You are amazing. You totally rock your business. You are the expert. So, why do you feel totally invisible?!
Why is it that when you talk to someone they look at you with a blank stare? Or worse yet, they say, “I had no idea you did that!”
My business is nearing it’s 9th anniversary. Nearly a decade doing the same thing, in the same town. Almost 4 years ago we moved into a storefront in the busiest part of our downtown. HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of people pass the front door of our business every year. And still, at least once a week someone walks in and says, “I didn’t even know this store was here.”
YOU know what you do. You understand it fully and you know how it can help people and change their lives. The problem is, THEY don’t know.
So, how do you get them to see you?
- When in Rome
It is very likely that your customers speak about their needs very differently than you speak about the solutions you offer. They speak customer. You speak owner.
In order to help people understand what you do you need to remember the adage: “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” You have to adapt to the way customers need to receive the information. (Not the way you want to give it to them.)
Learn to speak the language your customer speaks. In order to do that, you have to know them. For example, my work can be very technical. However, most of my customers don’t speak tech. And if they do, they often use the terms incorrectly.
In order to achieve understanding, I have to adapt to meet them where they are. If I correct them when they are wrong and start throwing industry lingo their way, confusion creates a buying objection I then have to overcome.
When marketing, advertising, using social media and otherwise getting the word out about your business, use the words that resonate with your customers.
- “Put some Windex”
In the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Gus Portokalos has one solution for everything: Windex.
When crafting your message, be clear. Use words your customers understand. Solve their problems. Tell them how you and your business can help them. What’s in it for them?
You’ve heard , “sell the sizzle, not the steak”? That means tell the customer the results not the process. Shampoos don’t sell “cleanser for your hair”, they sell “manageable, shiny, healthy hair”. Paint a picture with your words and images that clearly gives the customers what they want.
I have to pause and confess that being clear is sometimes hard for me. I love words. I love lots of words. I can write sentences that are far too long and quite confusing, and frequently do. (On one of my first college essays the professor commented that I was “too pedantic.” Go ahead, look it up.)
Creatives, like me, can get caught up in the joy of our creation and confuse our customers in the process. The same is true for technicians who like to use the “correct’ terms and the customers get lost in translation.
Don’t sacrifice customer understanding at the altar of cleverness or precision. Just be clear.
- Too Much Is Never Enough
It is said that the average adult must be exposed to a new fact or piece of information at least seven times before remembering it. Further, people are not always paying 100% attention 100% of the time. Their minds wander.
I attend in-person networking groups to promote my business. One group I’ve attended since I started my business. Recently I described a service we provide that I’ve mentioned dozens and dozens of times over the years. Do you know that a man who has been attending these meetings with me for almost a decade came up to me and said, “I didn’t know you did that!”
You have to tell your story over and over and over again. And then tell it some more! And speaking of stories… stories sell. Don’t just utilize advertising tactics, tell your customer’s stories. (Did you notice how many stories made it into this post?)
Use as many tools at your disposal as possible. Words, images, flow charts, infograpics, videos, stories, testimonials, awards, press releases, etc.
People receive information differently and respond different ways at different times. Don’t be afraid to tell your story, repeatedly.
Do you have some great stories about being invisible? Perhaps you have questions or comments?
Please leave your comments below and connect with me!