I know you love your business, but sometimes it can feel like a trap.
That’s how it felt for me in my first business. We were stuck delivering complex, custom services for high-profile projects.
We built data warehouses and predictive models. Each project was unique and intricate, with different systems and business rules. It drained our energy.
It was like producing a full-feature movie for every client—impressive and rewarding, but exhausting and inefficient.
I felt proud owning a business that did sophisticated work. It was part of my identity. Plus, the business generated great returns.
But when I wanted to exit, I got a wake-up call.
No one wants to buy a business that does custom work, relies on an expensive team, and serves lots of different clients.
Here’s how I transformed my business into a scalable (and sellable) company:
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Shift the focus. We stopped doing custom services and started creating scalable solutions. We systematized common elements and turned them into a few packaged solutions that were easy to deliver and learn.
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Brand the solutions. We gave our solutions unique names and highlighted their benefits. We updated our website and social media to reflect this shift.
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Market them like products. Our solutions had clear outcomes and prices, just like products. We charged upfront, eliminated customizations, simplified hiring/training, and improved cash flow.
Was I nervous? Yes—especially about turning down large custom projects and old clients. People thought I was crazy.
I did it anyway.
These changes turned my business into an asset with value beyond its revenue. That increased the multiple when I exited.
It’s worth it.
The key is to start thinking about your services as products. Focus on the biggest, most common problems for your market. Then create standard, scalable solutions to solve them.
Instead of making a new movie for every client, create a few great movies and sell lots of tickets.
Does it take more than this to actually scale and sell a services business?
Absolutely.
But nail these 3 steps, and you’ll be positioned better than 95% of other founders.