How to make your products look better & worth their price tag?

Work not to justify the price tag, but to create a vision- a perception of Valuable Luxury.  

Here’s a story from last week:

My boss came to me with a render of our prefab garden home, and said:

“Aanvi, this doesn’t look like quite right. It is everything we wanted, but it looks off. Do you think we should put this part at the back of the body and change the shape?”

I took one look, and knew the problem.

It had nothing to do with the product.

It had everything to do with HOW the product was rendered:

  • Dull lighting
  • Barren land in front of the home
  • Looking incomplete & not worth the price-tag
  • Bad choice of viewing frame & perspective
  • No accessories to explain the scale of the product or it’s actual surrounding (which was a client’s well-maintained garden)
  • Cut corners in the front deck/floor.

What next?

I took 30 minutes and revamped the image.

STEP 1

Took images from Google and copy-pasted parts into the render:

  • Nice entrance panels
  • Plants & flowers
  • Pebbles & stone slabs in front of entrance
  • Chairs & table on the deck
  • Urn full of water

STEP 2 

  • Increase decking / flooring area on the left of the tent so it looks more spacious.

STEP 3

  • Presented to my boss the kind of picture we would like our clients to envision.

Final Result?

My boss loved it! 

A few “formal” WhatsApp forwards and all the recipients had positive reactions (Not a ‘Thanks, I’ll check it out later’). 

Our team realized that the new render was indeed closer to the brand messaging. 

Up until then, everyone hadn’t realized that the picture they had in mind for the product, didn’t contain just the product in a white background. It contained the actual background it would be put in, perhaps one even better.   

Because it was a “garden home”, of course there would be fresh green grass, plants, flowers and trees. 

Our ideal client would be someone who rents this Garden Home as a “guest in a glamping resort”, or, he would be an owner of a nice garden where this Tent would be his work-spot or lounge-area. 

So, this kind of renders helps him visualize his purchase well, and makes the product look worth its value, ready to buy. 

My advice for Design & Product Supply Firms reading this: 

  • Present your idea with the emotion you want your client to feel.
  • Design your presentations & renders to let them see themselves in the picture instantly!
  • Only then, will they get “attached” to it, and endeavour to buy it- From you, who understands them.
Discuss your product visuals with me
Pick a time here for your free 45 minute call

ABOUT ME:

I help businesses by REVAMPING their entire Digital Presence to get more clients & be compelling.

With my “60 days to attract more sales” package, we optimize & premiumize your Website, Catalogues, Social media and Price quotes to make you easy & trustworthy to buy from.

Click below to view my portfolio:

My Portfolio
Select projects to show you what's possible
Book a free discussion with me
30-45 minutes to brainstorm your next step

How to Name your Product-
6 test questions, 12 successful examples

Unless your product is a human baby or a robot, don’t name it after one.

In businesses and design portfolios, we commonly come across names which are:

– Unpronounceable without stammering
– Have hidden meanings- just like Indian baby names
– Not re-spellable
– From a different language

A wrong name is potentially an obstacle in a product’s success.

How?

  • People feel stupid when they can’t pronounce your product in front of others
  • Everyone calls the product differently
  • People forget the name and don’t make an effort to Google it. They leave it ‘for another time’.
  • Or, they forget the name and actually make the effort to Google it. Then they fail, and say, ‘Forget it, I don’t need it anyway’.
  • They forget. Simple.

What does this mean, for YOUR BUSINESS?

  • No sales
  • Not showing up on Google
  • Not getting followed on social media
  • Not being talked about
  • Ineffective branding
  • Losing marketshare
  • Losing audience in certain geographies

So, how to name your product?

Some questions to test names are: 

  • Do people say, “huh?” when they first hear it? Do they ask you to repeat or spell it out?
  • Do people identify the product’s category / function, when they HEAR the name?
  • Do people identify the product’s category / function, when they SEE the name on paper with and without the logo?
  • Are they able to pronounce it?
  • Are they able to re-pronounce it after 2 days?
  • Are they able to independently type it on Google search or social media, without feeling lost?

Here is a list of 12 successful Shark Tank products.

“Shark Tank is the critically acclaimed and multi-Emmy® Award-winning reality show that has reinvigorated entrepreneurship in America.”

Notice the product names below.

They are ALL self-explanatory, memorable, and in tune with their business segments & functions.

