The Art of Online Business

How to Attract Loyal Clients Without the Hassle with Belinda Weaver

• Kwadwo [QUĀY.jo] Sampany-Kessie • Episode 849

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Belinda Weaver argues that focusing on Unique Selling Propositions (USPs) or defining “What Makes You Different” might not be the most effective strategy for attracting an aligned audience. Instead, she offers alternative methods that can foster deeper connections and better engagement with your ideal students.

We dive into how these principles can shift your focus away from trying to stand out for uniqueness alone and towards creating genuine connections with your audience. 



Watch the previous episode “How She Built A Copywriting Business With Belinda Weaver.” 



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Speaker 1:

Welcome back to the Art of Online Business podcast, and if you can see us right now on YouTube, then you can see that Belinda Weaver is here next to me again, and this is the second episode we've recorded with each other and in this episode she's going to share why being unique is not the most important thing you need to focus on.

Speaker 1:

In fact, she is convinced, and has the proof from having helped so many people build copywriting businesses, that it's actually the five Ps of being choosable that will help you attract an aligned audience. Belinda is a copy coach. She helps aspiring and working copywriters build a business that fuels their life rather than burning them out, and in the previous episode we got to know each other and learn how she built her business. She knows a thing or two I should say two about building a successful business with life, because she has two wonderful daughters with life, because she has two wonderful daughters One is seven and the other is 11. And she started her copywriting business before they were born and then has built it throughout a move from Australia to the U? S, throughout them being littles under four and then going into school and all the way up through now, totaling and what you said.

Speaker 1:

Belinda was 14 years in the business of writing.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, that's exactly right. Yay, I got it right If you want to hear more about that episode.

Speaker 1:

It's already linked up in the show notes and the description, if you're watching on YouTube below, and you can learn more about Belinda and how she built her business. But for this episode we're going to dive right in. So, Belinda, hi, welcome back.

Speaker 2:

Oh, it's great to be back. I'm looking forward to digging into this.

Speaker 1:

Me too, you know. When you said that focusing on unique selling propositions to make you different is not the most effective strategy for attracting an aligned audience, I'm like, please tell me more. I feel like this is sales 101, like building a business 101, unique selling propositions that we all learn about online. And so to have heard that I'm like well, where do we start? How did you figure this out? That USPs just don't work.

Speaker 2:

Well, like this episode for everyone listening. This is your permission slip to stop worrying about figuring out what makes you unique or different. If you have something that makes you unique or different, that is fantastic and it's not that we need to like completely throw that out. But what I found through personal experience and through coaching copywriters is that we can often get really hung up on this uniqueness component. You know, Kotler and Keller tells us USP, UVP, the EPS, the elevator pitch, you all, they all have this and what makes you different component. But when we're starting out in business, nothing makes us different. We're just starting out.

Speaker 2:

I know when I started out as a copywriter, I'm like I'm trying to figure out how to run a business which I've never done before.

Speaker 2:

I'm trying to figure out how to be a copywriter, which I'd been doing in my day job but I hadn't done in a professional, freelance capacity.

Speaker 2:

So to then say and how are you different to every other copywriter in the market? Sent me into a spiral, and I know it's the same for a lot of other business owners and and they just kind of slow down and get stuck. So what I'm saying is just don't worry about that bit of it, like that actually comes with experience under your belt and and you actually have a lot of things that you can talk about in the meantime, which draws aligned clients and customers to you, and you know. The other thing to consider here is when that advice was created, there wasn't as many businesses, so now the barriers to starting a business have been lowered. We face more competition and it can feel even more impossible to stand out and that kind of pressure, along with this idea of like you have to figure out how you're unique, that's what keeps people stuck, stuck. So we're just going to move past that and talk about what you can actually showcase in your marketing that makes you draw the right people to you like bees to a hive okay.

Speaker 1:

So if I don't feel like there's something that really makes me unique at this point, hearing what you're saying, I'm like sweet, okay, like okay. So these, so these five P's of being choosable, how did they come about?

Speaker 2:

Well, it came about because for a while, as a copywriter, I wrote a lot of plumbing websites. I don't know what was happening, but I had a lot of clients consecutively that were all plumbers.

