To my friends,
I would like to share some thoughts with you today that came to me through a friend who specializes in all things social media. If you’re like me, you’ve attended your share of networking meetings and the story is almost always the same. You have 30 to 45 seconds to catch the attention of people attending the meeting. You hope that you can be heard over the conversation of the other people attending the lunch. It’s frustrating, isn’t it? How can you make your commercial more engaging so that you can get more prospects? Here are a few suggestions:
- Inform them. Who did you really work with? Notice that I said “work with” and not “help”. Small businesses, entrepreneurs, women, men, newlyweds, retirees. Where is your niche? Not too narrow!
- What will the Ultimate Outcome be? Find your power words and use your thesaurus to look up the outcome and then choose the words that work for what you do. Words like catapult, revenue, ambition, success, unlock, unleash. Use testimonials and reviews. They will help you identify what your customers feel. Use phrases like “Businesses hire me . . .” or “Women hire me . . .”
- Rub the bruise. What are the problems they have that you can solve? Make a list. Focus on the top three. Keep it short and sweet.
- You help them . . . how? Benefit, Benefit, Benefit. Use three and make them short as well. Use your reviews and testimonials to substantiate these benefits.
- Now put it together. For example, “Mid-sized companies and entrepreneurs HIRE ME to unlock/unleash the power of Social Media, BECAUSE MOST . . . fail to obtain a steady flow of new clients, are throwing away money and wasting too much time dabbling with exposure. SO I HELP them get more targeted and engaged followers who turn into prospects ready to say YES.
- Always start and finish with . . . Your name, Your Company, or What you do. Why? People like to be introduced to you and when you have caught their attention with your INTROmercial, they will want to know your name so they can either use your services or refer you to someone who needs them. Isn’t that what we’re here for?
A Happy Week to one and all.
Mark Holland