Discover What Your Customers Like For $10 A Day

November 11, 2016 by jennifer mcgahan Leave a Comment

First, the facts: lots of people claim to be experts at Facebook ads. The truth from the inside is a little more humbling. Facebook ads platform changes weekly.

As a marketer, you can’t get too comfortable.

It’s like a dance. Facebook shimmies, you shimmy. Facebook turns, you turn. If you want hard and fast answers to all your questions, you might get them, in terms of how many eyeballs were on your ad, or how many clicks it got, or how long someone viewed your video; but by the middle of next week, those numbers can change.

Ouch! So what’s a marketer to do?

We’ll probably never know the secret to how Facebook decides to place your ad before its customers, and at what price. You bid (auction style) and then you let Facebook take the lead and trust that they’re mission is to create the best experience for their customers. (Ahem, that’s their users; not you, dear marketer, but stick with me here…)

Facebook is testing new things all the time. As you partner with the most accessible marketing tool on the planet, my advice is to enjoy playing with the platform. There’s nowhere else on the web where you can get the kind of highly targeted positioning of your content, AND (no small thing) detailed reporting about what’s working and what’s not.

Just an example. We’re working on a Kickstarter campaign for a technology company and we’re targeting outdoor enthusiasts. Although the market includes the music and construction industries as well as urban parent markets; for now, we’re only going after outdoor people like kayakers, mountain bikers, hikers, etc.

If you’re a startup, you know the drill. You think you know what people like and want, but you don’t want to spend dozens of thousands of dollars to know what your customers like for sure.

Enter Facebook. Whether personally you love it or not, Facebook will show you if your words and images resonate with your intended market.

For example, we’re running Facebook’s new carousel ad with five different images and different text beneath each image, with a call to action below each image. Now can you imagine getting reports on which picture and which text your customers liked the best?

Wouldn’t you like to put five different ads before your ideal market and see which one people prefer? You can.
Would you like to take that same ad and place it before two different groups of people: people who like mountain biking magazines, and people who like fishing magazines… and see which market clicks the most? You can.
Would you like to put a video in front of your ideal customer and see if they spent at least 10 seconds watching it or if they scrolled right by? With Facebook’s new video ads, you can.

And you can do this very simply for a budget of $10 a day.

You don’t need to be a fancy ad agency or a marketing expert. All you have to do is log in and start experimenting.

If you have a Facebook Page and you’re not dabbling in Facebook’s back room, why not carve out an hour this week and check it out.

And when you’re ready for a quick walk-through to see what you can do there, schedule a call with me and we can talk about your business and your next marketing project.

Get Over Yourself — Why A Third-Person Mindset Helps You Play A Bigger Game

October 21, 2014 by jennifer mcgahan 2 Comments

It happens a lot, especially when I’m writing an about page, or a bio for LinkedIn. A client reads the copy I wrote for them, and stops dead in her tracks.

“I’m…this good? Are you sure?”

Then they want to add a disclaimer, or soften up the piece. It’s almost as if they are afraid they won’t live up to what the copy is promising.

See, in my copywriting work, I have the great pleasure of working with many personally driven entrepreneurs. They are doing business with heart and soul. They do it because they love it, and they’re on a mission to change the world with each client they serve.

While it’s cool being a part of someone’s business and helping them shine and get seen online, the challenge is promoting their work in a way that feels “right” to them. Small business people and solopreneurs are often so caught up in who they are, and how they present themselves to the world that they often forget their marketing purpose to attract and win new business.

The challenge of objectivity

Some of my clients (especially those new in business) balk when they read about themselves in the third person because they feel they are “selling” themselves.

It’s a problem they take personally, and it keeps them playing smaller than they should.

One helpful piece of advice I give when delivering copy for a sales page or email, is to try to see your own business from the outside.

Read the copy with the eye of someone who desperately needs your services or product. Know that it will change their life. Stop reading the copy from inside your own narrow perspective.

Overcome it With Confidence

Good marketing takes confidence. It also requires that you assume a level of efficacy you may not be used to. It’s an accountability thing, a belief in your abilities and how well you actually perform a task. As my copywriting mentor Sandi Krakowski told me, “Being a business owner means you have to drop the drama.”