Speaker 2:

Oh, you really mean plumbing, okay, like plumbing yeah, we were just talking about plumbing before we hit record. But I wrote for a lot of plumbers and I did the same thing with self-managed super funds. It was kind of like I just had to write about the same thing over and over again and I had to figure out how do I make each of these businesses sound distinct, aligned with who they want to attract? And I was also had it in my own business, as I mentioned, because I was trying to attract clients to my business and I was thinking well, I'm not, I'm not different to other copywriters, I'm not even better than other copywriters, so I'm trying to figure out what the heck can I shine a spotlight on that makes me credible and trustworthy?

Speaker 2:

Because, at the end of the day, we're not competing with everyone in the whole world and customers don't want to go through an exhaustive search to hire.

Speaker 2:

No one wants that and they don't necessarily want the best and they don't necessarily want the most different, and that again is kind of like oh well, that's a bit of a relief.

Speaker 2:

So what they are looking for is someone who can solve the problems that they've got, that they have sold them for other people and that there's some kind of alignment in terms of values and personality. So those are the like, the three big things that fuel these five P's that I came up with for myself and my clients. And the traditional marketing P's are like pricing and placement and positioning and people and blah, blah, blah. What I'm talking about is making sure that you're talking about the pain points of your audience and what makes you pertinent, talking about your passion and your purpose, talking about your process, your proof and sharing your personality. So they're the five P's I found in my marketing and that I also talk to copywriters in my membership and stuff like that, saying when you talk about those things, you help people understand that you can help them, that you've helped other people and that there is some kind of alignment in terms of are they going to like the experience of working with you?

Speaker 1:

That's a lot of. That's great alliteration. I'm just I was taking notes and I'm just stuck on the pain point that makes you pertinent passion and purpose, process and proof and sharing your personality.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I love alliteration. So to come up with five P's that actually kind of really circumvented the traditional marketing five P's made the copywriter in me really happy. But you know those. When you talk about those things and we can dig into each of them in more detail when you talk about those things, you're building awareness, you're building trust and you're building likability and that is what makes you choosable. Not being the best, not being different to everyone else, not being unique. You want to be choosable to the right people.

Speaker 1:

I especially want to be choosable to the folks who are not comparing me to six other people that they've interviewed, too Like. If somebody's doing that, I'm pretty sure they're not a right fit customer.

Speaker 2:

Yeah yeah, and we all have that idea of of who we would love to work with in our business, but that person also has got to vibe with us. We can't pretend to be someone else in our business and we need to shine a spotlight on all the things we're doing well and in some cases that we're just doing and also what we're like. And you know, the truth is one thing I tell copywriters is there's a lot of business owners who just aren't very good. So you kind of just have to be not awful and you're already ahead. And if you go and take the extra step of talking about these kind of the way you work and who you've worked with and why you love your work and what you're like as a person, you really do stand out to the people who are vibing with what you're putting out there, and that's the point of being choosable are vibing with what you're putting out there, and that's the point of being choosable, okay.

Speaker 1:

So let's dive into detail. Will you please dive into detail, starting with the P that you've seen through your copywriter business coaching experience that is hardest for your clients to express. Which one is that? And let's start there.

Speaker 2:

Personality.

Speaker 1:

Personality. What do you mean? Why is that? And let's start there personality personality. What do you mean? Why is that hard?

Speaker 2:

because this is the one that makes people get a bit sweaty, like I don't, I don't want to talk about myself. That's a challenge. They also think that in order to share their personality, they have to constantly be sharing what they had for breakfast and things like that. So they have a misunderstanding of how you can showcase your personality. But they also have a kind of a natural almost instinct to hide. So it's easy to talk about the problems we solve. It's easy to talk about what we love, about our work. It's easy to talk about our process and it's easy to show proof. That's what makes these low hanging fruits of marketing. It's easy to talk about those. That's what makes these low hanging fruits of marketing. It's easy to talk about those things.

Speaker 2:

But then when I start saying, now I want you to show me who you are, that's when people start to feel uncomfortable. But the truth is, whether you're I don't know like whether you're an extrovert who knits in pubs or you're an introvert who loves hiking with your dog, those things create velcro hooks and I remember, I remember people with dogs, I remember people who go hiking. I remember people who love Doctor who just as much as I do. And because they're velcro hooks. If they're not the right hook, it's not the big, it's not a problem. But we want to try and put out some of those Velcro hooks Because, at the end of the day, if I have two businesses that, on the face of it, solve the same problems, have the same amount of proof, have the same price, they're ready to go. I'm going to choose the person who I vibe with, who I like, who aligns with my values and who I think is going to create an enjoyable experience. That is what it comes down to and that's actually the true uniqueness.

