Letting Go of Perfection for Bigger Profits from Your Information Products and Training Programs
by Alice Seba
Owner PublishforProsperity and
Done-for-You Content Provider Since 2006
After working with information product and online course creators and hopeful product creators for over 15 years, there is one thing that holds people back from success than any other.
That is the need for perfection. The need to perfectly understand the process before starting. The need to have a perfect product before launching.
But calling it perfection is a lie.
Perfection sounds like a positive thing and people hide behind the words, “I'm a perfectionist.”
But perfection is just an extremely misleading word for procrastination.
The desire for perfection boils down to excuse after excuse for not getting stuff done.
If you want to be successful creating information products, training programs or in any business at all, it's time to let go of the false idea of perfection.
Here are a few ways you can do that…
1. You Don't Need to Know How to Do Everything before You Start
If you've been telling yourself that you'll launch your first product once you figure out A, B, C and D…you're giving yourself the biggest excuse ever to do nothing at all.
Think about all the things you've done in your life without knowing exactly where you're going. Whether it was to learn to drive, cook a meal, get married or even have a child, most of us jump in and learn as we go. We make mistakes and sometimes screw up royally, but all those are lessons for us to improve or get it right the next time.
You do not need to know who your web host will be, how you'll create your site, what autoresponder you'll use or what platform you'll sell your product with…and know each step of all those things before you begin. You'll do them and learn them as you go.
So many people I speak to want a precise blueprint and want every step outlined…but there really is no such blueprint because there are many variables that decide how you'll execute your plan. It could be your budget, personal preferences, your target market or just about anything else.
If you're looking for a cookie cutter approach to what you should do…you'll get cookie cutter results. But if you can learn what's best for your business as you go and adapt as you make be discoveries, you'll have much more success.
Which brings me to the next point…
2. Be Willing to Adjust Your Plan
Just like you might change the steps you follow or the software you use to launch your product, you need to be flexible with the product itself.
When we start, we have these grand ideas of our perfect product. But then we get down to work, we realize that it's going to take forever to get where we hoped.
That's the point where the deadline you set for yourself is more important than perfection. For accountability, tell your subscribers your product will launch on a certain day and make sure you deliver. That might mean changing your expectations of what the product will look like, but it's better than waiting until NEVER to launch. 🙁
Because here's the thing…
3. Don't Assume You Know What “Perfection” Means to Others
We all have this idea of what our ideal product should like, so we get married to the idea and it's hard to let go…but realize that you have no idea of what perfection looks like to your customers.
And the only way for you to really discover that is by getting content out to them and letting them tell you what else they need…and then providing it to them.
Why spend months or even years creating something, only to discover you were missing what your customers really needed?
Just let go. Let your customers surprise you and tell you what they need.
And yes, you could survey your followers before you release your product…but then you're getting the feedback of people who simply say they're interested. You want feedback from people who have already committed and paid you, so you know how to serve your actual customers better.
And speaking of others, this product creation game doesn't need to be…and shouldn't be…a solitary activity…
4. Let Others Help You
I was overwhelmed by things just like you. All the tasks I had to complete and learn how to do. All the content I had to create. And I had to do it all because it had to be perfect.
But that thinking was wrong for a couple of reasons:
– There are far more talented and knowledgeable people than I am…so it's silly for me to try to retain full control of each part of the process.
– I only have so much time in the day. If I'm trying to do everything, things are going to slip through the cracks. And from my experience with creating products, people get most bogged down in the creation process and they skimp on the selling and marketing part…and really cheat themselves in creating a best selling product.
The moment I started to let go and to accept help, the faster my success came. I hired writers and used private label rights content. I hired people to do my graphics and so on.
Then I was able to focus on selling my product and making it a financial success. Because after all, we create products because we want to help people…but if we can't sell them, how are we going to get them out to those people?