Are You Unintentionally Making It Hard for Your Audience to Understand the Value of What You Do? (and What to Put in Place if You Are)

The bottom line in business is that your audience has to want what you offer badly enough to part with their money (and time) in order to get it. But, if your work is designed around your soul’s calling, and your message speaks to the deep, profound change you create in people’s lives, what you offer may not be something that your audience already knows it wants and needs. Your words may not match the conversation in your audience’s head, and it may not be obvious to them why they should want what you offer!

It is THE crucial conundrum for soul-based business owners. Figure this one out and you’re home free. Stay stuck and building your business is like pushing the proverbial boulder up a hill.

In order to make a powerful connection between what you offer and your audience wants, you need to know three things:

1. What you offer

To start, you need a clear statement that reflects the heart and soul of what you offer and why it matters. One way we get lost (and lose our audience in the process) is that we don’t actually know what we are here to offer. You feel it, but you can’t actually say it in a way that lets you hold onto it for yourself or communicate it clearly to someone else. Sounds crazy, right? But I’ve actually had people who had successful private practices for eight years tell me that until they went through my communication training, they didn’t actually know what it was they were offering!

2. Who your audience is

This is a tough one for so many people. You may be passionate about what you do, but if you can’t quite picture who it is you want to create your transformation for, it’s going to be rough going. I think this is hard because of two specific fears that come up: that you are going to limit your audience to such a small group you won’t have enough business (not true, and that’s a whole other article) or that you’re going to exclude someone who might want and need your help.

The way I help my clients think about audience is this. Draw a circle, and imagine in that circle everyone who could possibly benefit from what you do. You don’t have to turn away anyone in that circle. But, your marketing and your communication will be stronger when you pick a wedge of that pie to speak to. How do you decide which “wedge” of the circle to speak to? The three best questions to ask yourself are 1) who do I like working with? 2) who is going to see the value of what I do the fastest and 3) who is going to be willing and able to pay for my product or services.

3. What your audience wants

See how it’s hard to know this if you don’t know the previous one? Once you’ve decided who your specific audience is, you do need to take time to step into their shoes.

Putting aside your specific product or service (it’s hard, I know), ask yourself what you think this audience wants, needs, and is willing to spend money on. What makes them tick? What are they yearning for? What matters most to them? If you don’t know this, you and your audience will be like two people on opposite sides of a raging river. You can smile and wave at a distance but you won’t be able to connect in an intimate and personal way.

Not sure you know what your audience wants? There’s an easy answer. Ask them! Find someone in your audience and ask for some of their time.

With these three pieces in place, you can now start to craft some phrases that connect what your audience wants and what you do. It’s not complicated, simply tell them that one of the best ways they can get what they want is by experiencing what you offer.

Want Isabel’s personal help as you craft these key pieces? Join us for Put the Mojo in Your Message, Level I starting soon. http://www.soundbiteshaman.com/mojo.