Module 3 workshop: a positioning statement and offer sheet

What you will be able to do

• Draft and test a positioning statement using evidence from your own booking records
• Assemble a one-page offer sheet with scope, all-in price, terms, guarantee and proof
• Check the offer sheet against HST display, all-in pricing and guarantee rules before sending it

Everything in this module comes down to two pieces of paper. The first is a single sentence that says who you serve and why they should choose you. The second is a page a client can read in two minutes and say yes to. Set aside two focused sessions of about 90 minutes each. By the end of the second you will have both, tested on real people and ready for your next inquiry.

Read the transcript

Module 3 workshop: a positioning statement and offer sheet.

Everything in this module comes down to two pieces of paper.

The first is a single sentence that says who you serve and why they should choose you.

Before you start.

Gather your raw material first.

Writing from memory produces the same generic phrases you are trying to get rid of.

Session one: the positioning statement.

Highlight the bookings you enjoyed most and earned most from. What do they have in common: client type, event type, culture, format, setting or result?

Fill in the template. For, who, we are the that, because .

Session two: the offer sheet.

Now turn the position into something a client can buy.

Work through the sections in order and keep each one short.

The quality check.

Before you test the sheet, read it once against this list and fix every line that fails:

The headline speaks about the client's outcome, not about you.

Test, launch and review.

Treat the first version as a draft for real buyers, not a finished document.

Send it to five past clients from your niche and ask: "If this had existed when you booked, would you have chosen it, and what would you change?"

That is the lesson. The worksheet and the quiz are just below this video.

Before you start

Gather your raw material first. Writing from memory produces the same generic phrases you are trying to get rid of. Have these in front of you:

• A list of your last 15 to 20 bookings, with client type, event type and fee for each.
• Your five best reviews and any thank-you emails.
• The answers from the worksheets earlier in this module: your niche arithmetic, your proof ladder, your only-we list and your guarantee.
• Your current price list and terms, however rough.
• The cost of delivering your most common job: hours, people and direct costs.

Lantern & Lane’s pile was an export of last year’s 40 bookings from their inbox, a folder of reviews, Marco’s costing table and a page of notes from the only-we exercise. It took Marco 30 minutes to assemble.

Session one: the positioning statement

1. Find the pattern. Highlight the bookings you enjoyed most and earned most from. What do they have in common: client type, event type, culture, format, setting or result? Write the pattern in one line.
2. Fill in the template. For [specific client], who [situation or need], we are the [category] that [the one idea you own], because [the proof].
3. Run the five checks. Could a competitor say it truthfully? Would past clients recognize you? Does it exclude someone? Can you prove the because? Is the market big enough, according to your niche arithmetic?
4. Say it aloud to three people. One past client, one referral partner and one person outside the industry. Write down the words they use to repeat it back. Their words are often better than yours.
5. Write the short version. Cut the statement to a line of eight to twelve words for your headline and your phone answer.

Lantern & Lane’s statement, after three rewrites: “For Toronto couples bringing two families and two traditions together, Lantern & Lane is the planning studio that runs both ceremonies on one weekend without either family feeling like the guest, because we have planned eleven of them in the last two years.” The short version: “Two families, two traditions, one weekend that feels like everyone’s.” A venue manager repeated it back as “the ones who do the double weddings”, and Priya wrote that down too, because it is how referrals will sound.

Session two: the offer sheet

Now turn the position into something a client can buy. Work through the sections in order and keep each one short. The whole sheet must fit on one page at a readable size. If it does not, you are explaining too much, and the detail belongs in the proposal.

Two details are easy to miss. The price line states what is included in it, so the client does not wonder about extra charges. And the add-on is priced on the sheet, so a client who needs a third day knows the cost before the call.

The quality check

Before you test the sheet, read it once against this list and fix every line that fails:

• The headline speaks about the client’s outcome, not about you.
• No word on the page is professional, reliable, passionate, stress-free or unforgettable.
• Every claim has proof on the page or proof you could produce within a day.
• Every mandatory charge is inside the price. Only HST sits on top.
• The scope says what is excluded as clearly as what is included.
• The guarantee states its conditions and who offers it.
• The terms say what happens if you cancel, not only if the client does.
• A stranger can tell what to do next within ten seconds.

