Resume Customers Will Pay More If You Show Them the Value

I’m working on a new Resume Writer’s University course on pricing and wanted to share some thoughts on a topic that you may have struggled with — or are currently struggling with.

Many resume writers — especially new ones — make the mistake of thinking that every prospective client is money-conscious and looking for rock-bottom prices. This could not be further from the truth. Think of the difference between a Toyota and a Lexus and you will see there are a range of factors that influence a purchasing decision beyond just price.

Show Them the Value
Resume clients will pay more if you show them the value of the service you offer — that is, the reason why your resume services are priced higher those of other resume writers, but also how your services offer real value.

Price and value are not the same thing. They can be related to each other, but they are not the same. A Toyota is not perceived as having the same value as a Lexus, even though they are made by the same company.

Why would this be the case? Marketing helps create this perception. You can do it with your services as compared with other resume writers.

For example, imagine you and another colleague who provide resume services to the same audience — for example, IT professionals. However, how you collect information from prospects differs. You use detailed questionnaires to collect the information, allowing the client to gather the details of their experience on their own time. Your colleague conducts an information-gathering consultation call.

Your marketing might appeal to introverted IT professionals who don’t want to “dig through” their responsibilities and accomplishments verbally. Your colleague’s marketing might appeal to IT professionals who are more comfortable “talking through” their responsibilities and accomplishments than writing them out.

Your Unique Selling Point
In other cases, the difference will not be so clear-cut, but the whole point of your marketing will be to distinguish your brand and products from others. This is commonly referred to as your unique selling point, or USP. Your USP answers the question: Why should people do business with YOU?

Reasons might include awards, industry status, your educational background, experience, and so on.

For example, if you are a resume writer with an extensive background as a recruiter who can provide insider secrets on how to connect with recruiters in the IT industry, your services will be in more demand than someone without the same authority and “street cred.”

Add Value without Spending a Lot
You can also add value to your services without spending a lot of money or time. In this way you can create the impression they are getting an even better deal for the price, even if your price is higher.

For example, you can create a range of educational items to supplement your resume services. These can include checklists, FAQs, worksheets, a quick start guide and other valuable information which will help people make the most out of the product. (Bronze members of BeAResumeWriter.com, you have access to these tools as part of your membership.)

You might also create some training videos to help clients with specific aspects of the job search. You can use a platform like Teachable to do this. With online education booming, and video marketing as well, making quick how-to videos can be a great way to increase the perceived value of your offerings.

A free Facebook group, members only email lists with special offers, extra content, and so on, and a special customer support portal with FAQs can take a little time to set up, but add up to big bucks.

By branding yourself as a company that offers real value for money, it will be easier to make more sales and retain customer loyalty. Resume clients will pay more as long as you are clear about the value of what you were offering, so they will feel as if they are getting the best deal possible.

Stay tuned for more information on my new course!

10 Questions with Gayle Howard

Get to know the other resume writers in our community with our “10 Questions” series!

Today’s profile is Gayle Howard!

Gayle, “Executive Resume Writer, Word Nerd, Mac Geek, and Storyteller Extraordinaire” is the owner of Top Margin. She has been a resume writer for 30 years, “helping people find their voices and tell their stories to stand out in a crowd.”

Gayle is a “strong believer in the notion that people gravitate to what they love — even when it involves compromise.” She says that her career aspirations were crushed (in “earlier, unenlightened times”) by a high school careers teacher who insisted that “journalism was for men.” That “pretty lousy advice” took her in different directions professionally, but ultimately, Gayle returned to her passion for writing when she launched Top Margin in March 1990.

“30 years later, and here I am! Master Resume Writer, author, career storyteller, coach, trainer, and 51-time nominee and 27-time winner of resume-writing awards — extolling the talents of my clients as they demonstrate determination, tenacity, and success. I tell people’s stories of insurmountable obstacles overcome, and of ways they disrupt the old, to bring in the new. My resumes succeed because I provide the context that makes people eager to know more.”