  • Scrub Daddy– A dish-scrub that is the ‘daddy’ of all sponges
  • Simply Fit Board– An exercise board that promotes fitness
  • Squatty Potty– A footstool for the WC, helping the user squat to poop better
  • Tipsy Elves– Fun celebratory Christmas apparel and holiday fashion
  • Drop Stop– A car seat add-on that stops thing from dropping down to the floormat of the car. 
  • ReadeREST Clip– A magnet that holds your reading glasses to prevent them from falling
  • LovePop– Pop-up greeting cards
  • Phone Soap– A device which cleans bacteria off your phone
  • Cup Board Pro– A cutting board which holds (cups) the peels and makes it easy to put the vegetable into the pan
  • LuminAid– Providing illumination in emergencies
  • Wine & Design– An event where guests bring wine and spend time creating designs
  • The Bouqs– Online bouquet delivery service

For all these products, at least ONE shark complimented the name.

On any website, these products are listed as some of the highest-grossing products of all time.

Of course, the products have their own merits, but the fact that ALL of them are at the TOP, and they all have easy names related to the business segment, is not a mere coincidence.

But,

Often times, the Sharks have also commented on potentially difficult names. Here is one from a pitch I saw recently:

Baobab

-A company selling polo shirts with longer-than-average lifespan. 

The comment attacked the pronunciation of the name and pointed out how differently people would pronounce it:

Bay-O-Bub 

v/s 

Baa-O-Bub

The entrepreneurs tried explaining what the significance of the name Baobab was, and how it was related to Baobab- The Tree of Life… but their explanation was sadly, cut short by the Sharks, probably as it didn’t add much value to the pitch or the sales record of the product.

In conclusion, 

A name does not define a product’s success or failure, but it certainly does help to have a good name. 

The 6 test questions that help to evaluate the aptness of a name are:

  • Can it be pronounced without thinking twice about whether it’s the right way?
  • Is it re-pronounced by someone accurately, 10 days after first hearing it?
  • Is it easy for a 12 year old to spell out?
  • Does it come to memory upon thinking of the function of the product, or performing an activity?
  • Is it enough by itself, to identify the product it’s for, without looking at the logo?
  • Do you feel the need to justify to most people, why you are choosing this name for your product? (Hint: A ‘yes’ to this question, is usually a negative indicator for your product name, and it may be wise to choose something more self-explanatory.)

Remember,

  • You won’t buy your product, your audience will.

  • You won’t search your social media page or website, your audience will.

  • You won’t be there to explain your product, your product’s name and packaging will.

  • You won’t be there to remind your audience of their product when they need it, your product name & tagline will.

  • You won’t see your marketing ads, your audience will.

So,

After working hard on your product itself, work a little bit on the name and get indirect feedback. Read between the lines, and see how people:

  • React,

  • Remember

  • Repronounce,

  • and Retype the name for someone else.

Discuss your product name & tagline with me
Pick a time for your free 45 minute call

ABOUT ME:

I help businesses by REVAMPING their entire Digital Presence to get more clients & be compelling.

With my “60 days to attract more sales” package, we optimize & premiumize your Website, Catalogues, Social media and Price quotes to make you easy & trustworthy to buy from.

Click below to view my portfolio:

My Portfolio
Select projects to show you what's possible
Book a free discussion with me
30-45 minutes to brainstorm your next step

Follow these 3 rules to present your ideas in 2020

I feel presenting Ideas is more relevant NOW than ever, because no matter whether you are a freelancer or employee, designer or developer, you are in constant need to convince ‘someone’ about your idea. 

As digital as we are now, you must know how to ‘pitch’ without being present in person. 

Sometimes the fortune of your next months rests in sending over ONE PDF file. 

ONE. 

It could be to present your idea in a competition, it could be a project proposal to your client, or convincing your boss that you should lead a project.

How can you explain all this in one silent document?

No. 1

List your competition and find what makes YOU OR YOUR IDEA stand out from them. 

But, what if your business is no monopoly? What if you’re similar to another?

Here’s what you do:

If you feel you are second or third in the race, and have absolutely nothing to prove your difference, look again at your idea-

A 100% there will be something different- Maybe your passion for the subject, your business location, your aesthetics, your personal background.. Anything. You suddenly have a plethora of things to choose from.