When you decide to go for it in your business, you have to release your hesitancy. Seriously and with intention, you must let go your fear of not being good enough. It’s not a business if you don’t ask for money; and asking for money requires authenticity and integrity. People want to know and feel that they’re in good hands.

As you create your marketing strategy and produce your copy and content, the easiest way to get over your own junk is to ask yourself, “If I didn’t know myself, would I want to do business with me?”

If you’re running and marketing your freelance business, especially when you’re working from home in a bit of a vacuum, you might be susceptible to seeing our business from a single point of view.

You can add a lot of unnecessary drama if you don’t believe you’re good enough. You might even try to disguise a lack of confidence by telling about yourself too much. Believe me, I’ve done it!

Solo-preneurs and small business people can become obsessed with their preconceived view of themselves — what they’ve done, what they do, what they think, feel, and say — and unable to see themselves objectively as their most satisfied clients might view them.

An inexperienced copywriter or someone marketing her own business may use “I” in her marketing and copywriting, and totally miss the connection she could be making with her customers. You remember that customers really only want to hear about themselves, not so much about the person behind the selling.

That takes confidence and the ability to see yourself as others do, and then to relay that information objectively. You’re not bragging, just asking for the sale.

Yes, even if you are the face of your brand, you have to get out of your own way.

Illeism, the habit of referring to oneself in the third person, is symptomatic of someone who is not only uber-confident, they imagine how they’re viewed by others. Ever notice that it’s pretty common among sports and political figures? Generally, thinking, speaking, and writing from a third-person point of view may lower your dependability factor. Take this example spoken by Lebron James:

I wanted to do what was best for LeBron James and what LeBron James was going to do to make him happy.

A bit much, don’t you think? You’d probably laugh if someone talked like that in person. However, when you’re writing copy, knowing how someone would describe you or refer to you is invaluable! Lose the bravado and this is exactly what you should do!

Can you project too much confidence in your copy?

It’s OK to hold yourself to a high standard.

It establishes importance and authority in your brand. However if you frequently do business from an “I” point of view (how I help, what I do best, the way I serve you), you impede your ability to connect with your best customers.

In a misguided effort to assure their customer of their honest intentions, beginning copywriters may even assure the reader, “I promise I’m not selling anything,” (I’ve actually seen this in sales copy!) which looks like you really don’t know what you’re doing, or you don’t have the chops to deliver.

People want to buy from those who have the confidence to make a bold, declarative promise. Many customers truly want you to make an offer because an offer shows honesty, clarity, and purpose within a business.

I’m not telling you to promise something you can’t deliver on, but be confident that what you have is worth paying money for — at least if you want to succeed in your business!

As long as you come from a place of service to your customer, a genuine offer reveals honest-to-goodness possibility. It feels good to deliver the offer and it feels authentic to receive it. Buying customers rely on the quality of confidence because it dissolves their own doubts and inner objections.

As psychologist James W. Pennebaker points out, the third person point of view relates to speakers who assume a higher status than those who use the first person. We often think of someone who uses “I” a lot as someone who’s self centered at worst, and confident at best. But Pennebaker counters that “I” reveals a touch of insecurity and an internalization of others’ opinions and observations.

Get over feeling weird about third-person language.

break out of your narrow perspective — Break free from your narrow perspective!

Marketing — especially self-marketing — demands some stretching. Look up and out. See yourself from the outside in order to grow and say what you do with assurance.

“I” Vs. “She”

Two ways to start seeing how others perceive you, and market your business with confidence

Viewing your business from your own point of view, is a first-person mindset. It is actually a good thing, because this mindset reveals a commitment to clients and customers. Using “I” in your writing also allows you to tell your personal story, to share your purpose for your business, and to solidify your personal brand. It shows you are willing to be “on the hook” for your work and that your word is gold.

But internalizing your work also gets in the way of being able to claim a place in the market and the (presumably) positive outcome of working with you.

If you want to start getting a good idea of how others see you, and gaining that third-person mindset — ask your clients! They will tell you how you are different, where you stand out, and why they like doing business with you. They may also tell you where you trip sometimes. Negative feedback is sometimes hard to hear, but listening is a skill that will pay you back in spades. Unless you can read minds, you should come right out and ask those questions in an exit interview or a survey for your ongoing clients.

