The New Power Girls: How to Know Your Value - And How To Stand On It - In Business

If there's one trait I've most admired about today's successful women, it's their innate ability to know their value, communicate it and most of all, stand on it. It was the topic of Monday's post in The New Power Girls series and definitely a common denominator among the modern women entrepreneurs I know and have met.

Power Girls know what they're worth and refuse to be shaken on it.

For Entertainment Consultant and Independent Producer Jen Grisanti, who has worked on some of the best projects in entertainment, it's a matter of giving clients the room to thoroughly question her process - then generating high level results for them. Ellia Communications founder/president Kathy Caprino stayed firm on a book idea through a year of pitching. Today, Breakdown, Breakthrough: The Professional Woman's Guide to Claiming a Life of Passion, Power and Purpose is on store shelves and a success.

It's being confident in what you and your company bring to the table, then owning it.

Here's how:

Know You: The first step is to become best friends with what you've got to offer. It's as simple as taking an inventory of your talents and wins to identify what you can deliver. Comb over where you've seen your successes and what you're able to do well. Take notes and keep chewing on it until it's resonated and set in your mind. This is your value proposition.

Know Your Market: As a serial entrepreneur, I constantly examine industries where I'm considering creating ideas. The snapshot of who's who and who's doing what makes it possible to understand where the idea fits in. Read the trade magazines in your market. A pulse on what's going on will help establish your company's worth within it.

Know How to Say It: Communicating what you've got to offer doesn't need to be overly fluffy, just on target. Ask yourself what the person on the other side of the table might see as an advantage in working with you. Bring whatever it is with you on the call. It'll not just demonstrate your value but also show that you're familiar with the needs of your customer.

Know You Can Do It: The ability to stand on value stems in big part from having confidence that you and your company can deliver. If you're lacking in this arena, look no further than your past accomplishments. A glance at what you've done well will help remind you of what you can ace and that you know how to get results.

Know When to Give: Worth is often determined by factors beyond the cache of a company's product or services. Market conditions, trends and other issues can play a role, so be willing to flex as needed. It's not just about lowering prices but knowing when to raise them, as well as when to walk away from situations that aren't a fit. Trying to force something that isn't working can drain time and resources and can set a precedence for failure if you're not careful.

Most of all, stay on your game.

"Whether that be a new technology you are offering, your own personal brand or a marketing partnership -- whatever services you are selling, you have got to be an innovator with original ideas and the best executer of those ideas," said friend and fellow female entrepreneur Meghan Cleary, of Miss Meghan Media.

Spoken like a true Power Girl? You bet!

Comments

[SundayCosmetics]

Patricia, love your new column. It's packed with powerful information! I like Meghan Clear's tip about being innovative, having original ideas and knowing how to execute. Confidently standing out from the crowd attracts customers.

Bev Davis
http://www.sundaycosmetics.com

[marketingtherapist]

I just bought this book, thanks for the Power Girls posts. It does seem that confidence is the missing link that keeps “professionals” from being true PROS, male or female. Thanks for the new year inspiration. We need to tap our passion to make our work meaningful.

[RomyTaormina]

Beautifully said. Just Tweeted this!

[cylindar]

Market conditions and trends are extremely important. If your personality does not fit in to the current waves you will fail miserably. You need the faculty to reinvent yourself. Most women have a hard time doing that. In fact your past accomplishments can be an impediment to your future goals and promise for accomplishment. Beware of your past no matter how good it looks. It is past. Many employers like to look at what they think you are going to do for them, not what you have done for others. Serious employers want women who will make them wealthier than they are now. If they do not smell that dedication to money you are not even going to get out of the starting gate. There is a big difference between good ideas and ideas that make money. You may have good ideas but the timing is not right. I say this because many women also have a terrible time with timing. The bottom line is that if you want to be a power girl you need to understand that money is the key objective. Nothing else matters. Nothing! That is what business is all about!

[Sarah Hurty]

The biggest challenge for so many women is knowing their worth so confidently that they CAN stand in it. Having a coach or mentor, who is Truthful, to help reinforce your worth based upon real evidence, is a great aide in overcoming this challenge.

[sobofitness]

I love this series of Power Girls. Keep on rockin' it Patricia!
Jillian Montes
www.sobofitness.com