Selling a DIY Template: The Upside of Downselling

podcast Jul 25, 2022
DIY Template

 


 

We all know the benefits of upselling. It’s an incredible feeling when you upgrade a client to one of your upsell options; for me, that would be the CFO offer I discussed in my last episode. However, there’s a right time, right place, and right person for that kind of offer; it’s not going to fit every single one of your clients. For most of them, your done-for-you monthly bookkeeping offer is likely going to be exactly what they need. Plus, your CFO offer isn’t scalable. It requires a lot of your attention, and it’s likely not sustainable as a widespread offer across your entire clientele.
 
That said, sometimes a potential client isn’t ready for your upsell or your monthly bookkeeping services. This is where downselling comes in: having an offer in your back pocket that you can present to a client who isn’t able to afford monthly bookkeeping just yet, but still needs something to help them manage it on their own. My favorite option for a downsell offer? A DIY template for bookkeeping!

 


 

What is a DIY template?

Basically, a DIY template is simply a pre-built digital resource clients can use to learn how to do their own books. It’s a great way for you to profit from in-between clients who aren’t ready to take on your monthly bookkeeping services, but still want something from you that they can utilize to start doing their own bookkeeping as best they can.

 

Why should I offer a DIY template?

The real goal of a DIY template is to capture those who really can’t afford your bookkeeping services yet, and would otherwise do nothing or screw up their own books. Offering a DIY template can lead to…

 

1. Referrals

Even if the people who purchase your template never end up becoming clients, that doesn’t mean they can’t refer others to you! Because they’ve purchased your DIY template and seen that it really works, you’ve already built trust despite them not being full-blown clients. So when they come across someone who needs monthly bookkeeping and is able to afford your services, those who’ve purchased your DIY template are very likely to recommend you as a bookkeeper!

 

2. Passive Income

Though a DIY template isn’t going to make you as much money as your regular bookkeeping services, it’s certainly better than simply turning people away, and it’s especially great because it provides passive income. Your DIY template is one-and-done—you make it once, set it up to sell, and you never have to worry about it again. I love it because I’m literally making sales in my sleep.

 

3. Potential to Gain New Clients

Some of my best clients have upgraded from this DIY template into monthly bookkeeping, and some even became CFO clients! Now, the actual conversion numbers may seem small—out of 325 people who’ve purchased, I might have six clients who have elevated—but when you consider how much that recurring revenue helps and what those clients end up doing in terms of referring you to others, it’s really not a small thing at all.

 

Who is this offer for?

For the most part, the best clients to target in the realm of teaching them about bookkeeping are people who have been in business from one to five years. You’d be surprised by just how many people between year one and year five of business do not have a bookkeeper, while after the five-year mark, most business owners who stick around do have a bookkeeper. So for me, the sweet spot is any client below that five-year mark.
 
When we’re speaking to that pool of people, some of them are going to say, "No thought here. I want a bookkeeper to take this off my plate and do it for me. I'm seeing success, I know I can afford it, and I know I don't have the time for it." But others are at that starting stage, and your fee might not be something they can afford just yet. By having a DIY template ready, you give yourself something that you can pull out and say, "Okay, the best thing you can do is hire me, but I realize you might not be there today. So here is a simple way for you to do your own books without messing them up."
 
That last part is really the most important thing if you’re thinking about eventual conversion into clients. I almost prefer books not having been done at all than having to go in and fix books that have been done poorly. By giving them a tool to do it themselves, you might actually be saving yourself a headache later.

 

But won’t this make my other offers obsolete?

Not at all! Like I said, I’ve had several clients convert from DIY template buyers into monthly bookkeeping clients, and some even eventually upgraded to my CFO offer. The DIY template offer is actually more likely to draw people back to you when they are ready for a monthly bookkeeper than if you send them away with nothing. And even if they don’t end up converting into clients later, it’s still a sale you made that you otherwise wouldn’t have if you didn’t offer a template at all.

 

 

How do I sell a DIY template successfully?

 

Invest in systems

Systems, systems, systems. This is my absolute must-do when it comes to DIY template sales. Why are systems so important? Think about it like this: let’s say you’re cooking in your kitchen. You’re doing your best to prepare a mind-blowing meal. You have the best ingredients, you have the recipe, you have the knowledge…but if you don’t utilize the right tools, you’re still going to have a very hard time completing your dish. The same principle applies to business. If you don’t have the proper tools, you’re going to struggle to sell no matter how good your “ingredients” are.
 
If you don’t have a good system in place, it’s not only going to make things difficult for you, but it’s also going to be unattractive to your future customers and clients. You need to have the right tools if you want your customers to take you seriously.
 
Compared to everything else across this process, I spend a lot of money on systems. But because of how much time it saves you, how much money you save from not having to hire a team, and how many more sales you make, it ends up being beyond worth it to invest. Personally, I prefer Kajabi, and I use it in very specific way that makes the process almost entirely automated. If you want to learn exactly how I do this, you can join my Digital Products Workshop!

 

Set up an affiliate program

One way I make sales is through an affiliate program that I have for my offer. I have people who will affiliate for it, and I’m able to assign codes and track who purchases the offer all through Kajabi! My affiliates make 30% when someone purchases through their link, and I keep the other 70%. This is absolutely worth it to me, because again, they’re sales I likely wouldn’t be making without those affiliate connections.

 

What if I don’t know how to make a template?

I’m going to be honest with you: I’m not the person to teach you how to make a template. I’m here to teach you how to sell one. But there are plenty of tutorials out there on how to build a template in Excel and other software, so if you don’t know how, you can go and learn before coming back here to learn how to sell it!

 

Join my affiliate program

If you don’t know how to make a template or don’t feel confident in selling one, another option you have is to become one of my affiliates! While this isn’t the best-case scenario, since they’ll be buying from me and potentially working with me later on, it’s certainly better than sending them off empty-handed. You’ll make 30% off of any sale made through your link, and with almost no extra effort from you!

 

 

Go out and get downselling!

Now that you have the tools you need to successfully sell a DIY template, you’re ready to get out there and start building your passive income, potential client list, and referral volume through downselling! I hope this has inspired you to get invested in the idea of adding a DIY template to your offers, and if you need any help learning how to navigate Kajabi, make sure you take a look at my Digital Products Workshop.
 
If you're looking for more tips for bookkeeping, insight on how to become a bookkeeper, and how to say hello to a more confident business model, enroll in Become A Bookkeeper (BABs). 
Or to learn more about growing your bookkeeping business and hiring a team, enroll in Life By The Books™ (Libby).
 
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Kajabi affiliate www.katieferro.com/kajabi for extended 30-day trial

 

 

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