So now pick ONE of these which distinguishes you, and emphasize it in the presentation. 

THIS is your USP.

No. 2

Don’t follow the Minimalism trend. 

People will tell you: “No one reads nowadays, so don’t care about text”. 

Don’t fall into this trap. It’s simply BS.

Every successful business person I know, READS. 

Every successful presentation I made, which helped sell thousands of dollars worth of products, had a chunk of MEANINGFUL text in it. 

The way I designed it, clients ‘wanted’ to read it. They wanted to read the boring technical data to learn more about the product. And the more they read, the more they held the businesses in higher esteem.

Also. 

Newspapers, bloggers, magazines, they’re still in business right? 

Ever heard of the 365 books in 365 days challenge? That’s all about reading too. 

So give your client or boss a good background through words- Meaningful words that one wouldn’t WANT to skip. Let it explain its story without you around it.. because chances are your presentation will be discussed without you around it. Be prepared and structure it that way.

No. 3

Put in PROOF OF CONCEPT. 

Put in WHY you think your concept will work. 

Is it because your C is a rip-off of A and B and they’re both successful? 

Maybe. 

But for an investor or boss to say ‘yes’ to that, and put in time, money and resources, he needs 2 reasons:

1. Promise that he’ll get his money back bigger and quicker than he would if he put it elsewhere. 

2. Attraction to your story and idea.

So how do you get there?

Many ways.

  • Click pictures of the problem you’re solving, or the luxury product you’re offering.
  • Produce a video explaining your concept. Short crisp video converts a gazillion times higher than anything and captivates people of all natures.
  • Get people to give video-recorded/typed statements or testimonies.
  • If you’ve tried out your concept already, great! That’s proof that it’s working. So show your investor its success, not just your own words, but others’. 

Here’s an example.

Let’s say you that you’ve done calculations and are sure that stock values of company XXY is going to drop 45%. You want to convince your investor.

Now, if you are unknown to him, he may not believe you. 

But, if a stocks authority like CNBC acknowledged your data, your investor will have more faith in you.

He could also have more faith in you, for example, if he saw one of your financial research papers published on a platform before.

That’s the kind of authority your Presentation needs to establish.

Discuss your Pitch with me
Pick a time for your free 45 minute call

ABOUT ME:

I help businesses by optimizing & premiumizing their catalogues & website. This helps them close more deals, and attract better quality clients who understand and value “branding”. 

Click below to view my portfolio:

My Portfolio
Select projects to show you what's possible
Book an Introduction Call with me
45 minutes to discuss your needs

Is your Business missing a Master Catalogue?

(How to know and 3 reasons to fix this mistake)

First, main definitions:

A master catalogue is a document which shows an overview of ALL your product collections.

A sub-catalogue is a document which gives details about ONE of your product collections.

If you have 2 or more types of product collections, you NEED a Master Catalogue.

Imagine that you sell:

Furniture and fabrics. 

Or, Furniture, fabrics and hardware.

Or, Furniture, fabrics, hardware and lamps.

In all these three cases, you need a document that showcases ALL your collections– so that a “new” customer who is just looking, gets inspired by your expertise and range, and grasps in one look, all that you are capable of doing for him. 

What happens when you don’t have a master catalogue?

Let’s take an example.

Imagine that you have 10 different product collections.
You’ve split these into 10 sub-catalogues (1 for each collection).

There are two kinds of paths this can take:

Path 1:

  • Your customers ask you for a particular Collection A, and you give them A. 
  • That means, you’ve LOST the opportunity to show them B, C, D…
  • (If you still send B, C and D in the email, in most cases it will sound pushy.… unless you’ve nailed how to give too much information, without distracting the customer from his main ask.)

Conclusion:

Giving only what’s asked for, is a straightforward approach, but also a lost opportunity to tell ‘the full story’ to your customers. Most of them will not have the patience to get information out of you, email by email, and they will simply drop off if they don’t get the full picture easily.

Path 2:

  • Your customers ask you for a ‘general overview’ of your collections.

  • You give them all 10 sub-catalogues as different attachments.

  • Seems very smart and organized for you, but a total mess for them. Overwhelming, and NOT graceful.

  • Maybe they open two of your attachments, but the rest are lost forever. And so is their interest.

