People sometimes ask me, “What are the most common questions you get in the Strategic Intensive session?”
So here are 3 questions people ask…and the questions I sometimes ask in return. The idea is to stir up your thinking and get a new angle on marketing.
1 – What’s wrong with my story?
“There’s something that doesn’t feel right.” And maybe it’s not right.
Are you trying to present yourself as an expert from a heart-warming “here’s who I am” story? That’s nice but it may not be a selling story.
Are you telling a story that has nothing to do with anything in your business?
Do you have a plain vanilla “how I got here” story? Is it communicating why you’re passionate about your activities?
Are you telling this story because “people need to know this about you?” And are you scaring them off with a hard luck story?
Are you missing the main ingredient in your selling story?
2 – How can I position myself better?
2 parts of positioning: showing what you do and showing how you do it better that the competition.
Most people are too close to what they offer; they don’t know the answer to either one. Yet that’s the heart of your marketing.
What gets tricky is presenting yourself as a unique expert. Sometimes you’re using language that doesn’t do you justice.
One thing most people miss is the context where people hear your story. Are you lost in a sea of email messages? Sharing a story that’s too complex for a blog post of podcast episode? There’s a famous story of concert violinist playing–unrecognized–in a major city subway concourse.
I explain this in more detail in my course on showing you’re an expert.
3 – My website doesn’t explain what I do.
When I review a lot of websites, it’s not clear what’s being offered. For instance, there might be a big headline on one thing…and a smaller one on something totally different. Then your testimonials praise you for something else.
And the website owners don’t see the wasted valuable real estate on their sites! Use every inch for the biggest bang for the buck.
These are just three of the questions people bring to the Strategic Intensive. As you can see, the answer to these questions can transform your marketing. And it can save hours and hours of staring at the copy, wondering, “What the #&@#! is wrong with this? How can I make it something better?”
Tough questions…fast answers. And marketing usually works better with a story.