Picture this: you are mid-way through a conversation with a prospective client when you hear, “So tell me how you work?” You tell yourself, ‘Perfect! Now is my opportunity to tell them what I do and how I can help them’, and off you go, launched into an energetic, enthusiastic description of your service.
The only problem is, no one is listening to your eloquent monologue.
Let’s rewind this movie and play it again, only this time, we’ve made a few choice edits:
You are mid-way through a conversation with a prospective client when you hear, “So tell me how you work?” You tell yourself, ‘Hmmm. I haven’t heard enough yet about what symptoms they are experiencing. If I launch into a pitch now, I’ll lose their attention’, so you answer:
“The way I work is by first gaining an in-depth understanding of what a client’s situation is, then I create a solution-focused action plan to put the resources they need at their finger tips. May I ask you a few more questions to find out more about your situation?”
Well done! Your answer was short and benefit-oriented. You then immediately turned your attention back to them by asking permission to continue asking questions.
The example I gave was purposefully vague. You are welcome to beef it up (although I am a long time vegetarian, somehow the phrase ‘tofu it up’ doesn’t have the same emphasis) to fit your specific service.
However, do not, under any circumstances, fall into the trap of talking about process. Hearing, “How do you work?” invites a process answer. Resist. Answer it as if you were asked, “What result will I get from hiring you?”
After all: It’s Not About You, It’s About Them.
Now it’s your turn!
Love what you do but wish marketing would just go away? Kendall
SummerHawk, creator of Website Wisdom, the Marketing Makeover
Kit, and HorseWise Brilliance Unbridled coaching program,
specializes in creating fresh, innovative, client capturing
programs for your business. Visit
http://www.KendallSummerHawk.com for
more articles and free Weekly Marketing Wisdom.