It’s like you walking into a restaurant where the waiter gives you a different menu book- ONE EACH for the main course, starter, drink, soup, salad, specials and dessert. Imagine being handed over these 7 books to choose from.

Oops. You’re not going back there again.

Instead, imagine a standard restaurant situation.

You walk in. You don’t know what to order.

The waiter gives you ONE menu.

Everything is listed in that ONE menu, and you choose to ‘skip to the Main Course section’.

You don’t find anything interesting there.

But, you do like the picture of the dish in the Specials section. 

You order that.

You also see things that you don’t order, but make a mental note for a friend.

You see the Restaurant’s Founding Story and glance through it. You see in bold letters that they have set up 20 branches across the world since 1956. ‘Wow, classic place, you think in your mind. They must be good’.

You see a supplementary section which says ‘new drinks at the bar- request waiter for menu’, and you get excited. You order the bar menu.

You either order a drink or you don’t. 

Either way, the main goal of you getting to the food section, navigating easily, and ordering a dish is achieved.

You didn’t have to ask questions like, ‘Where is the main course? Which menu do I look at first?’

The food menu even tempted you enough to browse through the bar menu.

Conclusion:

  • You got a glimpse of ALL the things the restaurant offered- In Food as well as Drinks, Dessert and others.

  • You got an interesting short story of their Founding.

  • You found a reason to recommend the restaurant to a friend.

This is an analogy between a Restaurant Menu and your Master Catalogue.

How?

1. When visitors are first coming to your website or store, they want to see an overview of what they can get. 

(They want ONE menu)

2. When they see one collection they may be interested in, they’d like to skip to its details.

(they want to see the Main Course)

3. They don’t find a product in that collection, but they go to another collection, and order from there.

(they order a dish from the Specials instead of the Main Course).

4. They also see a third product collection. So they ask you for its sub-catalogue.

(the bar menu)

5. They see a good fit in it and order something from there even though they are not planning on it.

(the drink from the bar menu)

6. Oh, and while browsing, they see your Founding Story and touching reviews from other customers. They build a trustworthy impression of you.

(social proof)

7. They also see a fourth collection- 

Products which their friend might like. 

8. So they send her pictures of the Master Catalogue, and voila, the friend sends you an enquiry. 

(word of mouth marketing)

… And that’s how you sold a product, with an accessory product, and also generated a second lead with no extra effort.

That’s the power of the Master Catalogue.

To summarize:

A Master Catalogue is a must-have for businesses with different product collections. 

It helps you close more deals and helps you win more customers by:

1. Giving an overview of your business to clients.

So your client can see all your variety and all your capabilities, in one flip-through.

2. Highlighting your main products.

So your client knows your expertise and why he should select only YOU for his work.

3. It positions you in the market.

  • Your Master Catalogue is a “Sales Call compiled in a PDF”. It gives a brief idea of competition (without naming anyone) and why someone should choose you over others. 
  • It gives your business story, your brand message. If you write it right, it helps customers perceive you as professional, branded and premium.

BONUS INSIGHT:

When done right, the Master Catalogue becomes the bible of different questions your customer has, and answers them even before they ask the question aloud. 

It is The One PDF of confidence which answers a range of questions, from ‘What does your business do?’ and ‘What sizes are these available in?’, to ‘What makes your business different?’ and ‘What’s your warranty policy?’ 

Once your customers receive this document, they are sure to be confident about your brand, regard it in high esteem, and come back ONLY to you when they are ready to invest in that product for their needs.

Discuss your project with me
Pick a time for your free 45 minute call

ABOUT ME:

I help businesses close more deals by optimizing & premiumizing their catalogues & website. I can help you create an editable Master Catalogue for your business, or compile all your documents into ONE showcase. Click below to view my portfolio:

My Portfolio
Select projects to show you what's possible
Book an Introduction Call with me
45 minutes to discuss your needs

Is your Price Quote costing you sales?

(How to check, and 3 ways to fix it)​

First, let’s clarify what exactly we mean by a Price Quote. 

A Price Quotation or Quote is that ONE document you send to your potential client, right before you close the deal with him.

At that crucial time, your client is looking for prices, and exact details of WHAT he is getting in exchange for those prices. 

Most importantly, he is wanting to compare your product with competitors. This is understandable as he is about to spend his money, and needs reassurance of his investment.  

