“What do you do?”
It’s an obvious question asked countless times in networking meetings. But it’s surprising how badly it usually gets answered.
Your goal when meeting someone new is to communicate well and express your value, generating interest in your ability to help them.
So your message needs to be clear, compelling, consistent and authentic.
I’ll expand in a minute, but first…
Realise no one wants what you do. They want the result you can provide.
For example, no one wants “accounting”. They want the results. Knowing their financial position, staying compliant to keep the tax man away from their door.
Selling your home? You just want the best price possible. You’re not interested in the process the agent goes through.
And finally, no one wants a “marketing plan”. They want leads which convert into good quality business.
People just want the outcome, not the pathway to achieving it.
So here’s the first mistake we see people make.
They aren’t clear about their message and can’t articulate it clearly. So they don’t get immediate attention.
Many use a label like:
“I’m a coach” or “I’m a chiropractor” or “I’m an insurance agent”. Boring! People can’t understand why that is relevant to them.
Many go into long winded descriptions about what they do.
“We offer a 6 month coaching program.” Or “We certify HR leaders in whatever….” or “I offer a variety of modalities depending on what your personal needs are.”
Eyes glaze over and people stop listening.
A second mistake is changing your message constantly.
How often do you watch people scramble for what to say?
If your message keeps changing because you haven’t spent the time testing and perfecting it, you’ll confuse your audience.
And people in a networking group who keep hearing different things will wonder what you really do.
So here’s how you create a compelling message.
Realise that when someone asks what you do, they’re not thinking about you. They’re wondering, “Do I need to know you?”
So start by answering the potential questions they’re likely to have in this sequence.
- Who do you work with? Be specific.
- What problems do you help them with? Narrow down your focus.
- How do you help? Talk about your results not your process.
- Does it really work? Provide proof with a 3 to 4 sentence case study or two.
Here are a couple of examples:
A workplace organiser could say…
“I work with home based entrepreneurs whose messy, untidy desks and workspaces are hurting their creativity and productivity.”
If they show interest….
“I help them create and maintain inspiring work spaces in which they can find everything they need. As a result their creativity flows, productivity improves, and most of my clients recover as much as 2 hours a day.”
If they ask if you could help them, don’t get hooked into going into their issues and providing them with a solution. After all, that’s what they should be paying you for.
Answer with a short case study which provides a before and after.
“You might identify with my client – Bill. He’s an accountant who’s desk was covered with sticky notes which made it impossible for him to see his desk or get anything done.”
[That’s the before part]
“I helped his approach to both note taking and scheduling so he was able to track his appointments, finish work when it was due, so nothing fell through the cracks.” [After]
“In the time he freed up he was able to service 5 additional clients resulting in 800% more revenue that month.” [Result]
Here’s ours:
“We work with businesses who want to accelerate their growth by attracting, converting and retaining high value, profitable clients.”
If they’re interested in hearing more:
“We work with the leadership team on mindset, marketing and sales systems to increase revenue and profit by 200% to 300% within 1 to 3 years.
“Real examples include an investment property consultant who went from charging $3,300 to $9,900 per transaction and actually increased their deal flow.”
“Or the leadership coach who increased his fees from $23,000 to $75,000 and now locks clients into a 3 year deal with no pushback from existing clients or new prospects.”
Over to you. What’s yours?
If you’re struggling to put a succinct message together book in for a 2 Heads Are Better Than One Consultation. Over 2 hours we’ll work on and refine your message so it directly generates interest from your target audience.
And of course you’ll be able to use this new messaging in everything from networking functions to your website and outgoing marketing material.
Call us 0414 913 334 to book in.
