
Start your Business with Why

17 AUGUST 2017
written by Mike
START YOUR
BUSINESS WITH WHY
“People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.”
A well-known phrase from Simon Sinek’s book “Start with why”.
Sinek’s reasoning is that people buy stories, especially when they pay premium prices. Especially when it comes to luxury goods.
Why pay more for a bag? Watch? A piece of furniture?
These are just commodities; a cheap chair will have the same function as a designer chair. Same for any other luxury product. The same of course goes for the service. You can find freelancers that charge £10, £100 and even £1000 per hour.
Why such a difference in price? Is the quality of service that different?
Sometimes it is.
But more than often people shop for stories, stories that they can share with friends.
“He works with celebrities.”
“He trained with the best in the world.”
“She produced a well-known podcast.”
“She wrote a book.”
All of these make an interesting conversation, worth sharing with others. That’s why people who create a movement, rather than just a service are more in demand. Look at Casefile podcast, one of the most listened true crime shows.
Is the podcast revolutionary? Are the stories so much different from others?
Or maybe it’s not just about the technicalities. Maybe it’s about the why, the story, the motivation.
A story can be a powerful tool to drive your business, but it must not be hidden.

Take an honest look at your website, flyers, icons, social banners.
Do these convey your brand picture? Your narrative? Or are they just a templated, commonly used stock photos?
The design is often overlooked in most industries. Services, products, workshops usually take the first place. It’s all about sales.
The truth is, people don’t want to be sold to, they want to relate to your offerings. They want to feel like a part of a community, be involved in something more. People don’t like to be sold to, but they love to buy. Look at your favourite companies, check their mission, their vision.
Do they care only about sales, or they start with the vision for the brand?
Of course, sometimes it is hard to present the full story, your ‘why.’ But when you write it down, when you discover it during the strategy session it’s much easier to pass that information to your audience, your clients.
Let’s be honest; it’s not as easy as just posting your mission in the middle of the website. Technical aspects such as UX design, mobile responsive, layout are important. But why is your profile, website, logo designed they way it is? Is it just because everyone has a digital profile, so you do too?
Think about a story that your clients could tell their friends. If the only thing they can say is that your prices are low, then it’s going to be hard to survive, let alone for your business to thrive. But maybe there is something that you haven’t thought about before. Something that you always talk about with your clients, something that keeps them interested, keeps them coming back.
Use that, write it down in your brief, make it the centre of your business.
It can be a story, your ‘why’.
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