Today I attended a talk by Nancy Ancowitz entitled Self Promotion for Introverts at In Good Company. Nancy has written a book by the same name which was published last year. It has lots of great tips and suggestions that can work for both introverts and extroverts. Check out the PDF of my mindmap of the presentation.
Mindmap of Nancy Ancowitz’s presentation
Also known as your elevator pitch. I read in Michael Port’s book titled, Book Yourself Solid, that the reason most entrepreneurs fail is that they cannot explain what they do to potential clients. Your job title isn’t what you do either. Telling people I’m a user experience designer results in “huh?! what is that?” even using the more widely used term “information architect” or “ interaction designer” means nothing to people outside the industry.
So how do you talk about what you do without confusing people?
There is a simple formula to start with “I help…” and what ever it is you do for your target market. Another way according to IIise Benun, author of Self Promotion Online, is to come up with a 10 word blurb in various ways. First by asking the questions “What do you do”, then “For whom” and finally “What do they get”. You then write the blurb from the problem-solving perspective.
Your “who and do what” is an important part of your marketing strategy. If you can’t explain what you do to someone they won’t see any value in your services.
Spending time crafting different ways of explaining what you do to others is important. It helps you focus on who you really want to work with and what your target audience needs to hear in order to trust you.
What exactly does it mean for a site to be human-centered?
It means that you don’t have to look at the site and wonder what it is supposed to accomplish. What am I supposed do now?
A site that leaves you wondering why hasn’t achieved it’s goal. The action should be so bright you need to wear shades to not know what you’re supposed to do.
What story does a site/product tell? Is it clear? If it isn’t how can you fix it? Sit down and ask yourself what your audience might think.
Do a “What’s in it for me” a.k.a WIIFM analysis to see what your audience thinks your site is. If it fails that test you know you need to rework your site.
Your message isn’t clear.
Not to worry you can fix it. Put yourself in the position of what your potential visitor is looking for and why they are coming to your site. Make up a little story about what you want your visitor to do and that will help inform your design decisions.
On Monday I wrote about creating my business plan. The next hurdle for me is figuring out what services to offer. Sure, I could offer a ton of services but I’ll get better results overall if I focus. My business plan is created using scrapbook paper, stickers and clippings from magazines.
I currently have services listed on my site but I want to fine tune my offerings. Trying to be all things to all people is not my goal. Being a jack of all trades…master of none isn’t good for the wallet. I would bet that most generalists would agree with me with few exceptions.
A lot of business books talk about how hard it is for people to pick a target market for their services. This I can say with honestly is totally true. You do feel like you are giving up something. But that is a scarcity mentality. You can’t service every single market.
Everyone does not need your services.
So I’m working on narrowing my focus and redefining my strategy. Having it all out of my head and on paper makes the task of work on my business plan that much easier.
Growing a consulting practice without some kind of plan would have been a waste of time.
If you are trying to get a point across or just have something to share. The following words can help you get your message heard
Use these words wisely. And don’t forget to say “Thank You” when someone does something nice for you, it’s another powerful phrase.
What exactly IS Neuromarketing? The simplest answer is that it is where brain science and marketing meet.
The puffspeak for what Neuromarketing is goes something like this -
Neuromarketing:
A technique that measures how consumers will react to brands and advertising. The brain is mapped, using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging to record conscious and subconscious responses to advertising, products or brands.
So why would anyone care about this emerging field?
Well in this economy getting people to spend on anything is tough. Most people have been hard hit buy the recession and if they are going to spend money on a product/service the value add has to be apparent or they aren’t going to buy.
There are three parts to the brain -
The new brain that thinks. It processes rational data. The middle brain feels. It processes emotions and gut feelings.The old brain decides. It takes into account the input from the other two brain, but the old brain is the actual trigger of decision
Neuromarketing: Understanding the Buy Buttons in Your Customer’s Brain
The old brain makes all the decisions regardless of how advanced we are as a society. In a recession people are more likely to think more carefully about what product/service they buy. However, if the product/service you are selling fulfills a need they will buy regardless of the economic climate.
Resources to learn more about Neuromarketing:
Martin Lindstrom
The Brain: Marketing To Your Mind
neurosciencemarketing.com/blog/
Neuromarketing Ning Group
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