One of my personal values is honesty. Funnily enough, I sometimes find it easier to be honest with other people than honest with myself. This week, a big dose of the latter was required because something wasn't quite clicking with Clutter Collect. I was getting emphatically enthusiastic feedback from everyone I spoke with about the concept; my Instagram followers grew pretty quickly; my friends in business were excited and getting the tingly tummy feeling that this was a "big idea".
All that great feedback was not, unfortunately, translating to customer sign ups. While almost everyone was enthusiastic and supportive of the concept, I was receiving recurring feedback that:
- The price was too high, and
- The 3-month subscription option wasn't quite right.
I realised that these two things could get in the way of my big idea becoming a success. So I swallowed my pride and adjusted. I've absorbed more of the set up costs than I had initially planned to, which has allowed me to lower the cost considerably. And I added more options - now customers can choose 1, 2 or 3 month subscription options. I've also added a Bulk Rental option for up to 12 x boxes, for those customers that have had (or are planning) a large clear out. And I'm in the process of adding a pick-up only option for people who don't need the boxes - that should be available sometime in September.
I've already communicated with all of the customers who signed up on the previous pricing and subscription options and have given made sure that they have been compensated in the transition to the new pricing. Nothing worse than being an existing customer, and finding out that new customers are getting a better deal than you, right!?
I'm sharing this with you because I personally find glimpses into the behind-the-scenes stuff of small businesses really interesting. I also love seeing the evolution of businesses - so often, when a business becomes successful we don't see the versions of that business that were tweaked, adjusted and reinvented along the way. Finally, I'm sharing this with you because I am sure there are people out there who want and need Clutter Collect, but found the initial cost and lack of options prohibitive. If those people come back to the website and are confused that things seem different, I want them to be able to find out why and how things have changed. I hope they'll see that there is a real person behind this business, and that this particular business owner values honesty, responds to feedback, and takes care of their customers.
