Starting Up, Starting Over

For many years, in my daily planner (I love my Franklin Covey planner), I had a page I called, "If I Had to Do It Over." On it were the steps I would take if I were starting my resume writing business all over again. I get a lot of inquiries from new resume writing businesses, wondering about success secrets from those who are making it work.

Here are a couple of ideas for those who are getting started -- or thinking about reinventing themselves.

• If I were starting this business today, from scratch, what would I do differently?
• If I ran a competing firm, how would I beat us? How would I distinguish myself? What weaknesses would I attack? (Price, service, customization, turnaround times?)
• What are you known for?
  

Option Paralysis

I'm re-reading a great book, "What Clients Love: A Field Guide To Growing Your Business," by Harry Beckwith (who is probably best known for his first book, "Selling the Invisible.")

On page 47, he talks about "Option Overload":

"Knowing they cannot know and understand all their options, they increasingly choose the most trustworthy and seemingly competent person -- or choose no one at all."

He adds, "Today's clients cannot chose among services and products -- they cannot gather all the information. So they choose among people."

Researchers at Stanford University found that we suffer from "option paralysis" with even simple products. Faced with a few varieties of jams and jellies to choose from, most people will buy at least one jar. When given more options, however, they usually leave empty-handed."

How does this apply to your resume writing service? One popular pricing method throughout the years has been to offer clients "levels" of service -- usually bronze, silver, and gold packages. But offering clients too many choices may keep them from deciding at all.

You might consider offering:

• Resume Only (digital files)
• Resume and Cover Letter (digital files)
• Resume Only (with laserprints and CD)
  
• Resume and Cover Letter (with laserprints and CD)

But go too much beyond those four options, and you're likely to induce "option paralysis." Just something to consider...

Become a Get Hired Now Facilitator

In the September/October 07 issue of Resume Writers' Digest, I wrote an article about the "Get Hired Now!" program and how resume writers and career coaches can become licensed facilitators as an additional revenue stream and service for their clients.

The Get Hired Now! licensee program is designed to provide group coaching and training for job seekers. The program consists of a three-hour seminar designed to be delivered to groups of 2-20 people and follow-up group coaching sessions conducted in person or by phone (teleseminar).

There are two licensing options -- the basic kit for $495 and the Masterful Facilitator Training option for $695, which includes four hours of additional training covering tips for conducting successful groups as well as marketing and selling the Get Hired Now! program.

If you're interested in learning more about becoming a Get Hired Now! facilitator, sign up for the free Q&A session about becoming a facilitator on July 30 at 2 p.m. EST.

The next Get Hired Now! Masterful Facilitator Training Program will be offered Aug. 6-27, 208 (four Wednesdays) from 4-5 p.m. EDT.

Free Continuing Education

The price of gas is up; airfares are outrageous; you can't even THINK about leaving your office for more than a day ... what's a resume writer who wants to keep on learning to do?

One option is teleseminars and webinars. I list lots of those in each issue of Resume Writers' Digest -- but did you know there are FREE teleseminars out there too? In addition to the ones I've listed on here from the Reach Branding Club, if you're a member of Career Directors International, you can also take advantage of their free teleseminars. And if you're not able to attend the live call, you can download the audio from the Members Only section of their website at any time!

An e-mail from Laura DeCarlo caught my attention as a member was raving about a recent program* on "Prospering Despite a Downturn Market" So I checked out some other programs that are available in the free section. Here are just a few of the other offerings:

• Background Investigation Mega Trends
• Best Practices in Career Services Pricing
• Best Practices in Creating Resume USPs
• Media Strategies Tips Seminar
• Resume Fraud Mega Trends Report
  

If you're already a member of Career Directors International, log in to the Members Only section and click on "Audio Recordings." If you're not a member, consider joining. Go to www.careerdirectors.com and click on "Future Members" for a list of membership benefits. Click on the "Join Now" button on the right side of the page.

If you join by July 31 and mention "Resume Writers' Digest" in the "Special Instructions Field," you'll save $25 off the regular $150 membership rate! (Note: The cart will show $150, but when you type "Resume Writers Digest" in the comments box, it will be processed at the special rate of $125.)

* This quote from Laura Labovich of A & E Consulting, LLC, is what caught my attention in the e-mail:

"To think I almost missed the call! My head is spinning since the call ended. I wish I had been more prepared to take notes, because the ideas that were suggested were nothing short of brilliant. I honestly did not want the call to end. In short, I learned easy ways to increase my exposure in the marketplace during a market downturn, without spending a lot of money or dumping my last dollar into advertising. I think this could be a 10-part series, and I know that I wouldn't miss a single one. What a great class...thank you!"