Use more 'you'
My grandfather was a really smart dude. I never got to have a really strong relationship with him, largely because he died when I was 8, but through stories that others have told me, I’ve learned a lot about him and what made him so successful. He used to say to his friends all the time:
“Your business only benefits when your customer benefits first.”
I really believe in that saying, not just for my own business, but as something I believe should be a fundamental concept of business and marketing as a whole. Focusing on other people means focusing your communications to speak to the customer. Not at the customer.
In marketing, there’s only one word you need to know: “You”.
Every post/ad/web site/blog/white paper/brochure should be purposefully aimed at the needs and wants of others. After all, you only benefit when the customers benefit first, right? When it comes down to it, “you” is by far the most compelling word in the English language. In the end, people are most interested in fulfilling their own needs. It might sound rough, but unless you give people real value with your marketing collateral, don’t expect them to care about you at all.
But when they do start to care, look out, because amazing things begin to happen. People spread your word for you. Create content that is focused on the person who is reading your piece. Use ‘you’ as often as possible while taking great lengths to eliminate the ‘me, me’s’ from your collateral.
I know you’ve read a thousand ‘about us’ sections on the internet that start with the good-old, generic “Since 1884, we have….”. No one cares that you have been in business forever. No one cares that you’re an industry leader’ because everyone says that. Focus on the people that matter: your customers.
When you’re done writing, read it over and look at the number of times you said ‘you’ as opposed to “I” or “me”. If there is more of the latter, consider re-focusing your work.
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