Matt had finally, finally finished his training. He carefully framed and hung up the pieces of paper that proved he was a Really Truly Certified Life Coach with a proud grin. He couldn’t wait to get started revolutionising people’s lives!
After a small montage of dancing to Eye of the Tiger, Matt started searching for clients.
He began with his circle of acquaintances.
“HeyguesswhatI’vefinishedmytraining! I’m a certified life coach!”
“Oh, wow! Grats! We should go have a beer to celebrate, yeah?”
“Yeah, totally. So I’m looking for new clients now…”
“Cool. Have you put out ads yet?”
“Oh. I was wondering, actually, if you’re interested?”
“Do you think I have problems or something?”
“No! It’s just… well, maybe you could mention it to some people?”
“Sure, Matt.”
He went to networking events.
“Hi, I’m Matt. I’m a Certified Life Coach and I work with people who are looking to revolutionise their lives.”
“Ooh, I’ve never met a life coach before. Tell me more,” said a new acquaintance.
“Well, I measure how your life is going and then I work with you to create a plan and then I…” The new acquaintance’s eyes glazed over.
“You’re new at this, aren’t you,” said a calm and authorative voice behind Matt.
He whirled to find an older man dressed in impeccable clothes and a warm smile.
“Uh, yeah. I graduated a few weeks ago. Does it show?”
“It shows in your marketing, yes. I’m Ben, and I can give you some very simple help if you’ve got fifteen minutes.”
“I do! And I’m Matt. And thanks.”
Two chairs and two glasses of drinkable white wine later, Ben revealed the biggest secret of marketing to Matt.
The biggest secret of marketing, as revealed to Matt.
Ben said, “I am incredibly selfish.”
Matt blinked. “You seem pretty nice to me. I mean, you’re helping me out and all…”
“Yes, I’m also capable of being generous. But – like every other person on the planet – I am incredibly selfish. Every single decision I make is a selfish one.”
“Even helping me?”
“Even helping you. In this case, I am helping you because it makes me feel generous to offer my wisdom, and it flatters my ego when you’re impressed by what I have to say. Also, I am avoiding talking any further with the irritating lady in the corner who sells some multi-level scheme thing.
Surely you learned this in your training, about how people have strong desires and seek to meet them?”
“Well, yeah, of course. That’s what it’s all about.”
“Very well. So tell me about what you do, then.”
“I am a life coach, and I work with people who want to revolutionise their lives?”
“Yes. But that statement is all about you: what you do, who you work with. As previously mentioned, I am incredibly selfish. So try it again in a way that’s all about me instead of you.”
“Ohhhh… I help you revolutionise your life?”
“Better. How do you do that?”
“We’ll assess how your life is going right now and create a plan for you that gets you to take action on the things you’ve been day-dreaming about for years but you’ve never had the courage and momentum to just GO for them!”
“That could use some commas, but yes. Much better. I can see myself wanting those things and hiring you to provide them for me.”
Matt looked jubilant, and then sad. “Seems kind of mercenary, though. I mean, I want to like the people I’m working with, not just be a press-here-for-enlightment machine.”
Ben smiled. “One of life’s great mysteries, Matt, is the way we grow to genuinely love and respect the people who understand exactly how important we are.”
“That’s not mysterious!”
“Exactly. So keep it in mind.”
And Matt did.
The moral of the story
I am terribly selfish.
You’re selfish, too.
And so, natch, is your customer. Keep that in mind and your marketing will hit more often than it misses.
The weirdest bit about this is the following: the less you make it about you – your blog, your offers, your Twitter behaviour, your job title, your magical pink donkey – the more people will genuinely like you. Our favourite conversationalists are great listeners, dontcha know.
What would your sales page look like if you couldn’t talk about yourself at all? Pretty much the same or VERY different? Tell me in the comments!