1. Why did you decide to become a professional resume writer?
At the time, my son was only three years old, and I was keen to work from home. As I had experience writing resumes and recruiting, I thought it would be a good opportunity to run a home-based business.

2. How did you get into the career industry? What  did you do before?
I commenced my career in customer service and later was an executive assistant to an executive in the financial planning sector. As an executive assistant, I hired staff and went through their resumes to select candidates for interview. I loved doing that, and it seemed like a natural fit that could match personal and professional interests.

3. What do you typically wear when you’re working?
Jeans, top, runners.

4. What is your best habit, and what is your worst?
My worst habit is procrastination combined with a short attention span. I can spend 3 minutes writing and a “ding” sound goes off on my computer and I’ll be looking at Facebook. Or checking Twitter, or reading the news headlines. I’ve not lost my focus, I can focus for hours on things I love doing … but after 30 years writing resumes, my focus and interest has just about disappeared. My best habit is my willingness to embrace new ideas, create new ways of doing things, and learn new technologies. It has served me well over the years!

5. What’s your favorite object in your office? Why?
I have a little Amazon clock sitting beside my desk. I like that it shows me the temperature, I like its pink clock face, and I love that I can control the lights with it, and ask it about things quicker than if I search Google. I love its shape too. Super cute.

6. What is your “go to” technique or secret when you get stuck when you’re writing a resume? How do you get unstuck?
If a client has gone on for paragraphs and I have trouble wading through all the jargon and detail, I look right to the bottom of the piece, because mostly they’ll put the result of all this stuff there. I then type that first: “Saved the world by…” and then I sift through the content looking for the “I did this” statement and add that. “Saved the world by calling upon my long-term relationship with Superman.”

Then, finally, I go to where they complain about all the things they hated and add that in between two phrases. So it becomes “Saved the world stagnating through lack of engagement by calling upon my long-term relationship with Superman.” I find this technique gets me strong, achievement-filled bullet points without having to plow through all the minute and unnecessary detail. Sort of a “sift and scan” technique.

7. What’s the best career advice you ever got?
I’d be happier to tell you the worst advice I ever received, which I usually write in my bio! But the best career advice I’ve taken on board, is in customer relationship management. Email is a terrible thing sometimes, and often we just answer quickly and it makes us sound harsh and rude. I make sure I write every email and then edit it. So I say what I want to say — complaint or question, and then write the nice stuff around it. “Thanks so much for taking the time to reach out. I really appreciate it.” Or, “I can imagine how upsetting that must have been for you at work and how up in the air this has made you feel.” I guess the quick answer is: always remember that behind every email is a person with feelings. Don’t trample on them.

8. How do you unplug?
I love my Netflix, I love reading, and I love going out on drives with my husband.

9. What ONE thing would you change about your business or the career industry, if you could?
For my business, I would have turned over the reins to freelance writers much earlier. I spent way too much time making myself indispensable in my own business and ended up writing until everything I did for the business became me sitting in front of the computer. I know lack of exercise has affected my health and eyesight, and I regret that very much.

As far as what I’d change about the careers industry, it would be that I think there should be one key body with influence to represent all resume writers and that has professional clout — like accountants and lawyers. I think multiple associations has created numerous toothless tigers and wide variations in what the average person can expect when hiring a resume writer with association backing.

10. What are your favorite social media accounts to follow?
@SamHeughan (Twitter)
@MikeCarlton01 (Twitter)
@passengershaming (Instagram)
@theoatmeal (Instagram)
@natashas_skinspa_southbank (Instagram)

You can find Gayle on Facebook at Top Margin, on Twitter (@GayleHoward), and on LinkedIn at LinkedIn.com/in/gaylehoward.

Did you miss our last 10 Questions profile, featuring Dawn Rasmussen? You can read it here!