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Sell Yourself by Sharing Your Success StoriesQ. "You've asked me to come up with success stories. But I'm a consultant. I go into companies and help senior managers develop relationships with employees and customers. I'm a great listener. How do I translate these skills into copy?" A. Open-ended results are not uncommon. I ran into this challenge with my own consulting sites. When I looked up benefits, all I could find was "more-better-faster-cheaper." "That's not me!" I said firmly. "There must be a better way!" There is. Here's one approach to begin developing your own perspective. Choose one client who loved working with you – and someone you loved in return. Maybe you find yourself saying, "I'd like to clone this client!" That's the one. Now write a before, middle and after story. (1) Where was the client before you were hired? Maybe he was satisfied but realized he needed to make small changes. Maybe business was booming but clients were complaining. Or maybe her company always holds an annual training session in October and this time you were chosen. We can work with any of these scenarios. (2) What did you do after you arrived on the scene? Did you use any processes that were unique? What did you do that others couldn't do? And why? Example 1: "I've worked in the industry for ten years. So I can get all the information I need in four hours. The competition takes three days. Who needs a consultant parked in the warehouse for three days? We're in and out – fast." Example 2: "I've developed a one-of-a-kind listening process so I can read between the lines of a client's problem. So I used this process to discover a story that most consultants never heard. As a result, I was able to propose a solution that worked for my client, addressing the core problem instead of just hitting the surface." (3) What was different after you completed your engagement? Look for tangible outcomes. Try to dollarize your results, if at all possible. Otherwise look for scores and numbers. For example: "Every year Company Z holds a training session. Because I have extensive training in communication skills, I created an interactive experience. Result: The Training Director said my evaluations set a record. They rarely ask anyone back – but I'm returning in April for an extra session." Another example: "Branch managers spent two hours a day untangling angry customers. My experience in conflict resolution allowed me to create a specialized program. Six months later, managers tell me they spend half an hour a day – or less – gaining a productivity increase of 15%." Translate "what they can do" to "what made a difference." For example: "Since my project, the managers can communicate more effectively with one another. They know how to frame questions..." A good start, but how has communication helped this company's bottom line? Did they reduce headcount? Take fewer steps to deliver a product? Make fewer costly mistakes? Telling stories for a lifetime Once you've caught on to this process, you can write notes on each project as you finish. Save the notes in a file for your next brochure or website makeover. I encourage clients to choose three success stories and to share lots of detail about each one. Most clients start purring with pride by the middle of Story 1 and they don't want to stop writing! Your copy won't look like these stories. We'll rearrange the words. We'll choose which details to emphasize. And we'll find the right place on your website to share your successes – often the most important influence on your next client's decision to hire you. Other articles by this author »
About Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D.
Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D., is a published author, speaker, copywriter and business consultant. Are you a solo professional who needs to sell yourself but can't afford to sound sales-y? Get my Fr*e Report: The 7 best-kept secrets of client-attracting websites http://www.copy-cat-copywriting.com/subscribe.html Related
And here is another random article you might be interested in... Easy Steps to Work-Life BalanceKnowing when to disconnect, shut it off, unplug, or walk away from work is one of the essential keys to work/life balance for harried and overworked people. When was the last time you completely left work behind? How frequently do you take work home, check e-mail or voice mail from home, or take your work with you on vacation? Do you feel you can't afford to not do these things? What's the real impact on your personal sense of balance when you are consistently making work your top priority? The work many of us do is extremely demanding of both our time and energy. In many cases, you may allow the intrusion and justify the cost on a personal level for real or anticipated gains on the career level. But way too often, we're sacrificing family time, exercise, or much-needed personal time without making conscious choices about the implications and trade-offs. Many of us feel stressed and overworked because we are overconnected. As a result of the onslaught of information, along with the never-ending ways that people can access us anytime of the day or night, we feel perpetually connected to our work. Think about the number of technology resources you now use that were not commonplace just a few years ago. Cell phones, pagers, e-mail, instant messaging, online chats, voice mail, call forwarding, wireless Internet pagers.... the list just keeps growing. How much is enough of these technology tools and the obsessive connection to our work?! And how do we begin to reestablish those important boundaries between our work and our personal lives? In our book, "Dot Calm: The Search for Sanity in a Wired World," we provide a wealth of "how to" tips for managing the work-life challenge: The first step: JUST SAY NO!â€"and draw clear boundaries. This takes on multiple forms:
Obviously, some intrusions of work into personal life are unavoidable, depending upon the nature of your work. If you manage a nuclear power plant, are a member of an organ transplant team, or have on-call responsibilities as part of your job, then some intrusions go with the territory. However, more often than not, we let work seep into our personal lives even when there's not a bonafide emergency or time-urgent crisis. We've become so accustomed to the ever-presence of our work that we've unconsciously allowed further intrusions that have, in many cases, become unreasonable. Our research involved hundreds of interviews and surveys to learn how busy people are achieving balance and integrating overwork solutions into the lives. There are five key solutions that are working for these people, some of whom work long hours, receive over 300 e-mail each day, travel extensively, and have families they treasure. Here are a few specific steps you can take for each of these solutions: 1. PRIORITIZE AND ORGANIZE
2. TAKE DAILY "TIME-OUTS"
3. TAKE MINI SABBATICALS.
4. NURTURE THE SOUL AND MIND.
5. NOURISH THE BODY.
Other articles by this author »
About Debra A. Dinnocenzo
Debra A. Dinnocenzo is a dynamic speaker, author, and trainer with expertise in telework, virtual teams, and work-life balance. She is president of ALLearnatives, a learning and development firm that designs and implements telework, sales performance, virtual teams, and work-life balance programs. She is the author of "101 Tips for Telecommuters" and co-author of "Dot Calm: The Search for Sanity in a Wired World," which offers solutions for achieving work-life balance. ALLearnatives offers workshops, seminars, and the free e-newsletter, "WorkWisely." Visit www.allearnatives.com to subscribe to "WorkWisely," schedule a presentation, or obtain additional resources. This article may be reproduced providing it is published in its entirety, including the author bio and all links. For additional information or to request additional content for articles, contact Debra Dinnocenzo, ddinnocenzo@allearnatives.com Related
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