Michael Katz's E-Newsletter On E-Newsletters
August 18, 2006
Issue #157
Lose the Act; Gain More Clients
I received the ultimate compliment a couple of weeks back, in a meeting with a prospective client. At the end of our discussion, he reached across the table, shook my
hand and said, "Iím glad to see youíre exactly the same in person as you are on your web site."
I couldnít have been happier.
The reason I was so thrilled by his comment was because it meant that my marketing had worked. One way or another, he found his way to my web site, liked what he
saw, invited me in to talk and got what he expected.
This isnít to say that my style and approach are perfect for everyone (they arenít). It simply means that my message is coming through clearly enough and accurately
enough that the small minority of businesspeople in the universe for whom Iím a perfect fit can find me.
Frankly, I didnít always appreciate how enormously valuable this type of "truth in advertising" is to service professionals with an interest in finding new clients. When you
show up in person looking, thinking, speaking and behaving as the prospect expects, youíre halfway to being hired.
Not only that, but thereís an added bonus: If your web, print and E-Newsletter presence match who you genuinely are in real life, you no longer have to maintain a fictional,
"this is what I think they want to buy" personaÖ an illusion which takes a great deal of mental energy.
Instead, you just say what you think, act as you are and let the conversation happen. Or, as the great philosopher Aristotle once said, "You just be, and you am." (I said he
was a great philosopher; as a writer he was so-so.)
Interestingly, most companies (especially large ones) start from the other end. What I mean is that they first do research to figure out what their target market wants, and
then, knowledge in hand, shape their marketing, advertising and messaging to fit.
All without – and this is the key point – changing the way they actually do business. If
youíve ever noticed a disconnect between the friendly, glossy customer experiences in the television commercials and the actual dealings you have with those same
companies, you know what Iím talking about.
Unfortunately, and despite how straightforward it would seem to just be however you are, itís not so easy to do. For most of us, once we find ourselves within striking distance of a
paying client – whether that means how we write our E-Newsletter or how we behave in a meeting – the marketer inside takes over, and we start shaping how and what we say
to fit the particular situation.
In practice however, and despite the natural tendency to change in order to come across in the "right" way, itís not all that effective anyway. Even if you manage to twist yourself into the
person you need to be to get the job, the odds are pretty good that you and your new client wonít be a good match when you start working together.
Instead, I recommend that you focus less on what you believe the market wants and more on what you authentically have to offer. Marketing blasphemy I know, but what
can I tell you, it works.
Some specific suggestions:
- Lose some polish. Take a look at the way your written materials read. Pay attention to the way you really speak. Unless you actually walk around saying things
like, "We are the leading provider of cross-platform, broadband, multi-user omnivores," or, "We cultivate frapezoidial cross-discipline client empowerment solutions," stop
writing and talking that way. (If you do walk around saying those things, please donít walk over here). Write and speak clearly, simply and much more conversationally and
eliminate the gap between "professional you" and "leisure time you."
- Look in the mirror. One of the first steps in my E-Newsletter development process is a detailed discussion on the topic of "What makes you different." Who are you?
Whatís your business philosophy? What do you like? What do you disagree with?
As service professionals, we all sell more or less the same skills as our competitors (accounting, financial planning, coaching, recruiting, etc.). Itís the you in you – not your
skills – that your existing, happy clients love – and you need to put your finger on what that is… so that you can show it on purpose to prospective clients.
- Take a risk. I remember the first time I made a dumb joke in the middle of a meeting with a prospective client (I couldnít help myself). I thought for sure it had cost me
any chance I had of getting hired. Big surprise… not only did it not cost me, it broke the tension I had created with my "marketing consultant act" and took the discussion to
an entirely new (and much more pleasant) level. These days, when I find myself in a meeting with strangers, I go out of my way to bring the discussion up to a more casual
tone.
Bottom Line: As hard as it may be sometimes to be who you are, being who youíre not is a lot harder. Put the time into figuring out what makes you tick and reflect that in
the way you communicate with the world. Then sit back and watch as the right clients start coming your way.
About Blue Penguin Development, Inc.
Blue Penguin Development helps professional service firms get clients,
by showing them how to strengthen relationships with the people they already know.
I specialize in the development of electronic newsletters.
Click here for an overview of my services.
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