I had the good fortune and honor to host Bob Burg as my guest on the Marketing Blab. During the show, we talked about the Go-Giver philosophy and Bob provided responses to several questions that helped clarify the Go-Giver philosophy.
Here are four of them:
1. How does a Go-Giver make money when he/she is giving things away?
“Being a Go-Giver isn’t about giving things away. That’s one of the things that’s kind of confusing when people hear ‘The Go-Giver,’ explained Bob. “A Go-Giver is someone who understands that the focus is shifting from getting to giving. When we say ‘giving’ in this context, we simply mean constantly and consistently providing value to others. Doing so is not only a nice way to live life and conduct business, it’s a very financially profitable way as well. Go-Givers tend to charge higher because they tend to sell on value rather than price.”
2. How is value different than price?
“Price is a dollar figure, the dollar amount that is finite. Value, on the other hand, is the relative worth or desirability of some thing to the end user. In other words, ‘what is it about this thing/product/service that brings with it so much worth to someone that they will willingly exchange their money for it? And, when they do, you make a very healthy profit.”
“In the book The Go-Giver, we talk about Ernesto the restauranteur who makes the value of the experience in his establishment worth much more than the price his guests are paying to dine there. The meal might cost $150, but the experience they receive is such that by the time they walk out they feel like a million bucks. They receive more in value than what they pay.”
3. How to you provide or communicate value in the process of selling?
“In the beginning of the sales process, when you first meet someone, your focus should be on them rather than yourself. It’s about asking them questions that help them feel good about the conversation. Online, you could do this by offering a free report, audio or video. This gives your prospects the opportunity to get to know who you are, so they can feel good about you. When you give them something of fantastic value, that’s going to get them to want to know you better.”
“To the degree that you’re able to communicate that value, that’s the degree that the person begins to feel great about you. They begin to know you, like you and trust you – and that’s the degree when you take price out of the equation.”
4. We often hear “step outside your comfort zone,” but in Chapter 21 of Go-Givers Sell More you talk about not leaving your comfort zone. Can you explain your outlook on this?
“Life is filled very naturally with discomfort so – it often makes sense to, rather than intentionally step outside your comfort zone, to instead – continually expand your already-existing comfort zone. How? By building on your small successes. Of course, there’s also a time and place for leaving your comfort zone. What we’re saying however is that, first, most successes are not the result of one huge leap, but typically the result of a combination of failures and successes . . . failures and successes. We should learn from our failures, but also be encouraged and build upon our small successes. When we build on our small successes then our comfort zone which started here (i.e., low) goes up to here (i.e., higher) so we can operate within that comfort zone, but it’s an ever-increasing comfort zone.”
To hear the complete Marketing Blab interview with Bob Burg, watch the video below.
Are you a Go-Giver? What are your thoughts on the Go-Giver philosophy? Please share them in the comment section below because I’d love to hear from you.