Speaker 1:

That sounds difficult because In my mind there's plenty of different facets to my personality that make up me. I'm thinking two questions how do I choose which one or which ones to I guess let be out there on purpose. And then how do I know they're the right ones?

Speaker 2:

Well, they're the right ones automatically, because that's who you are. Ones. Well, they're the right ones automatically because that's who you are, and they will attract. Whatever you put out will attract people who are aligned in some way with it. So there's no wrong parts of you. Unless you're a bad person, you're all right.

Speaker 2:

Great Kwejo, but choosing, I think, which aspects do you choose? Choose the things that you can talk to anyone about. For me, that's Doctor who. For me, that's my pug. For me, that's hiking. You know things like that that get you excited. They're good things to put out to people because they create great little icebreakers and conversation starters, things that you would be happy being in a public forum, and that's what I say to people. Don't share stuff that you're not happy to be public. You don't have to share your kids. Like I don't share my kids' photos, but I do share their ages and I share their genders and I'm comfortable with that. They're comfortable with that because we've had that conversation. But you get to pick what stays private. I share about my tea because I'm obsessed with tea. The right cup of tea is a big part of my day okay so and things like that.

Speaker 2:

They start conversation, they sparks. They spark interactions because they're little Velcro hooks. I try and put out things that might have someone say, oh me too, me too, I like doing that, or my kids do that, or oh, yeah, me too, whatever that sounds like. I want to share parts of my day in my life, that I can draw people to me that have similar and aligned interests, for whatever reason, and I know some really cool marketers who talk about openly about their struggles with chronic illness and stuff like that. You get to choose what you show and what you hide, but do you know what? When you put stuff out there, you get people going oh, thank goodness someone like me is talking about this, which is why I don't hide the fact that I have kids and chaos, because I know a lot of copywriters and business owners are running their business around their families and they need to be proud of that.

Speaker 1:

Another guest had told me that she was so happy that we were having this kind of how she built it, get to know her episode, and she couldn't mention kids because she thought and felt it was taboo to mention her kids when it came to her business and it was like that needs to change because a lot of us have kids and they're kind of a big part of our life.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, absolutely so. It's choosing things that you're happy to have in a public forum, choosing things that are important to you, whether it's the Pantone shade of your tea or supporting political beliefs. Sometimes we think, oh, if I talk about Palestine or Black Lives Matters or LBT rights, it's going to impact my business. And this is a really interesting point, because I've had to make an investment decision recently, like choosing a subscription service. I'm choosing one. I have one choice that aligns more with my values. I have one choice that's a lot better than my budget. So I've actually been going into my little internal trunk going what is important to me here, what's most important to me right now, and how am I making that decision? But what I do know is, the more we share what's important to us, the more we draw people to us who are aligned with our choices. They might not be aligned with a hundred percent it, but it's like little Velcro hooks you don't need every little hook to connect in order to have a nice stick.

Speaker 1:

Okay all right. So this is all quite eye-opening to me and I'm thinking I need to share some more things because, unfortunately, people I feel like they even when I have guests or if somebody DMs me, they're very surprised at basic tidbits Like I didn't know, you lived in Mexico and I'm like I guess I'm not doing a good job of sharing things that are important to me, because living abroad is quite important to me.

Speaker 2:

Yeah.

Speaker 1:

All that is to say like I want to know the next P that you see is hardest for somebody to share.

Speaker 2:

Proof. I think Okay, because again, a lot of we all get in our own way. I speak to when I'm coaching, like oh, but it feels braggy. It feels braggy Like it's not bragging, it's marketing. You need to show your clients themselves in the people that you work with, you have to show that you have solved these problems for other people and I hear a lot of oh, but it's not believable because it's all positive. You're just making up lots of stories about why you shouldn't share how amazing you are, and so you know.

Speaker 2:

I think that's one of the ways that I see people getting in their own way. You've got proof. Share it, not once, not twice, but on rotation everywhere you possibly can, because it could be that one review that someone goes. You know when they talked about how expensive it was or when they talked about what they were worried about, that was exactly what I was thinking. That's the moment we're trying to hit, and if you hide them away in a spreadsheet, you're missing out on someone choosing you because you're not showing them the proof they need that you're the right person.

