“In order for your clients to want to hire you, they have to know that you have their best interests in mind, not your own.” - Sarah George

If you want your marketing to work, remember the client (or customer) is the hero. This means your brand messaging should focus on your client's points of view. Your marketing messages are about your client seeing themselves include you in their lives. They are the hero of their own story; they are looking for your company to be a guide stepping in to help them. Everyone wonders, "What's in it for me?" We all wake up wondering how we'll win our day.

What is a Hero?

The hero of every story is someone who has a problem that they don't know how to figure out on their own. If they could figure it out, it wouldn't be a problem. And often, there is a deeper, underlying problem of self-doubt: do I have what it takes? The hero doesn't become the strong character we consider heroic until they meet a guiding character to lead them along.

Unsung Hero

Since business owners are wired to wake up and wonder how we'll win the day, we default to want to be the hero. It takes effort and conscious planning to position your client as the hero and you as the guide. How can you tell if you are the hero of your own story?

Look for these clues:

• I/we show up more than you.

• Every message starts with your point of view.

• You talk about awards and accolades before talking about the problem.

• Your antidotal stories do not relate to your clients (it's you sharing a story about yourself unrelated to their problem).

• Your marketing is not engaging the right people.

In order for your clients to want to hire you, they have to know that you have their best interests in mind, not your own. They want to be the hero of their own lives. But trust me, they will appreciate your service to get them to that point.

Am I blowing smoke, or is this concept real? Consider these two ads below. Which one appeals to you more?

It's subtle, but you can see in one ad that the burger (or brand) is the hero, largely featured as an American classic. Whereas the second ad depicts how the consumer will feel when saving time with one stop to get gas and a hot meal. Marketing that places the consumer as the focal point will always be more engaging.

When creating website copy, emails, social media posts, ads, or any marketing message, frame it to benefit your clients' desire to be their own hero, plus make it easy to understand. People won't spend too much time figuring out if you are the one to help them if they think you only help yourself or they don't understand what you do.

It's time to take the guesswork out of your marketing efforts. Schedule a consultation to see if I can help you clarify your message.