Most coaches and consultants use Playing Lean as the initial part of a training session or a longer engagement. They do that because Playing Lean creates enthusiasm and makes players curious and eager to learn more. The momentum they have gained by starting off with a relevant game can be used for Lean Startup lessons, Lean Canvas workshops, Business Model Canvas training, Value Proposition fine tuning or something completely else.
If you’re also considering to use Playing Lean as part of your service offering, we have good news for you: We’ve sold a lot of sessions using Playing Lean and we’re eager to give you our insights! We have collected some tips that might help you:
It’s good that you’re using a tried and tested gamified learning concept, but remember that Playing Lean should not be front and center in your offer. The clients are interested in you and your skills and experience. Playing Lean is just one of several tools in your belt.
Sure, it’s interesting that someone set up a 110 people workshop with Playing Lean, but you need to build your own references. To get that first experience, consider giving away a free Playing Lean workshop at a meetup or a local conference. Have a friend snap some good pictures of you facilitating the excited crowd, and you have what you need.
Will clients be skeptical of using a board game as a teaching tool? Not that often, in our experience. In case you might get the occasional skeptic, you can always point them to some research on the subject. There’s a lot of science supporting the use of board games in educational settings. The opposite case is more frequent: Your prospective client turns out to be a board game enthusiast who is secretly dying to try out your game based approach.
Many clients will check out your web page to see if it matches what you are trying to sell them. It’s a good practice to have separate sections for the services you offer. It shows that you’re serious and experienced. The Australian consultancy BIGJUMP provides an excellent example. You can also take it one step further. Show your experience by giving great tips to other facilitators for how to succeed with Playing Lean.
Got it? Now ship that offer. We cross our fingers and hope you get more business with Playing Lean!
P.S. Did you know that Playing Lean Facilitators get access to marketing materials they can use and adapt as they wish?