Additionally, you may try getting some valuable insight from Sally Hogshead’s book below. I did this work and was found to be an “Intrigue”: Discerning, Perceptive and Considerate. It’s a fun test you can take online, or buy the book How the World Sees You: Discover Your Highest Value Through the Science of Fascination, and learn even more.

Looking for more inspiration and copywriting tips? I’ll show you how to connect with your customers and market your business like a highly paid copywriter…

Good Web Content Begins With Great Questions

March 17, 2014 by jennifer mcgahan Leave a Comment

The power of a question.

This past week I must have asked about 357 questions.

Everything from “When you think of the characteristics that all your clients have in common, what are the top three that bubble up?”

To “What should we put in the feature box on the home page: the picture of the computer or the speech bubbles?”

To “What time is it in London right now?”

I’ll bet you’ve asked a few yourself. At least I hope so.

“Have the courage to start conversations that matter.”

Last week was full of conversations, many of them meaty and meaningful. I feel pretty lucky.

Conversations that matter start with a question.

Jane Deuber, entrepreneur and creator of Value Quiz, a super helpful assessment tool we’re adding to MyTeamConnects’ website very soon, shared a tip. She told me that when meeting someone new, she tries to ask three questions to get to know them better and to find our how she can be of service to them. As a natural connector, Jane’s one of those people who seems to have ties to everyone. More interesting, though, is her tireless attitude.

You might think asking questions would sap energy, but the truth is when you start conversations that matter, the opposite is true.

When you ask questions you open yourself up to learning something new. If you’re open to an answer, the mind is required to synthesize that information or idea into your reality in that moment. But the kicker is this: you have to stop and listen to the answer.

When you listen, you stand a greater chance of understanding. And understanding takes a lot less energy than twisting in the breeze of your own chatter. (That can really wear you out.)

I admit that of the people closest to me, I ask questions dozens of questions every day. But they’re mostly lame-o questions, because I usually assume think I already know the answers…give or take a few. Questions like, “Do you want mayo?” “Did you do your homework?” and “What have you been up to this week?” Most of these are not conversations that matter.

Why is it that the people who get the best questions are the people I don’t know all that well? Am I overlooking treasure that’s hidden in plain sight?

To whom do you ask your best questions? This week, will you ask an important question of someone mysterious, a colleague you’ve just met, a customer you’ve been serving for months, or someone you’ve known all your life?

Discovery is as close as a question. Try asking a question that matters and see how it brings a new energy to your day. See how it increases your relationships with your family, customers, and friends.

Asking that important question could be the secret to the fountain of youth or the child’s mind. Any tips for asking great questions? Leave a comment!

The Number One Threat To Your Customer’s Objections

February 12, 2014 by jennifer mcgahan 2 Comments

LOVE.

That’s it, baby. All you need is love.

What is an objection, but an assertion of fear?

Fear that they’ll make the wrong decision, spend too much money, buy the wrong color, type, or size.

Fear that they’ll lose an opportunity, lose face, or the chance to buy something better in the future.

Fear that they don’t know what they’re getting into.

Fear that they’ll blow it, break it, lose it, crash it, fail…

The customer’s objections always stem from some kind of fear.

And what is the opposite of fear? LOVE.

“What’s love got to do with it?” you ask. We’re in it to win it. The goal of marketing is to find good leads to a sale. The goal of a sale is to make money, earn a living, grow the business, earn the respect of our customers and competitors. Sales are crucial. (If only we could get past those peaky objections!)

When St. Paul sat down and wrote to the Corinthians, he penned a challenging list of ways to live. Do you think some Corinthians had any objections? Of course! But the good news includes this bit about love, and if you want to counter objections steeped in fear, the best way to do that is to drop down to the basics.

Love is patient.

You can’t exactly show patience in a blog post or video, but you can craft your content to effectively speak to your perfect percentage of the world. If you do get the chance to talk in person, just listen to their objections. Listen with patience. Don’t interrupt, or you might miss out on the juicy bits that help you understand what’s brewing beneath the surface.

Sometimes I get off the phone and wish I could remember more of what the other person said, than what I yapped about. Shoot, what a missed opportunity! Too little, too late. Don’t make my mistake. Just listen patiently and…focus on understanding.

Love is kind.

