Self Made: Netflix’s Depiction of Madam C.J. Walker…
The four-episode series released on Friday, March 20, 2020, and I was front and center to watch it. As a black woman and entrepreneur, I expected Madam C. J. Walker’s story to connect with me. Although usually around black history month, I’ve heard tidbits of her story throughout the years. What I did not expect was for it to empower me in entrepreneurship.
Armed with a full page of notes from the series, all about business, here are the top 3 nuggets that I took away:
#1 Explore sales objections and be ready to counter them. There was a scene where the main character’s antagonist was readying her sales force to go door-to-door to sell the hair product. One of the salespersons brought up an objection to buying the product that she felt she would encounter. She was then promptly armed with what to say to overcome that objection.
One of the things that make sales perceived as hard is receiving the reason someone does not want to buy. It actually is a great thing. When you know why someone does not want to buy, you can put that reason to rest and give them a better reason to buy.
ACTION TIP: Come up with as many objections as possible to the purchase of your product or service, figure out what will counter each objection, and give those counter reasons as a response to the objections when you get them.
#2 Build a BETTER mousetrap. When the main character is refused a chance to sell the antagonist’s hair product, she set out to make her own version of the product. She took what she knew about the original product, what worked and what was undesirable, to upgrade the product to appeal to more customers.
There are very few new products and services under the sun these days. Original innovation seems to have been replaced with duplicate options. The best way to stand out from the crowd of competitors is not to offer the same thing in the same way. Instead, take what competition offers and upgrade it.
ACTION TIP: Ask users of the original product or service what could make it better or more valuable. Ask potential users of the original product or service what stops them from buying it. Compile this information and use it to make your version of that product or service better. Use these differences to sell the product by highlighting them in your sales pitches and advertising write-ups.
#3 Brand Stories are important. The main character used her own story of using the hair product to grow her hair to connect with potential customers. She was able to share her problems with her own lack of hair growth before she used the product to relate to where the would-be customers were with their hair now. They could see that her hair was longer, but she also shared how life was much better because her hair grew.
A high converting way to sale any product or service is to get the potential customer to see themselves as having the problem to be solved and needing your solution to the problem to be happy. Buying often has an emotional component.
ACTION TIP: Know the exact problem that your product or service solves and the emotions around them. In your sales and marketing describe the problem, the negative emotions around that problem, receiving your solution, getting their desired results and the positive emotions associated with those desired results from the solution that you offer.
The lessons inspired by this series about how a black woman created and scaled a hair product business with her vision and drive have done a lot to reinvigorate my faith, determination, and journey in entrepreneurship.