(… and THIS reassurance is exactly what even premium companies sometimes fail to provide. They present only the price breakdown, and fail to connect with the customer’s other needs).

Let’s take an example with you as the Client.

Imagine that you have been discussing a customized $50.000 sofa for 4 weeks with a company. 

In the end, they give you a robotic Quote on an A4 page with one line on ‘product description, quantity, sub-total, taxes and grand total’. There are a few more words here & there, such as their address, their company motto and terms & conditions.

By looking at this lifeless document, would you still feel an ‘impulse’ to buy? Would you feel inspired?

Probably not.

When you show this Quote to friends & family, and they can’t visualize all you’ve discussed with the Salesperson, their reaction will be dull and will steer you away from your purchase.

You will think twice about ‘needing’ the product at all, and you may back out from the purchase for ‘another time’.

This basically means a lost deal for the company.. even after they almost won you over in the prior steps of the Sales Process.

In the precious last step, they failed.

This brings us to what your Client would rather see on your Quote:

  1. Powerful imagery of your future purchase, to create emotion in his mind
  2. Proof / Facts, to help him visualize a healthy ROI
  3. A brief market analysis to prove that he’s making the right choice.

THEN, seeing the price on the Quote, he will say, ‘Yes, I’m sure. Let’s go for it!’

So how can we apply these insights to your Business now?

Here are my top 3 recommendations:

1. Humanize the Quote

  • Help your customer dream
    Use powerful images of your product. Use arrows to mark special features.
  • Design your Quote without speed-breakers
    Give your Customer the right reading flow and balance information with enough images.
  • Have an Introduction Letter speaking to the customer personally:

Don’t say hi and bye by just using your Price Breakdown as your Quote.

Make your Quote a warm, friendly document. Include the Intro Letter ideally from the Salesperson that dealt with the Customer, or from a higher authority, and mention facts:

1. Friendly Opening Line-
“Hope you are feeling better now, we were extremely sorry to hear about your accident” or “Hope your project is going well”

2. The purchase context-
“It’s been exciting to customize furniture for your new home”

3. Special features-
“We’ve given you a choice between dark wood and light wood polish”

4. Goodies-
“We’ve given you extra upholstery covers free of charge”

5. NON-PUSHY Conclusion-
“We hope this Quote inspires you. Please feel free to let us know if you’d like to discuss further. We are available any time as per your convenience.”

EXPERT TIP: Create a Quotation Template and change only 20% of the letter. Keep 80% the same for every client to save time

2. Avoid information holes

Include ALL related information of the purchase in the Quote, so that your customer does not have to write back to you for basic clarifications.

Each time he needs to ask you something, you create more friction in the process, meaning lesser chances of selling.

How to avoid information holes? 

The simple foolproof way is to create an FAQ section, that is readable by a human. 

Don’t make it like a legal disclaimer with small text. Make it graphically so nice, that people will ‘want’ to read it.

This will give clients gold standard confidence with you, show that you know your product, and have nothing to hide.

3. Use Emotional Branding on your quote

Your logo is NOT your brand.

Your brand is the impression you have on people.

Your brand is why people invest in you- with Time, Money, or Emotions.

They like to browse your website, your storefront, your products, NOT because they always want to buy, but BECAUSE you help them dream and give them value.

Your Quote is a continuation of this- selling them the dream and helping them get value from you.

So how to use emotional branding on your Quote?

Include:

  • Good quality pictures which make people recognize your brand in a heartbeat
  • Testimonials
  • Awards
  • Press features
  • Global presence
  • Offices
  • Team
  • Founding Story

… All in the right balance. This is ONE secret to quietly making space in the customer’s heart, and getting him to take THE NEXT ACTION on your Quote- BUYING.

Need this for your Business? Let's discuss.
Book your free 30 minute call with me

SUMMARY:

A successful Price Quote speaks on your company’s behalf. It justifies your price tag, which is the deal-maker or deal-breaker when your product is high-end & premium. If your client sees the “value” and confidence in what he is buying, you will reach the final step of making the Sale! 

ABOUT ME:

Hello, I am Aanvi, Business Presentation Expert. I invest my time helping businesses level up their Sales Quality and get more customers. I can help you design a Price Quote for your business. Click below to view my portfolio:

My Portfolio
Select projects to show you what's possible!
Book an Introduction Call with me
30 minutes to discuss your needs