If your services relate to problem-solving, I’m willing to bet that few people will call you for an appointment until they’ve experienced a sharp defining moment. Psychologists call these experiences “crystallizing moments” as things come together clearly.
We often think of “last-straw moments” as pretty extreme, such as the person who wakes up in jail with no memory of how he got there. But game-changing moments feel huge to the client, not necessarily to anyone else.
You can usually recognize a “last-straw” story. For example:
Larry’s teenagers are the love of his life (when they’re not driving him crazy). He knows he needs to set up a will with guardianship provisions, but keeps putting it off. One day a good friend gets seriously injured by a hit-and-run driver in a freak auto accident. The next day Larry starts looking for an attorney.
Sam has gotten comfortable in his job. One day he’s having drinks with a friend when he realizes he’s been getting lower raise percentages than anyone in the department, while he’s bringing in a solid contribution to the bottom line. He realizes he needs a career coach.
Agatha goes to Thanksgiving dinner with her family. Her brother teases her, “You really don’t need that piece of pie.” Agatha tries to pretend she doesn’t care. Soon afterward she hired a personal trainer and embarked on a serious exercise program.
For the third time this year, Janice’s website started delivering “not available” messages, just when she was running a big launch campaign. She can no longer say it’s just a blip in the system. She’s in the market for a new web host and she’s willing to pay enough to keep this from happening ever again.
As a storyteller, you can…
….tell stories that begin with your hero having a last-straw moment.
…recognize the last-straw moments in your clients’ backstories
…make sure your copy demonstrates that you can help with these last-straw moments in your field of expertise.
My clients tend to report last-straw moments like, “I’ve been working on this sales letter for hours and I can’t stand to look at it another minute.” Or, “I put up this landing page and nobody’s responded.” Or, “I’m launching a course next week and none of the copy is ready.” Or, “I just got invited to give a talk and I need to polish up my website!”
You’re invited to work with me to resolve your own last-straw moments and write copy that directly addresses your client’s game-changing moments.
Let’s start with the Strategic Intensive.