Earlier this week, I was interviewed for a podcast by an amazing PrimeTime goddess named Joanne Smith. And she said something to me that I hear quite often—and that lets me know I’m on the right track:
“Juju, when I get your emails, I know they’re going out to hundreds or thousands of people, but I feel as though you’re talking DIRECTLY to me.”
This is not an accident. I just met Joanne on Monday, but I have her in my mind—and more importantly in my heart—when I write each and every email.
And if you want your ideal clients to really hear your message, you must deliberately hold your clients in your mind and heart and speak DIRECTLY to each one.
HOW?
By jumping into the conversation that’s already going on INSIDE THEIR HEADS.
Most of the business owners I coach understand that they’re speaking to an “ideal client” with specific hopes, dreams, fears and frustrations. Yet the conversation they’re starting in their emails and their marketing is just ONE STEP AWAY from what’s actually happening in their potential client’s head.
Here’s an example:
I recently asked a client what her customers really WANTED. And she told me, “They want to feel integrated. They want to feel aligned with their core values.”
Guess what this client sells?
That’s right. She sells coaching around core values.
Undoubtedly, this is a valuable service, and she’s damned good at it.
But my question to her was this: “Do you really think folks are opening their eyes in the morning and thinking to themselves, I hope I can stay aligned with my core values today; I’m feeling very desegregated from my deepest beliefs and desires?”
Her clients are NOT thinking this. They’re thinking about how being disconnected from their core values FEELS and SHOWS UP in their lives.
They’re thinking:
I hate my job. I’m exhausted from showing up every day and doing things I don’t want to do.
I’m so pissed off at Jim, but I can’t speak up. I feel stuck. If I say what I think, he’ll leave.
Why do I keep sabotaging myself? Why can’t I stay on task?
There’s so much on my plate, I can’t get everything done. I’m completely overwhelmed. Everything is falling apart.
Aligning with core values is the ANSWER to the questions in her customers’ minds. Not the question. In order to really speak to folks as though they’re the only ones in the room, she needs to go just ONE. STEP. FURTHER. with the conversation
There are lots of ways to get to the conversations going on in your potential clients’ minds. But the most effective way is to just ASK them.
I talk to PrimeTime women entrepreneurs every day. The fears and frustrations they experience are in many ways universal. The hopes and dreams they are pursuing are common in the second act of life. The feelings that take them down or stand in the way of their success are articulated to me over and over by different women. They beliefs they have around their worth and their value as they age are insidious and collective.
What many of these women don’t realize is that they are not alone. And the moment they realize it—the moment I hold them in my heart and demonstrate that I HEAR them and I UNDERSTAND them—they feel safe and loved.
That might feel a little woo-woo for you. Safe and loved? Really, Juju??
But let me ask you: How do you feel when someone really listens to you?
How do you feel when someone says, “I know how you feel. I’ve been there. That sucks for you. I’m here if you need me.”
How do you feel when you meet someone who GETS you and will never judge you for who you are?
How do you feel when you meet someone who finishes your sentences, seems to know exactly what you’re thinking, and feels just like you do?
This is how your potential clients should feel. It’s not a manipulation or a sales tactic. It’s an earnest attempt to really understand the thoughts that keep them up at night—or the dreams that keep them going.
What’s the conversation going on inside your ideal client’s head? Are you talking to her about things that matter? Are you holding what she really cares about in your heart?
With so much love,
Juju
P.S. If this kind of messaging is something you long to create, meet me and 50 PrimeTime women business owners in San Diego for an incredible immersion branding experience: THE PRIMETIME ESSENCE EXPERIENCE. Brand your heart and soul. When you’re finished, you’ll be able to speak directly from your heart and soul to the conversations happening inside your ideal clients’ minds. But don’t delay. There are only 50 spots. And they’re going fast.