Learning how to listen patiently is a skill. The next part is processing the knowledge before speaking.

When a customer objects, she’s exposing her soft underbelly of doubt. This is not the time to pounce, but to show gentleness.

One of my resolutions for 2014 is to take time to ask questions, a natural part of a copywriter’s job. Part of that goal extends to the business side, listening to prospects and deciding in real time whether to even make an offer of my services. Sometimes it’s just not a good fit.

Just yesterday I talked with my friend Jenny in London who had a phone call with someone who was considering her services. This prospective customer showed hints that she wasn’t ready to fully benefit from Jenny’s service. Did Jenny bend her will and force a situation that didn’t feel right? No, she didn’t even make an offer. That was admirable and kind, don’t you think?

It’s just as kind as countering an authentic objection from someone who is truly ready for the outcome you can provide. If your product or service is genuinely going to help your customer and bring a level of peace, clarity, happiness, delight, service, or utility to her life; then you’re doing a disservice NOT to offer what you’ve got. Recognizing and overcoming an objection comes from kindness.

Love is not boastful.

The only thing boasting does is put distance between you and your customer. Boasting says “I’m up here. You’re not.” That’s not going to win him over. There is a time for graciously accepting those roses everyone’s throwing at you, but a fist pump in the face of an objection doesn’t cut it. Think of an objection as a chance to offer a solution. If you take it as an opportunity to leverage yourself and your ego, you blew it.

Love is not proud.

Wait, let’s dissect that word right there. Proud. You’re supposed to proud of your work, your reputation, your company, your service. What’s wrong with pride? The wrong kind of pride interrupts your ability to deliver on your promise. If you’re really “that good,” chances are you’re a little humble about it. Pride can blind you to the chance to improve, even just a little. And our customers continually challenge us if we let them…

Let them.

Love does not dishonor others.

So what’s a little objection, anyway? It’s true, not everyone is our ideal client. But everyone is worthy of being served. Objections often enlighten an entrepreneur of unsolved problems, and new creative solutions. Honor every objection with a sincere goal of helping your prospect make the right decision. You might find you benefit from it as well.

If you consider it a privilege to serve on all levels, then you might offer additional services to support someone after a sale. That could mean maintenance, follow up, service plans, or even alternate products. A heartfelt objection could trigger a new evaluation of your products line or markets.

Honorable sales is meeting your customer where she is in the moment. and showing them where she could be.

Love is not self seeking.

If you come from a place of service, everyone wins. If you’re thinking at every moment that a sale is at stake, then your thoughts are swirling around what you stand to gain. When that starts to happen, then any objection might even personally offend you. (Not good enough? Not comprehensive enough? Not desirable? Overpriced? Not status-y enough? How can this person not see the value?)

Your customer wants to know the most important thing: “What’s in it for me?” (That’s why they’ve given you their valuable time.) If you start feeling self conscious or inadequate during the moment of an objection, then the sale is already lost.

As you write your copy, visit with customers, or make phone calls, you stand squarely between your commitment to your customer, and her desires and needs. Being able to anticipate an objection with open eyes, the whole self-conscious aspect of selling dissipates. That icky feeling goes away.

Love is not easily angered.

Well, this one is tough. Most times an objection is not a challenge to a duel. But if you feel angry, maybe it’s only because you didn’t lay out the terms properly. If anger rears its ugly head, then look at the way your’e doing business and change it. Make sure you don’t let yourself become a doormat.

As a young sales person selling semiconductor equipment in Silicon Valley in the 90s, I made the mistake of bending over backward every time a certain customer called, even to the point of partnering in a research project together. I was just sure I’d get this account’s business, so I put everything on the line. I enlisted the help of some busy engineers at my company, and moved heaven and earth to obtain and transfer sample wafers between our two companies. When the sale went to our competitor, I was devastated. Givers make this mistake and get burned out if they don’t know how to protect themselves (a topic for another post).

In business, anger usually stems from the feeling that something is not fair, or that you’re being used. An objection that triggers anger means you should step back, re-evaluate your offer, and then move on.

Love keeps no record of right and wrong.

If you keep getting an objection — but no decision — then it’s time to give your prospect his freedom.

