The life of the party
by Andrew Shedden
Assume you’re at a cocktail party with a group of high-powered business owners and executives. Amongst the revelers is a business owner named Sandra. Now Sandra doesn’t own just any company, she owns the kind of company that - if she became a client – would allow you to earn the money to buy that private island in the Caribbean you’ve been lusting after.
Imagine that Sandra walked up to you and after the usual exchange of social niceties, asked you to describe your business. If you’re like most people you’ll make one of two choices - both of which are wrong.
Choice # 1 – Your Process
“Well I own a lawn maintenance company. We do things like put fertilizer on lawns and when the grass grows we cut it with lawnmowers. Toro makes some of our lawnmowers in the United States and we also use lawnmowers made by Honda. I’m pretty sure the Hondas, although they are a Japanese brand, are actually made in Rhode Island by people on an assembly line who have dexterous hands.
We make sure all of our lawnmowing professionals wear safety shoes when they’re working so they have as many feet when they complete the job as when they started it. You know, there’s quite a lot to maintaining a lawn. You’ve got to know just when to fertilize, the best time to water, and when it’s time to do the cutting.”
Approximately 10 seconds into this soliloquy Sandra’s physiology begins to undergo a subtle change. Her eyes begin to glaze over, her attention wavers then disappears, and your dream client is gone forever.
Choice # 2 – Your Label
“I own a lawn care company.” Upon hearing this scintillating information Sandra nods her head in acknowledgement and makes a beeline to the bar to order a double. You’re left standing all alone crying in your beer.
You just can’t win. If you give her the long gory story (your process) she tunes out. If you make it short and sweet (your label) she barely acknowledges your existence.
What’s an entrepreneur to do?
In order to maximize interest about your business you need an effective way to verbally package your products and services. The answer is to develop an audio logo An audio logo is a simple and effective way of communicating the single largest benefit your target market can expect as a result of purchasing your products or services.
Having a successful audio logo allows you to address two of the biggest truths in marketing:
• People buy products and services for what they do, not what they are
• People want to know what, if anything, is in it for them.
A well crafted audio logo:
• Forces you to distil the essence of your business to a simple focussed statement
• Demonstrates your expertise
• Can be used on the phone, in networking, on your phone message, and in your radio advertisements
How do you create an audio logo?
The easiest way to craft an audio logo is to clearly state the target market you serve and the benefits they gain as a result of dealing with your company.
Creating your audio logo can be as easy as filling in the blanks. For example “I help (name of target market) to (principle benefit of your product or service).”
Here are a few examples:
“I help busy homeowners effortlessly have a beautiful lawn.”
“I assist c level executives in gaining balance in their lives.”
“I work with manufacturers to improve their sales.”
Alternately, your audio log may focus on the pain in a target market. For example “I assist (name of target market) who struggle/have difficulty/can’t (major pain in their market).”
Here are a few examples:
“I work with homeowners who can’t seem to stay on top of their yard work.”
“I help c level executives who are frustrated with the lack of balance in their lives.”
“I assist manufacturers that are struggling to attract customers.”
How do you know if your audio logo is successful?
You’ll know your audio logo is successful if when mentioned it provokes the listener to say, “How do you do that?” This is the precise response you should be after.
You’ll probably need to craft several audio logos for each target market until you find the one that consistently produces the desired response. The more descriptive and focused your audio logos are the better you’ll generate the response you really want to hear. More importantly, you’ll be ready the next time someone asks you about your business.
