April 2006

Finding your True Voice--and 3 ways to use it

Dear GetMoreCustomers reader:

If you write your own marketing materials, you might occasionally run into a wall when you're coming up with content or looking for a fresh approach. When the muse deserts you, the options are simple:

- Write something bad

- Don't write anything at all--and miss the marketing opportunity

- Consult the budget and hire someone.

When you have someone else write your marketing materials, you want
a person who appreciates how important your message is. You want someone
who truly hears what you say and translates it into words that convey
the spirit--not just the literal meaning--of your intentions. I call it finding "your true voice."

Years ago when I was searching for my business tagline, I knew instinctively
when I'd found the right words. "Find your True Voice...and grow
your business"®. I knew that this phrase expressed a profound truth about
what I do for my clients. And on the day I snapped the official U.S.
Patent Office registration into its frame tp hang it on the wall, I
felt a deep, calm sense of the rightness of it.

Authentic. That's how you feel when you're using your "True Voice."


So what does it mean to be authentic? The dictionary defines it as
"believable" and "trustworthy." It has a common
root with the word "authority"--one meaning of which is "freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities." That's what
I'm talking about--speaking from the heart about what you know you can do for
your customers.


With the spreading business blog phenomenon (read "How to decide
if it's right for your company"), more people are turning away
from the old corporate speak--the stiff, formal style that sometimes
sounds like double-talk. Business owners and marketers are realizing
that every day more customers are looking for honesty and openness--that they don't appreciate how the old style distances rather than invites genuine conversation.


Here are 3 ways you can use your True Voice. These approaches open
the way to honest exchanges with the media, your vendors, and the people
who want and need your products and services.

1. In your press release and your marketing materials, get quotes
   from your president and your partner/vendor/customer that talk about
   the relationships you have. People like doing business with people they have a relationship with. So point out that you're committed to doing business that way, too.


2. On your corporate website, don't be afraid to talk about how you
   feel about what you do for your customers. And don't hesitate to ask them to share their thoughts on how they feel about you and your company.


3. Start a corporate blog--and be conversational in it. A blog is a way to build trust and establish relationships--even before a prospect has become a customer. And a blog is one of the most powerful tools for getting high search engine rankings. If you're not sure how to get started, email me with your questions.
   
   And remember, a blog works best when you view it the way you think of your business--a long-term investment in building trust.

Sincerely,
Barbara

Some of what's going on at ReallyGoodFreelanceWriter.com:

• Serve on the strategizing team for the National Association of
  Women Business Owners Cleveland Chapter


• Help re-envision major hospital's website


• Help graphic design company create poetic "story" marketing
  cards


• Write speeches for C-level executives at major corporation


• Author a corporate blog for a training business


• Interview Ohio's Governor Taft at the huge BIO conference in Chicago