Test, launch and review

Treat the first version as a draft for real buyers, not a finished document.

1. Send it to five past clients from your niche and ask: “If this had existed when you booked, would you have chosen it, and what would you change?”
2. Show it to two referral partners. Ask whether they would feel comfortable passing it on.
3. Use it for the next five inquiries. Send it before any custom quote and record the result of each: booked, asked for changes, or declined, and why.
4. Revise once based on what you heard, then publish it on your website and keep it as a PDF for email.
5. Review every quarter. Compare real hours against your costing, count guarantee claims and track your inquiry-to-booking rate.

Lantern & Lane’s first test changed two things. Two past couples said the family briefing in a parent’s own language was the line that would have made them book, so it moved up the list. A venue partner asked for a version without prices to hand out at tours, so Marco made one that points to the website for the price instead of hiding it. Small changes like these, made after real conversations, are what turn a reasonable offer sheet into one that sells.

In Canada and Ontario: check before you send

An offer sheet is advertising, a price display and, once signed, part of a consumer agreement. Run this check before it leaves your desk. This is general information, not legal advice; for your own terms, check the sources or ask a lawyer.

• Tax display. Ontario’s HST rate is 13%. The CRA requires you to tell the customer that the price includes the GST/HST, show the amount separately, or state the rate, and to show the combined 13% rate rather than separate federal and provincial parts. “$9,800 plus 13% HST” does this. If you are still a small supplier and not registered, do not add HST or imply that you charge it. The CRA’s guide RC4022 explains the details.
• All-in price. Under the Competition Act, a price that cannot be attained because of fixed, obligatory charges is a false or misleading representation, unless the extra charges are only those imposed by law, such as HST. Booking fees, admin fees, mandatory travel or a required service charge belong inside the advertised price. Optional add-ons may be listed separately because the client chooses them.
• Guarantee. Ad Standards’ Clause 5 requires a guarantee to be fully explained as to conditions and limits, with the guarantor named, or to say where that information can be found.
• Proof. Every number must be true and current. A review quoted on the sheet must be genuine, and a review written by an employee, a relative or anyone with an undisclosed connection to you can mislead. The Competition Bureau says anyone who writes or permits reviews that give a false or misleading impression could be liable. Keep the client’s written permission for any quote you use.
• Consumer terms. For individual clients, the Consumer Protection Act, 2002 applies until the 2023 Act is proclaimed. Uncertain terms are read in the consumer’s favour, so a vague scope line works against you. Most bookings are future performance agreements, so a delivery more than 30 calendar days late lets the consumer cancel for a refund.
• Accessible formats. Under the AODA Customer Service Standard, organizations with one or more employees must provide information in an accessible format on request, promptly and at no extra cost. Keep a plain-text or accessible version of the sheet ready, not only a designed image.

GTA practice notes

Time the launch to the buying season, not the event season. In the GTA, wedding couples do much of their vendor shopping in the late fall and winter, around the wedding show calendar and the engagement season after the December holidays, so a wedding offer sheet should be ready by early fall. Corporate holiday offers need to reach buyers in late summer, when many firms settle their December plans. Summer patio, backyard and festival offers do best when published in early spring.

Give venues a reason to carry your sheet. Venue sales teams in the GTA meet couples and event managers every week, and a single clear page with your contact details, a short outcome line and a link to your prices is far easier to hand over than a brochure. Ask whether they prefer a printed copy for tours or a PDF for their follow-up emails, and give them both.

Finally, consider language. If your positioning rests on serving families in another language, as Lantern & Lane’s does, a translated version of the outcome line and the process steps can carry more weight than any design choice. Have a fluent speaker check it, because a clumsy translation undercuts the very difference you are claiming. If you sell into Quebec, get advice on French-language requirements before you advertise there.

Worksheet

Download the worksheet and complete it for your own business, using Lantern & Lane as the model where it helps. Keep it with your marketing plan. It takes about 15 minutes.

Download the worksheet (PDF)