What motivates people to hire you? The answer can be summed up in one simple word. Connection. Why? Because connection is rooted in emotion, and we all make our buying decisions based on emotions.
Most women entrepreneurs mistakenly focus on explaining how they deliver their services. If you’ve been reading this Ezine for a while, then you know that our potential clients don’t care about service details. What they DO care about is:
*Can they trust you?
*Do you understand the complexities of their situations?
*Are you reliable? (Back to trust again.)
*Will you tell them the truth? (Yep, more trust.)
Whether or not you are a ‘feeling’ type of person, it’s vital to your woman-owned business that you create a way for prospective clients to feel a sense of connection with you. So how do you accomplish that? Here are my five favorite ways:
* Stay in touch and always offer value when you do. Have a resource handy, offer a copy of a great article, or give valuable feedback.
* Be direct and speak the truth. There is nothing to be gained by side stepping the truth because you “don’t want to hurt their feelings.” Weenie answers are not memorable. Nor do you need to be abrupt or critical. For example: Prospective business coaching clients usually ask me to look at their websites. When I see one that is particularly bad, I say, ‘I understand why you’re not getting response from your website. It doesn’t send the message you’re telling me you want to send. It needs to be much more (fill in the blank.)
* Ask more questions than you answer. The only way for your prospective client to feel connection with you is if you are an outstanding listener. Successful women entrepreneurs make sure that 80% of what you say is in the form of a question.
* Go for the deeper truth. If you talk about surface problems or issues, you’ll never get to the heart of your potential client’s feelings. Be bold, brave, and respectful as you probe to uncover their real issues. You can accomplish this by either asking a powerful question, or making a powerful statement that summarizes what they have said. By leaving out any judgment, and speaking with love and caring, you’ll actually see their eyes open with new respect and appreciation for you.
* Repeat your core message, repeat your core message, repeat your core message. You never know the timing of when your prospective client is finally going to say, ‘I’ve had enough of this situation! It’s time to take action.’ The woman business owner who has been consistent and powerful with her core message will be remembered and get the call.
Case in point: the core message of my HorseWise Brilliance Unbridled TM program, “You can leverage your brilliance into increased profits,” is repeated.
Just for today, take your first step: choose one of the methods above, and give it a try. Tomorrow, repeat Step One. I think you get the idea…
Business coach Kendall SummerHawk, the “Horse Whisperer for Business” delivers savvy ways for entrepreneurs to turn hectic businesses into 6-figure successes. Get her “7 Quick and Simple Tips to Brand, Package and Price for More Money, Time and Freedom” at kendallsummerhawk.com.