What Experience Is Your Business Giving Off?

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Marketers LOVE messages. Avis had “We Try Harder”. Wendy’s had “Where’s the BEEF?”

But sometimes, in fact, more often than not . . . your ‘message’ isn’t some really well-crafted message that appears in the media.

Nope! It’s the ‘message’ communicated by what Jan Carlson, CEO of SAS Airlines called the “Moments of Truth” . . . moments where customers, clients, or patients come into contact with your business or practice.

Ivan Meisner, founder of BNI just posted about such a ‘Moment’ . . . and, truth be told, he didn’t get what you might call a ‘warm fuzzy’ from a recent contact with an insoucient front desk clerk at a Marriott Hotel.  I learned about Ivan’s horrific treatment through a post on Linkedin.  It was a repost of Ivan’s from his blog.  There were a lot of people retweeting and reposting his sad ‘experience’.

Think Marriott Hotels should be happy?  I don’t think so!

KEY POINT:
The messages customers get or, your staff gives out . . . can make you or break you — especially in this day and age of social media and twittering customers who believe in sharing their good (and, bad) experiences of your business with the rest of the world online!

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I’m Sorry, You Do WHAT?

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If you attend a lot of business meetings, you’re probably meeting a lot of people. Meeting a new person means asking (or, being asked), “What do you do?”.

Most of the time, the other person’s response when I ask this question leaves me wondering:

  1. “What do you do, really?”
  2. “Who (do I know who) can best appreciate your doing that?”

If I don’t get a good response, it’s frustrating and wastes a great opportunity.

KEY POINT:
 Communicating what you do for a client . . . in a clear and meaningful manner . . . is no accident.

It takes work to craft a response that helps a qualified person understand, value and appreciate what you do. But don’t forget . . . it’s worth getting it right!

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It’s Value, Not Uniqueness

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The term, “Unique Selling Proposition” has been used way too much.  Especially so if you’re selling a service more than a product.

If you’re selling a tangible product, OK.  It has it’s place.  That’s where ‘New and Improved’ comes from!  But it’s more about the hard features of a tangible product than anything else.

If you’re a service provider, you want to be VALUE-able.  Being able to communicate — and deliver — the VALUE you offer is key.

Ironically, being able to communicate a meaningful value to a prospective client — is actually pretty ‘unique’.

KEY POINT:
As a service provider, where your greatest asset lies between your ears and above your shoulders, you must be able to do two important things:

  1. discern what your target market wants (and, values!), and
  2. communicate your ‘value’ clearly, concisely and effectively

Doing this will cause you be ‘stand out’ from a crowd of competitors who haven’t figured out:

  1. what their real VALUE to a client is, or
  2. how to convey it in an initial conversation so it becomes a RESPONSE-able conversation!
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How To Be a Preferred Provider

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Being a ‘preferred’ provider, relative to your competitors, is good. It means you’re more likely to end up winning the ‘roses and tiara’ whenever you’re in a competitive situation.

Years ago a major accounting firm wanted to differentiate their audit services. It’s not possible. You have to be both unique AND beneficial. Ted Levitt, the Harvard Business School professor told them that. But he did interview their clients who hired this accounting firm to do their audit.

Ted learned these audit clients didn’t hire the firm because of how well they did an audit. They hired the firm because, “all things being equal” the prospective clients just liked their experience with this firm’s staff better than the other firms’ staff.

POINT:
Standing out, favorably, to a prospective client depends less on your capabilities than on how prospects perceive you whenever they have an experience with you. Create the right impression – the one prospects want and expect – and you’ll be a ‘preferred’ provider every time!

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Attracting Clients With Your Message

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I have recently ‘discovered’ a most talented individual — Christian Mickelson.

He’s the founder of Coaches With Clients — a San Diego, CA based firm that helps coaches develop the skills and systems for growing their clientele.

In this video, Christian shares a lot of wisdom on the topic of “How To Respond” when someone asks, “What Do You Do?”

It’s always a challenge . . . until you learn the secret of saying the right words to help you become more attractive to prospective clients.

Check out his video . . . he’s a coach himself and, more important (to me) he’s successful because he practices what he preaches . . . he walks his own talk . . . rather remarkable.

You will a lot from Christian. I sincerely hope you do, too!

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Are Elevator Pitches . . . Dead?

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Andy Lopata is a fellow-columnist at The National Networker where we both write a monthly column.  Andy’s from the UK.  And, while we’re geographically far apart, we’re in close agreement about . . . Elevator Pitches.

Elevator Ptches

If you aren’t familiar with the concept, it’s based upon the 10 – 15 seconds that begins with the time you step into an elevator and the time you step out of one.  Maybe a floor or two. Inside the elevator someone asks, “What do you do?”.

Having a prepared ‘pitch’ or commercial response at the ready can turn such a moment-of-truth with a truly qualified prospect for your services . . . into a highly productive one.

Andy argues that these chance encounters, while prevalent in daily business, have deteriorated into a social convention that is often more polite than productive.  He’s got a good point. Listen to him directly:


Why Elevator Pitches May Not Really Work

If you’re honest about it, do they work for you?  Or, are they merely a social convention that prevents sincere connections from taking place between two people in business?

Lopata contends that delivering a carefully crafted ‘commercial’ has become, for many businesspeople, the sole goal of a ‘new encounter’ rather than using it as the starting point for a meaningful conversation with a stranger.  I tend to agree.

