The resonance factor.

Resonance is about transmitting your message on the “wavelength” that your ideal clients connect with.

You’re growing your business in an ocean of inertia.

Skepticism is everywhere.
Distrust is rampant.
Resistance is in the air.

Check yourself here – and your own beliefs.

What do you think of the people who market their businesses online?

Do you believe them to be honest, earnest do-gooders who hold the highest standards of impeccability and truth telling?

Or do you find them to be long on promises and short on delivery?

I’ve had more than one potential copywriting client I’ve turned away, because I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what their business actually was. Other than a collection of superlative promises and hot air.

Intellectually, I get that there are plenty of honest, genuine people running online businesses who over-deliver. Who are who they say they are. But viscerally, I have this gut reaction to folks peddling “being awesome” and “automatic cash frenzy” and other vapid hustles.

And I suspect that a lot of you out there feel the same way. You want to grow your business. Build your list. Help people improve their lives for the better. And you want to make a fabulous living doing it. But how on earth do you get that into your message?

Here’s an idea that’s been popping up lately, that I think can help.

It’s called resonance.

More than using the “right” words on a website or in an email,

The way I think about it is that it’s getting out of your own head long enough to ask “what do my people need to hear?” before you craft an email or a web page.

It’s letting go of your own self-doubt, so that you can put yourself out there and connect with someone who needs what you do.

It’s tuning in to what THEY want. What THEY need. The conversation that they are already having with themselves in THEIR heads.

I bet you know how to do this with people in person already.

So, how do you do it in your message?

Before you write something, profile your ideal client. Write down who she is. What triggered her to hire you. What she wanted as a result of working with you. You can even look back to see who’s worked with you in the past, and see what they have in common.

As you do this, pay attention to who you actually ENJOY working with. There are more of those clients to be had. Simply get clear about who you want to work with – and then aim to resonate with more of them in your message.

For example, I was writing a sales email this morning for my Write Your Website production lab. I went back and made 3 client profiles of the kinds of people who joined the lab last spring.

One, the person who gets lots of referrals offline, but hasn’t figured out how to put that into writing – and wants to build an online presence.

Two, the person who has been in business awhile, but is attracting clients who aren’t ideal – and they need to reposition themselves in the marketplace to attract people with money.

Three, the person who has a track record of success in business, but is starting a business online and wants to get it right from the beginning.

I even read their emails to me, to learn more about what they wanted.

One of my former students wrote “I get plenty of clients from word of mouth and referrals. Which is great. I even have a website. But I just kind of threw it up so people would have something to look at. Now is the time to clean that up.”

Jackpot! I put that in the email.

You can do this, too. Listen to what your clients say about why they work with you. Heck, even ask them. And then flesh out your client profiles – and let that guide you as you write your homepage, your awesome free gift, your sales emails.

When you resonate with your audience, there’s a real connection there. They feel like you “get” them. And because you are clear and specific, your message actually protects you from slapdash marketing fluffspeak.

Mighty thanks to Creativity103 flickr photostream for the wavelength.