Thread by @greaterbayo

The Law of Value

During my monthly performance review session a few months ago, I coached them on the Law of Value. I've made a very conscious decision to teach and coach more.

So I gave them this illustration. After my National Youth Service, I did a test organized by a major FMCG company in Nigeria and passed. I went through a series of interviews and if I recall correctly, about 8 of us eventually scaled through.

We were disappointed however, to note that were going to be hired by a major distributor of that multinational and not the multinational itself. The distributor was based in Agbeni market, Ibadan. I still remember my first salary was N8,000 monthly.

I had a van I had to drive with goods of the company loaded into the van from the warehouse of the multinational located at Ring Road in Ibadan. I had been given a particular route to cover which stretched from Ring Road down to Ojoo.

I had a directory of all the major supermarkets and stores in that area and I had a daily target I had to meet.
I struggled the first few days as I was focused on just meeting my numbers.

I remembered one of the things we were taught during the few days of products training we had before starting the job. It was about brand visibility with focus on arranging the products on a shelf with a view to catching the attention of the customers. So I decided to apply it.

I entered a very popular cosmetic store around Adamasingba in Ibadan. By then, I was a known face as the owner already knew me as a supplier of some of her key products. This time, I told the owner to allow me re-arrange a particular section of the store.

I explained to her the benefits and how she can improve her sales due to improved visibility. She gave her consent and in 15 minutes, I was done. That was the only thing I did in her store that day. No sales.

But from the next day, she ordered enough goods that helped me deliver on my daily targets from her store alone. Let me put it clearly: I was meant to cover a minimum of 16 stores daily but that single cosmetic store helped me meet my daily targets after that day.

I would drive to the store, meet my daily targets and go home to sleep before I returned the van to the warehouse by 5pm. I never bothered to go to the remaining 15 stores again.

Learn how to add value to your client. Look around that business: how can you help that business to be more productive? How can you help it to grow and increase its turnover or profitability? Can you refer prospects to the business? Can you help them organize better?

I've sat on interview panels of some customers, assisting them to hire staff for their businesses. When you add value to your customer, as they grow you also will grow. You'll be a beneficiary of their success. You'll grow your market share and probably dominate their business.

If you don't add value, you'll be devalued. In difficult times, people remember those who add value to them and not just takers. Adding value is what will set you apart as an outlier.

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