What if you could deliver your service as if it was a product? No more custom scoping, less pricing questions, more time back in your schedule. This week, we’re taking notes from Lex Roman & Philip Wallage as they get into the topic of productizing services.
There’s a exciting shift happening in the creative service industry. More and more professionals are moving away from the traditional way of doing business. Instead, they’re embracing a new approach called productized services.
What Are Productized Services?
Think of it as turning your creative service into something that feels more like a product. It’s a simple but powerful idea that’s changing how creative professionals work. Independent freelancers and digital agencies and are leading this change. They offer clear, pre-packaged services that work just like products.
Why It’s Catching On
The beauty of productized services lies in their simplicity. When you buy a product, you know exactly what you’re getting. Now, imagine bringing that same clarity to creative services. No more long back-and-forth about project scope. No more confusion about pricing. Everything is clear from the start.
A Better Way to Work
For both service providers and clients, this approach makes everything more predictable. The process becomes smoother, from automated onboarding to delivery. It’s a refreshing change from the uncertainty of custom projects.
This guide will explore how to make your creative service more predictable, repeatable, and scalable. Whether you’re curious about this trend or ready to transform your business, you’ll find valuable insights ahead. We’ll look at how to package your services, set the right prices, and take those first steps toward productization.
The Problems with Traditional Freelancing
After years of experience in freelancing and running agencies, it’s become clear that traditional freelancing has some serious drawbacks. While freelancing can be rewarding, certain aspects of this business model can hold you back from growing and earning what you deserve.
Targeting the Wrong Clients
When starting out, many freelancers make the mistake of targeting clients who aren’t the best fit. This often means working with small businesses that:
These clients typically:
- Have limited budgets
- Don’t fully value your services
- Resist strategic discussions
- Just want the basics done quickly
The Hourly Billing Trap
One of the biggest problems with traditional freelancing is the hourly billing model. This approach creates several challenges:
Getting Penalized for Efficiency
As you become more skilled and efficient, you actually earn less money for the same work. Think about it:
- You build up experience
- You create reusable components
- You work faster and smarter
- But your income decreases because you bill fewer hours
The Feast or Famine Cycle
Hourly billing also creates inconsistent income because:
- Work comes in waves
- You can’t predict your monthly revenue
- During busy times, you’re too swamped to market yourself
- During slow times, you scramble to find new clients
Impact on Business Growth
These traditional freelancing challenges affect your ability to build a sustainable business:
Limited Scaling Potential
- You can only work so many hours
- Your income is directly tied to your time
- There’s a natural ceiling to your earnings
Capacity Management Issues
- Difficult to plan resources
- Hard to balance multiple projects
- Challenging to maintain work-life balance
Marketing Difficulties
- No time to market during busy periods
- Inconsistent client acquisition
- Difficulty building a stable pipeline
While freelancing can be a fantastic career choice for many creative professionals, these traditional approaches often hold us back from building truly sustainable and scalable businesses. The good news is that there are better ways to structure your services – which we’ll explore in the following sections.
Essential Elements of a Productized Service
To me, productization is really figuring out, what is actually the problem that you’re solving, and how can you solve that problem with a guided process.
Understanding Productized Services
A productized service is all about turning complex, custom work into a clear, repeatable process. Instead of starting from scratch with each client, you create a proven path that leads to consistent results. Think of it like picking up a box of cereal from the store – you know exactly what you’re getting every time.
The Core Components
Problem-Focused Approach
The heart of a productized service is understanding the specific problem you solve. Rather than offering general services, you focus on fixing one particular issue really well. This makes it easier for clients to understand what they’re buying and for you to deliver results.
Guided Process
Once you know the problem, you create a step-by-step process to solve it. This isn’t about reinventing the wheel each time. Instead, you develop a clear path from start to finish that works reliably for similar problems.
