How to Determine Your Cannabusiness' Value

Ok, so now you've been getting your cannabis business ready for launch.  Even if it already has launched, does your team have a unified language about the value of what you're doing?  If no, do you think it might help a bit?  It definitely will help if you're selling it to someone else.  If you want people to truly accept the language, then you should include them in finding out what that is.

While I was on a trip abroad, I met up with my colleague, Antonio, who works with European hospitals on how to provide better Emergency Room services. He was really stressing the importance of determining your project's value to it's user early in the very beginning.  In his case, it was determining the value of ER changes they were developing.  I already knew to do this during marketing.  It really focuses your message toward the customer's needs rather than tooting your horn.  Keeping that in mind, I put what he said to work on project with an organization here in Chicago that I love.  Their big focus was getting an online store off the ground, which they've never done before.  While taking a break from developing their product input processes, we sorted out what their service's value proposition.  Woh!  It took about 20 minutes and all of a sudden we were seeing in words what their guts had been saying.  We were also seeing that everyone's guts were seeing it all a bit differently.  All of a sudden they had the same language to use amongst themselves as well as with the customers.  Simple bullet points they all agreed on.

If you want the language to use, as well as a much clearer idea of the value that you offer your customers, then do the following:

Get your team together.  This will work best if there are multiple points of view.  People are much more likely to support and on-board the result if they feel they had a say in it.

Decide on the challenge.  Do this as a team.  Don't let it be too broad or to narrow in scope.  To learn how read my blog post on helping your cannabiz team face the correct direction.

Think about your customer in regards to your product or service.  Think about what their jobs are. Think of what pains they suffer and what gains they reap.

Seek out your customers and ask them what those might be pains and gains might actually be.  Let's face it, what we think it is and what it may actually be often turns out to be different things.  Better to ask and know then guess and waste time.

Write out your product or services.  What exactly is it your selling?  Keep it to 3-5 bullet points.  This makes your team focus on what's the core of what you offer.

Now think of how those products and services helps relieve your customer's pains and improve their gains.  Again, also consider asking them and hearing it in their words.

Narrow it down to the 3-5 most important points.  This is a team effort.  Vote!  No one person ever truly knows best all the time.

Take those points and put them to work.  Share them with everyone.  That's the value that you offer your customers.  Write it into your banners, your ads.  Use them when you talk about the project with your colleagues and employees.

Share this article with someone that you think it will help.  There are a lot of good cannabis businesses out there that could be running smoother.  Perhaps you know one.