welcome Dave. More detail is better than just more :)
Love the food analogy. Great article, as usual. Thanks
You’re welcome Beauty! I know you’ve been to chef school so thought this would appeal ;)