Do you get people to zero?
When you do your Thing are you helping people get from a 'negative' place to 'zero'—that place of neutrality where everything is 'normal'?
Let me explain...
If you're in the people-helping or business-helping business it's likely that your Thing will help people who are in a negative place—less than OK, not in the ideal space, below par, etc.—get to somewhere great and outstanding... let's call that positive. But along they way the people you help have to get to 'zero' or neutral first.
Marketing to a person or business who is in negative place and telling the them you can take them to amazingly positive place can seem like a huge—and unbelievable—step. But marketing to a person who is in negative place and telling them you can get them to 'zero' is not.
I work with a lot of therapists and coaches who—as part of what they do—get people to positive, but they take them to 'zero' first. And that's what they market to—'zero', with a hint of positive.
Here are some examples:
- If you're a therapist and can help people to feel better and more confident, you might describe 'zero' as being a place with no phobias and fears—a place of neutrality where you just 'are'. Now, you also know that your Thing as a therapist can take people way past 'zero' and into +10 or +100, where they feel amazing and invincible. But try selling amazing and invincible to a person crippled with a phobia or fear—it's just a step too far. So you sell them 'zero' first—you get them to feel good about who they are, and that's all.
- If you're a fitness or health professional and you can help people reach their ideal weight for their height, then that's your 'zero'. Then you know that you can work on people's fitness and muscle tone and diet to take them to the best body and health they can have—that's their +10 or +100. But try selling a 6-pack stomach to an overweight person and it sounds unbelievable. So you sell 'zero' first, which is reaching a healthy goal weight—the muscles can come later! You let people know you can take them into positive (as I am sure you have a 6 pack yourself!), but you market 'ideal weight' first as that's a believable step.
- If you want to stand out and get noticed in your market for what you do that's brilliant because you've been hiding away as a best kept secret (you might recognise this one), then you don't dive in and start getting PR and speaking at every event you find. You get to 'zero' first... you find your Thing—what it is you do that's brilliant... you get really clear on the message around that and how it works (your signature process) which gets you in a place where you know your Thing. Business Celebrity 'zero' is knowing your Thing. Now, to get you Famous, we take it into the positive, moving you out into the world doing spotlight marketing that gets you noticed. But I sell 'zero' first. I can't do the marketing—the getting famous part—until I know you know, and own, your Thing. I sell 'zero' but I mention the positive.
I know that your Thing can take people into the positive because your Thing is amazing. But if you know your ideal clients are typically in a negative place, then you sell them 'zero' first. Zero is achievable, reachable and real. Of course you mention the next steps after that into positive, but don't make that your marketing message—save that for when people are already at 'zero'.
Think about what your 'zero' is for your market, and get your messaging to match. I know you're brilliant at what you do, but you have to be believable and take people to the next step, and not promote an unbelievable step too far. You want to make buying from you easy, so don't make it unbelievable!
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