The Cobbler Whose Kids Have Holes In Their Shoes

I've said this before, but I am one of those cobblers whose kids have holes in their shoes. It's taken me, oh, five years, to really go back and look at my website and say, “You know what? This is pretty outdated.” Now, I just did a podcast on, “Does your website matter? The look and design and feel, and all that stuff — yes.” But I think one of the most important things is the messages that you're trying to get across. So in the process of doing this, I've got a couple of things going on. I'm working with my coach. I'm working with a writer to rewrite the messages so that they're much more focused in reaching the right audience. That is the key.

Being Empathetic

Now, I do this exact same thing when I'm working with my clients. What I really help them focus on is, are we getting across the right information to the right people so they feel like you're being empathetic and talking to them. So the first thing that you have to understand, and you've probably heard this numerous, numerous times, is that for any kind of niche, the first thing you gotta do is understand, what is their problem? If you're doing something like a home improvement, or you're doing something as a service like HVAC or plumbing, I mean that problem's pretty straightforward. The air conditioning goes out, they've got a problem, and they want that to be fixed as soon as possible.

Understand Their Problem

When it comes to some of the more complex things, a lot of people (A) don't realize they have a problem, and (B) don't have any idea what the solution would be. So the first thing that you have to do is really understand what their problem is and how that relates to them. An example of this would be, you provide =services that will fix a particular thing, but unless people are actually feeling deep down in their hearts that they understand what the problem is, they don't know how to look for a solution.

Embrace The Journey

So a lot of times, the first thing that you have to really understand is, take them through the journey. Okay, let's just say you're working with somebody who is a salesperson. So you're going out and start doing cold calls and doing all these things that are gonna help you meet more and more people. But the problem is, you're having a hard time explaining to them the specifics of what it is that you do and why they need you, or maybe they don't need you right at this moment.

So what you have to do is spend a bunch of time educating them, giving them ideas, and helping them to understand how all solutions — not just your solution — but how all solutions can be a great opportunity for you to become more successful. For your company to become more successful, make more money, whatever it is. You have to really get them to understand the journey from where they're at, to what the problem is, to where they can be. So then the next thing that you have to do is outline the solution. Now, you can turn around and say, “Okay, with this problem, if you go through step A, and you go through step B, and you go through step C, you will start to better understand how to solve the problem.”

Outline The Solution

So let's say you're selling something like a software backup solution. I lose sleep at night with this all the time. It's like, What happened if my house burned down? Because all my backups are sitting on hard drives in my house. What if somebody came in and robbed my house and took my computer? I don't care if they take my computer. I can replace that. What I can't replace, is if they grab the hard drives with all the backups. So now it's like, “You know, maybe I do need to have a cloud computing solution to save all that stuff.” What is it worth to me? I'll never know until I absolutely need it.

But that's the thing — if somebody can outline that solution for me and say, “This the way that you wanna do it, even though you have all these terabytes” — and I do mean terabytes. That's the biggest problem, is I've got data from 2001 to 2017 sitting on these backups. It's gonna be pretty expensive to back it up. So, is there a way to do this cost effectively? Is there a way? What's the right way to do it? I don't know.

So if somebody can come in and say, “Here is the way that you do it. For a small business owner, this is cost-effective, and this is the best way to make sure that, if anything tragic happens to your data, you're covered.” So you outline that solution in the way that makes them say, “You know what? I actually do have to spend that money. I have to make myself secure. I have to make sure that I cover my butt.”

Show Them Where They Are And Where They Will Be

Now, the next thing that you have to do is take them through the transition of where they are to where they will be. They really have to understand that, in order to be a viable business, backing up your software, backing up all your files, is an asset. And with this asset, it can help you continue to grow your business by offering your clients the ability to have those backups. So what does that look like? How does that help my business? How does that help me grow my business, or is it just a necessary expense?

If you can, find a way to get people to realize that, by doing those simple backups, whatever they need done, is gonna help them to be able to become more secure, a better businessperson, make their clients happier, help them to figure how to communicate to their clients what you're having as far as an offering to them that's better than anybody else. Because frankly, my clients aren't thinking about the fact that I've got their business backed up. Because a lot of times, their stuff, like their website, is sitting out on the cloud, so they think they're safe.

But what's missing is all the original files to create the artwork, the audio files, the video files, the raw stuff. You may have a video sitting up on YouTube, but there had to be something created in order to have that out there. So, what if I can communicate that to my clients and say, “The value that I bring is much bigger than just producing a website. It's having a bunch of assets that are at your fingertips for years and years and years that you can reuse.”

Deliver On The Promise

I just had a client leave. One of the things that I did: I actually had to make them a backup DVD of all their files. So when they left I literally made that backup and I handed it to them. Then I said, “Thank you very much for the five-year opportunity to work with you, and here's all of your files — everything I've ever done, everything you've ever given me.”

So they're not gonna be calling me back, asking, “Hey, do you have this file? Do you have that file?” I want to make sure that I provide the best of value to them. You know what? If the other company doesn't work out, they may come back. I don't know. If they don't, that's cool too. I've moved on, they've moved on. But you want to make sure that you understand where you are and where you will be, and you have to able to take your people through that journey.

The final piece of this puzzle is, you have to deliver on the promises that you make. So you have to make sure that if you make these promises, that it is something that you can do consistently, efficiently, and something that makes good business sense. That you're not just spending a bunch of time and money doing something that's not gonna give you some kind of return on investment. So it's your job to get your clients, potential clients, to understand the big picture, where they are now. Feel some empathy for who they are, and let them know where they will be.

Final Thoughts

Trust me, this is not is as easy as it may seem. It takes a lot of exploration, explanation, and information, to get to the place where you can CLEARLY inform and educate how people may have to change their mindset and methodologies. The big question is, do those people want to change and are they willing to do what it takes? Then, are you the right person or business to help them facilitate this?

I am sure you have thoughts and comments on this subject. Comment below and share your experiences with how you have started to Manage Your Messages and help your clients or potential clients realize a better future business!

To learn more about this and other topics on Internet Marketing, visit our podcast website at http://www.baconpodcast.com/podcasts/