Speaker 1:

This is good. Can you elaborate a little bit on a good way to share proof and a bad way to share proof, and when I say bad, a way that doesn't serve your business as well as it could?

Speaker 2:

Starting with the latter, I think it doesn't serve your business if you don't collect great testimonials, like I loved working with Quajo. It's not a great testimonial. You've got to ask great questions and you know one of the challenges is you say, can you write me a review? And I loved the experience of being on the podcast and I'm like, yeah, sure. And then I get into my day or I'm just looking at the blank page going I don't know what to write. So asking you know, what triggered you looking for this? For someone like me? What made you choose me? What did you enjoy about the experience? Three words that would describe the experience.

Speaker 2:

You know, are you happy with the results? What results did you get? Asking questions like that, that can put together a bit of a story arc. That gives you lots of things you can use.

Speaker 1:

I definitely agree. One of my favorite go-to is when I ask for a testimonial from an ad client is also, in addition to what you said. I asked them to share what hesitant. Like what made them hesitant about working with me, or sometimes a word, it like what almost made you not hire me. Like what were you, were you worried about? Because I find that that because everybody has their individual worries as we consider putting an investment in something right and so, yeah, so it's great intel.

Speaker 2:

You can make it easier for your clients, and then you can take longer reviews and put them up, but also splice and dice them. So, going to your first part of the question, what's a great way to use that proof is on your website, obviously for the service point, like for the service page related, but also if on longer pages, if you're raising specific objections, put some proof in there that meets that specific objection In your sales proposals, on your discovery call booking page, in your email signature, on rotation, in your social media, because what you're not doing is bragging about yourself, you're celebrating your clients. Yeah, I think that's a great shift as well, everywhere, all the time.

Speaker 1:

Everywhere all the time. This is, it's something that people need to do, and so you said of the five Ps and this is where we'll finish that the pain points, the passion and purpose and the process, those are easier for folks to talk about. But I really like how, in this episode, you shared how somebody can correctly choose, or just choose, the parts of their personality to share and then how they can talk about proof.

Speaker 1:

And yes, those will really help someone's business. You have a quiz that can give folks a shortcut to learning on what exactly they need to accelerate their business growth. You want to talk about that quick before we say goodbye, yeah absolutely so.

Speaker 2:

I have the copybiz shortcut quiz because in my membership we have this roadmap that copywriters go through. You start off as an aspiring copywriter, then you're a working copywriter, you're a growing copywriter and then you're a scaling copywriter. And each I think businesses, all businesses go through that kind of roadmap. Each stage needs you to focus on a different thing and so often we get stuck in the first step because we're looking at strategies for step five. So what the quiz does is it puts you, puts you in your right spot and says this is this should be your number one focus and there's a ton of resources as well just to help people get moving and not be distracted by shiny objects that are strategies for a later stage of their business so I can take this quiz and figure out what is the next thing to focus on to help me grow, and it kind of helps me filter through all the noise.

Speaker 2:

Yes, exactly All right?

Speaker 1:

Well, I'm linking that up in the show notes and the descriptions below. And, Belinda, thank you for sharing this. These five Ps I'm really going to be able to take away. I'm really going to take those two that you talked about, personality and proof and make sure that one I am putting enough proof. I'm actually sitting on several testimonial videos that I need to have edited and put out there on social media and on my website. So thanks for reminding me.

Speaker 2:

That's okay. I did want to leave you with one thing, and that's the process idea. It's a really, really important like safety is one of our most basic needs, and so when you share with people, this is the next couple of steps that makes them feel safe, also incredibly powerful. So if you have a process and when you work with clients, share it, because that's another game changer agreed.

Speaker 1:

It kind of is tied up in or it's. It's the same thing as communication yes people like to know. This is what's happening now and this is what's coming up next. And if you missed it before, this is what's coming up next.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and it's. It's not difficult and it will really put you over and above so many other business owners.

Speaker 1:

I like that. I think the listener loves that, and thank you for sharing that, belinda.

Speaker 2:

That's my pleasure, thank you.

Speaker 1:

And so, until the next time that we see each other, are you here for me? Be blessed, and we'll see you in the next one. Thank you for being here, belinda.

Speaker 2:

Thank you, Clayjo. This is a great chat.

Speaker 1:

You're welcome. You're welcome. You're welcome. It's a pleasure to have you. Bye.

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