What Does Work?

In a word, ‘Listening‘ –– focusing more on what the other person is sharing with you than on what you say in response to their question: “What do you do?”.

POINT:

It’s only slightly more difficult to listen.  But it’s a lot more powerful.  And, given that it’s a common complaint about people, being a good listener may be better than being a good pitcher!

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A Beautiful Story Without Any Words

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Messaging.

Making your point.

A single, focused, right-on-the money point.

Getting a response.  That’s WHY you create a message, right?

I doubt you can do it much more elegantly and effectively than this.

In fact, I ‘triple-dog’ dare you to NOT be affected by this beautiful commercial:

POINT:

HOW you communicate your message is a key part of WHAT you communicate.

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Capturing Attention of Your Prospects

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This was a broadway musical based on the early life of comedy legend, Carl Reiner

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Read more

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Social Media . . . Brave New World?

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What’s happening with social media? How does it compare with traditional media?

Check out this insightful (and, brief!) video from Marcel Lebrun, CEO of Radian6 — a cutting edge social media company:

Social media is changing the very foundations on which business is conducted.

The way you communicate and interact is changing how you and your world interact. As a result, social media is arguably the biggest change in business communication since the introduction of mass media when ‘Mad Men’ become the leaders. Now, those leaders are you and me. How cool is that!

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‘Vanilla’ or ‘Tutti-Fruitti’?

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Having a good response to the question, “What Do You Do?” is essential.

Afterall, you only get so many opportunities on any given day to ‘nail it’ with a prospective client.

If you don’t, you may be missing an incredibly valuable opportunity simply because a prospect for your services didn’t understand the value you offer.

So, what to do?

The OLD Formula

You’ve heard about an ‘Elevator Pitch’?  That’s where you answer that question, “What do you do?”.  Ideally, in 15 seconds or less.

The problem is this — ‘technically perfect’ Elevator Pitches often fail to hook the interest of a qualified person for your services.

Here’s an example.  Assume you’re a financial planner.  You could say, “I help self-employed businessowners (audience) accumulate the funds they need to retire in style (desirable outcome)”.

Technically, that’s a ‘perfect’ Elevator Pitch.  But does it ‘reach-out-and-grab’ the attention of a qualified prospect?  It’s a tad too generic, isn’t it? And the benefit being offered isn’t very unique.

Most of the time when I hear a bland Elevator Pitch, it’s because the person using it focuses more on the solution they offer than on their prospects problem.

The NEW Formula

Try this:  “Problem” + “Solution” + “Target Profile” instead of what you may be saying now.  Take our financial advisor just mentioned above.
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The Problem
What problems do the people who fit this planner’s target profile want to solve?  There are probably several.  But talking with prospective clients will help isolate the issue/s they have. Once that’s known, their most potent issue can be isolated.  That’s the ‘problem’ you want to use.

In the example of a financial planner, let’s say the problem that’s being cited by a number of prospects is this: “It’s hard to find the money to fund a retirement plan when college costs are looming on the horizon and  taking care of elderly parents leaves little money for my own needs”.  NOW . . . you have a good ‘problem’.  Good enough to be worthy of a solution.

The Solution
Make this easy.  It’s supposed to be, you know –– just turn the problem around!

In our financial planner’s example, the ‘solution’ that’s desired by most people is . . .
“to be able to find the money I need to do the following:
1) fund my own retirement,
2) put my kids through college,
3) help out my parents who are living longer than I thought, and
4) support a decent lifestyle for myself”

That’s a bit involved, but notice the richness and specificity it offers if you bring it into a conversation.

These four challenges provide a problem-centric context that makes it far easier (and more likely!) that a qualified prospect will respond to a planner who uses this level of detail instead of the ‘vanilla’ comment (see above) that’s used / abused by so many others.

The Target Profile
This is not your target ‘audience’.  This is a single person who’s a member of the audience you’re seeking to work with.  And it’s the person who would like to fund their retirement but has the three issues, cited above, keeping them from doing that.

Putting It All Together

OK, with all that we’ve addressed, let’s re-do the answer a financial planner could give when asked, “What do you do?”.

The Set-Up

“May I ask you a question, first?  (sure)  Do you have kids you’d like to send to college? (yes) Any chance your parents may need some financial help from you at some point in the future?  (probably)  Do you find it’s harder to maintain the lifestyle you’ve become accustomed to? (yep)  So I’m just guessing . . . with everyone looking to you for money . . . that putting money away for your own retirement . . . is a real a challenge?” (oh, you bet it is!).

The Delivery

“Well, I help small business owners (target) get their kids through college (specific Issue), keep their aging parents comfortable (specific Issue), retire on their own terms (specific Issue), and . . . without compromising their current lifestyle (specific Issue)“

“Really!  How the heck do you do THAT?” Now, isn’t THAT . . . precisely what you wanted a qualified person to say after hearing your ‘Elevator’ pitch?

Do you see the potency of your message when you address the specific concerns of someone who fits your target PROFILE vs the ‘vanilla’ concerns of just anyone who is in your target AUDIENCE?

Do you think you could talk with some clients and prospective clients to learn the SPECIFIC issues they have that you can address?

Do you think that will make your ‘Elevator Pitch’ more meaningful?  More memorable?  More response-able?  (I sure do!)

POINT:

The more specific the issues you communicate, the more attractive your ‘message’ and the more response-able it is for you, too!

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