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| "So, What Do You Do?": How NEVER To Answer This Question! |
By:
Barry W. Morris |
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“So, What Do You Do?” © 2005 Dr. Barry W. Morris & Magnetic
Communications & Consulting™ Phone: 831.612.1047 Email:
Barry@BarryMorris.com Web: http://BarryMorris.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This article first appeared in The Marketing Syntax Ezine. Get
Your Own Subscription Today…It’s Free! http://BarryMorris.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So, what do you do?" It the standard question.
We all get to field this question every day in our business. It
seems everyone wants to know: potential clients, grocery store
line-buddies, even fellow attendees at the PTA meeting.
It this article, I'll look at how responding to this seemingly
meaningless question can bring you more business.
We'll also learn why the way you currently respond to this
question is driving away business in droves.
<<>>
We all have labels. I think that most of us tend to think in
terms of labels.
I'm a writer; she's a chiropractor, etc.
When someone asks you "the question", how do you respond?
Most likely you respond with something like, "Hi, I'm Barry and
I'm a marketing consultant"
It seems perfectly natural to answer in this manner...
<<>>
However, the listener responds with a silent, automatic response
when they hear you describe yourself with a label such as
"marketing consultant."
The automatic response is a mental picture of what they think
that a "marketing consultant" looks like. It's then followed by
a determination of whether or not they need a "marketing
consultant."
All of this happens in less than a second. Think about that.
In less than a second that other person has conjured up an
image of the professional-you, whether of not they need you, and
whether it's in their best interest to continue the conversation.
Still, some of us use the following response...
<<>>
I hear people daily using their business processes to answer the
question. It goes something like this.
"I create effective marketing campaigns for Fortune 500
companies by analyzing click-through rates from targeted email
messages," or "I use Rogerian therapy to uncover hidden
childhood traumas in the lives of my clients."
The problem with both of these responses is that they contain
jargon, that industry-specific language that we use all the time
but potential clients don't understand.
As we mentioned in the example of the label, the listener forms
an instant opinion of our services; when confronted with a
process-based response, they become confused.
They don't understand click-through rates or Rogerian therapy.
They counter our answer with a polite, "Oh, that's
nice."..translated: See Ya.
Still another possibility is.....
<<>>
...using the solution-based response.
"Hi, I'm Barry and I work with small businesses to increase
their visibility."
This is better. It prompts the listener to respond with
something like. "Oh really? How?" Warning: But at this point,
most of us fall back into process.
"Well, I analyze click-through rates from targeted....yada,
yada.....zzzzzzzzzz.
And we're back where we started from.
The strength of this response is that it gets the listener to
respond with an appropriate question: one that promotes inquiry
and discussion.
That's good, but there's a better way...
<<>>
It's the most effective way to answer "the question."
"I work with small businesses who struggle to become more
visible."
Responding in this manner, I've stated who I work with and what
their most pressing problem is. In this case, it's limited
visibility.
The strength of responding with a problem-based statement is
that it promotes instant inquiry.
It will strike a chord with your listener.
One chiropractor I'm aware of responds like this: "I help people
with bad backs become completely pain-free."
Wow. That's a powerful statement with which almost anyone can
identify.
<<>>
When asked, "So what do you do?", by responding with a
problem-based answer, we can immediately involve the listener in
our business. The listener, while they not personally be
experiencing the problem we describe, still understands the
problems faced in business.
I've had people respond with, "You know, I have a friend who
could use your services." and "My wife is self-employed and
she'll probably call you within 48 hours." Your assignment is to
craft an effective problem-based response.
How?
Step 1: List your target market (TM) (with who do you work?)
Step 2: List several problems your target market experiences.
Step 3: Brainstorm the benefits your TM experiences working with
you. Step 4: Complete the following sentence:
"I work with ( Target Market) who experience ( TM's biggest
problem)."
Step 5: Craft your follow-up statement: After they as you how
you do that, follow up with a benefit-related statement.
"By working with me, my clients experience (Benefits)."
Remember to stay away from describing your label, your process,
and your specific solutions which almost always contain jargon.
<<>>
How you choose to answer this simple question can determine the
success of your networking activities.
If you’ve encountered frustration with networking because you’re
not seeing any results, begin to work on your Business Mantra.
Rework it until you can respond with a problem-based response.
Then see what happens.
I know you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Dr. Barry W. Morris Magnetic Communications & Consulting™ 204
Burnham Court Aptos, CA 95003 831.612.1047
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