Some objections are just stalling, not true objections. On the other hand, try not to place a value on them, and address each one without judgment. Just as there are no wrong questions, there is no good nor bad objection. If someone raises a good point, acknowledge it and direct attention to your overarching value.

Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices in truth.

You want your customer to be happy because a happy customer makes a happy business. Deception will only make you and your clients miserable. Stand up for yourself, but also know your limitations. The truth will set you free.

Acknowledging how you’re NOT a certain way, can be the key to bringing your customer over to your side. Long ago, I went shopping for hot tubs. The internet was just getting going, so I hoofed it around to the local shops in search of information. At one store, the tubs were so shallow, I thought they weren’t as good as the others. In my mind less water meant an inferior tub. Only when the sales person countered my objection did I realize that mine was one objection he actually enjoyed getting! He pointed out my small stature and how people my size tend to bob at the top instead of ease down into the seats. A shallower tub didn’t have that effect, and besides, less water meant lower heating costs…who knew?

Love always protects…

Do you want a relationship with your customer? Protect her decision to buy with a guarantee, a commitment to stand by her, to support her decision to say yes, or no. An objection is often a question about support. (E.g. If this happens, then how am I protected? If I don’t like something about it, then what? If it doesn’t fit, will you take it back? If It stalls in the middle of the desert, who will come get me?)

Put her worry to rest. Make sure she know’s you’ve got her back.

Always trusts…

An objection is a chance to put your customer in the driver’s seat. You answer with honesty and turn the decision back over to her, making the sale a two-way street. Trust allows you to enter into a relationship with a customer on even footing. And it may even pull your contracts and/or terms into better shape. If you’ve been burned a few times (as all new business owners and entrepreneurs have been at some point), then you know the value of being able to trust your customer in the same way that they trust you. Build trust into your offer and you both win.

Always hopes…

Have you ever wanted to ask, “How many more objections can you possibly have?” Do you ever feel that the whole sales process is getting wobbly because you both have lost sight of the big picture, the big transformation?

Sometimes, too many objections or ‘nitpicky’ objections are just an indication that your prospect doesn’t have clarity about the real value your provide. Don’t go down that dark path with her. It’s your obligation to steady the pace. You know who you are and how you help, so when you see that the conversation is taking a turn for the bleak, then lift it up. The transformation still exists for your customer, but you must point the way. Bring it back into the light.

Always perseveres.

You win some, you lose some. Every “no” gets you closer to the next “yes.” In the world of content marketing, you don’t often get the chance to directly counter objections, but you always have another chance to position yourself in a new or different way.

Wrong person? Inopportune timing? Not in a position to make a decision? It’s okay; your content can be shared in another way, on another day, with the right person. Consider putting out a fact sheet with a list of the most common customer objections (FAQs). If you persevere, you’re always ready for the next objection because you’ve anticipated it.

Don’t let fear of rejection cause you to freeze when your customer raises a bona fide objection. It’s a natural part of the sales process and a precious opportunity to earn a happy client. Follow the rules of “love” and enjoy it.

St. Paul’s mission was to spread Christianity all over the land with the powerful sales technique of love. It might work for us, too.

“Prospect” Is NOT A Bad Word!

October 16, 2013 by jennifer mcgahan 1 Comment

Lately I’ve been sensing a distaste for the words “Prospect” and “Customer” and even “Sales” by some social media folks. That’s just plain wrong.

I value the trend toward friendship, connections and genuinely liking your followers. Heck, look at the name of this website!

Remember, also, that you’re in business. What does a “prospector” eventually find? GOLD! Those are your customers.

You are actually doing your company a disservice if you don’t recognize the importance of serving someone who truly needs your products or services and will pay you to get them. You nurture special relationships with paying customers if you want your company to survive.

So when I say “prospect” I do mean –yes — someone whose life will be better if they open their wallet and purchase whatever it is you offer. That’s the beauty of business. I’m tired of beating around the bush about that. The people you can help — those folks are your “prospects” and it’s clearly your job to serve them.

But there’s a huge difference between serving them authentically and benefitting at their expense. Enormous. Put value into the word “Prospect;” don’t take honor away from it. Your prospects and customers are golden. They become your friends. Family, even. It’s really up to you.

Please don’t be afraid to use the terms “prospects and customers.” It’s a privilege not to be taken lightly!