Repeatable Solutions
The magic of productization happens when you can use the same solution for multiple clients who share similar problems. This approach:
- Saves time
- Improves efficiency
- Creates consistent results
- Makes your work more scalable
Moving Away from Custom Work
Traditional service work, like UX design and design thinking projects, often involves lots of custom elements. You might do more research for one client and more testing for another. While this flexibility can be good, it makes it hard to:
- Work efficiently
- Price your services clearly
- Scale your business
- Deliver consistent results
Benefits of Productization
When you productize your service, you create a clear package that clients can easily understand and buy. This approach:
- Makes your work more efficient
- Helps clients know what to expect
- Lets you solve problems faster
- Creates a repeatable business model
Remember, the goal isn’t to limit creativity or ignore client needs. Instead, it’s about creating a reliable framework that delivers great results every time. When you find clients with similar problems, you can help them efficiently without starting from zero each time.
Pricing Strategies for Productized Services
The price is what it costs, and the value is what you get.
Setting Your Price Point
When it comes to pricing your productized service, there’s more to consider than just matching or beating competitor prices. The goal is to deliver so much value that clients won’t even think about comparing you to competitors.
Value-Based Pricing
Instead of looking at average market prices and offering slightly lower rates, focus on:
- Delivering exceptional value
- Standing out from competitors
- Creating unique solutions
- Building premium positioning
The Psychology of Pricing
Higher prices often lead to:
- Better perceived value
- More serious client commitment
- Greater respect for the service
- Increased attendance and engagement
For example, a presentation priced at €20,000 gets much more attention and commitment than one priced at €800. People tend to value what they pay more for.
Finding the Right Balance
Market Reality Check
While premium pricing can work well, you need to:
- Know your target market
- Understand your audience’s buying power
- Set realistic prices for your client base
For instance, if you’re helping unemployed professionals with portfolios, you can’t charge premium prices because your target audience has limited resources.
Working with Enterprise Clients
Handling Custom Requests
When dealing with large organizations:
- Focus on communicating value over hours
- Present solutions rather than time estimates
- Package services clearly (like design sprints)
- Stand firm on value-based pricing
Moving Beyond Hourly Rates
Instead of breaking down costs by hours:
- Offer complete solution packages
- Price based on value delivered
- Focus on outcomes rather than time spent
- Communicate clear deliverables
Remember, if you can effectively communicate the value you provide, the cost becomes secondary. Success lies in helping clients understand the worth of your solution, not just the price tag.
Implementation Guide: Getting Started with Productization
Essential Tools for Success
When starting your productized service, having the right tools can make a big difference. Here are the must-have tools to get you going:
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
A good CRM is essential. Attio is a great choice because it:
- Has a clean, simple design
- Lets you customize fields easily
- Connects with Google services
- Links emails and calendar appointments automatically
- Helps track client interactions
Automation and Integration
- Zapier: Connect your different tools
- Calendly: Handle appointments smoothly
- Typeform: Create professional intake forms
- AI tools: Use ChatGPT to help summarize form responses
Start Simple and Smart
Don’t spend too much time building the product. Just write a one pager, just save it as a PDF or make, like, some sort of presentation, like, no more than six to eight slides and start talking to people.
The key to success is starting small:
- Create a simple one-page PDF
- Make a short presentation (6-8 slides)
- Talk to potential clients early
- Test your idea before building anything big
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Over-Building Too Soon
- Don’t record video courses before testing
- Avoid creating complex solutions initially
- Skip the fancy 4K production at first
The Right Approach
- Start with basic materials
- Use simple tools like PDFs and Loom videos
- Focus on solving problems first
- Build as you grow
Next Steps
To get started:
- Write a simple one-page description
- Talk to potential clients
- Look for positive signs like “When can I sign up?”
- Start small and improve based on feedback
- Add tools and systems as you need them
Remember, finding the right problem and creating the perfect offer is more important than building a complex solution. Keep it simple, test your ideas, and grow step by step.
