One of the top things that make a post not convert to clients (or even leads) is something so incredibly basic, that most people kick themselves when I point it out:
You’re not starting out your post with what your CLIENT thinks the problem is.
Instead you’re leading with how YOU diagnose the problem.
(In my post-writing method, mentioning a problem that the intended client is experiencing is the most common way of beginning a post – though I should note that it isn’t the ONLY way.)
If you’ve ever read online content that was the opposite of compelling, that made you “check out” or even grumble internally about how boring or long it was – this is a huge potential reason why.
And, as a WRITER of content, if you’ve ever experienced crickets after posting, or feedback that your content is “too long” or other negatives, this again could be the reason.
Of course, people won’t tell you that the real reason they find your content boring or long is that it leads from your perspective instead of theirs. 😉 Readers usually don’t think so deeply to know that’s the real reason, so they’ll say superficial things instead and you won’t realize what’s actually wrong.
It can be hard to tell the difference between what your client thinks is the problem and what you think is the problem.
Immediately spotting the difference happens to be an intuitive gift of mine, which I’m so grateful for – and it’s a huge thing that I help my clients with.
But I also like to do my absolute best to TRAIN others to think the way I do – and I want to do a little of that in this post.
First, let’s do a few examples of starting off a post with your diagnosis of a problem vs. what your client thinks the problem is:
1: “I notice a lot of coaches acting like solopreneurs instead of CEOs.”
2: “Your identity isn’t aligned with the actions you’re taking.”
3: “You need to master the skill of questioning in sales conversations.”
These are just a few examples of this little copywriting “error” – I’ve seen THOUSANDS over the years.
How do I know that these are diagnoses and not problems?
I’m going to give you a tool to know the difference – that thus far I’ve only shared with paying clients.
Here it is:
If you placed the problem into the blank in the following sentence, would it make sense coming out of your ideal client’s mouth? “I’m _______ – I’ve gotta figure out why that’s happening and how to stop it from happening!”
So let’s do that exercise for the three items above.
Would a client ever say, “I’m acting like a solopreneur instead of a CEO – I’ve gotta figure out why that’s happening and how to stop it from happening!” ?
Heh. Don’t think so, right?
Instead, they’d say something much more BASIC (the kind of thing they’d actually bring to you on a session and ask for help with).
Such as: “Clients always ask me for more time than they paid for and I feel guilty and say yes.”
Or – fill in the blank with something else that a client would actually say, complain about, or ask for coaching on.
So let’s try it again.
Would a client say, “Clients always ask me for more time than they paid for and I feel guilty and say yes. I’ve gotta figure out why that’s happening and how to stop!” ?
Ding ding ding. 🙂
What’s cool is that their problem PLUS your original diagnosis makes a great opening for the post and helps them to actually understand that diagnosis.
Like so:
“If clients always ask you for more time than they paid for, and you feel guilty and say yes, that’s you acting like a solopreneur and not a CEO.”
Although – as I think about it – “acting like a solopreneur and not a CEO” is probably not the DEEPEST reason why someone feels guilty and says yes to extra time.
And we want to give the deepest reason in these posts – just like we want to give the deepest/most bottom-line problem. But that’s a topic for another time. 😉
Let’s move on to the second example.
Would a client ever say, “My identity isn’t aligned with the actions I’m taking. I’ve gotta figure out why that’s happening and how to stop it from happening!” ?
I’m giggling over here. That’s such a “coach-speak” thing to say, it’s laughable to think of a regular-Joe or Jane client saying it in a tough moment of their life when they need help.
So, back up a few steps from when you diagnose a client as having an identity that isn’t aligned with the actions they’re taking. Before you diagnose them, what’s the PROBLEM they bring to you?
There are probably tons of examples.
How about, “I’m reaching out to potential partners for my business but they’re all saying no.” ?
Let’s fill in the blank again.
Would a client say, “I’m reaching out to potential partners for my business but they’re all saying no. I’ve gotta figure out why that’s happening and how to stop it from happening!” ?
Yesssss!
And again, pairing the problem with the diagnosis is a great way to start a post:
“If you’re reaching out to potential partners for your business but they’re all saying no, it’s possible that your identity isn’t aligned with those actions that you’re taking to find partners. Let me explain…”
And now, the third example.
Would a client ever say, “I haven’t mastered the skill of questioning in sales conversations. I’ve gotta figure out why that’s happening and how to stop it from happening!” ?
Again it’s amusing to even imagine a client saying that to themselves – because that’s a diagnosis and if they knew that was the diagnosis, they likely wouldn’t be so stymied as to how to solve their problem.
Instead, what the client would actually say would likely be any one of a variety of issues that are happening on sales conversations.
Such as, “I often get to the end of a sales conversation and the prospect says the offer sounds really great, but they’re not going to buy today.”
And now let’s fill in the blank just to check.
Would a client say, “I often get to the end of a sales conversation and the prospect says the offer sounds really great, but they’re not going to buy today. I’ve gotta figure out why that’s happening and how to stop it from happening!” ?
Check! Yup.
In fact, in the Q & A groups of various sales programs I’ve been in, almost that exact question has been posted many a time.
And now you can pair the problem and diagnosis to get the beginning of your post:
“Ever gotten to the end of a sales conversation and the prospect said the offer sounded really great, but they weren’t going to buy today? That can be because you haven’t mastered the skill of questioning.”
Although, similar to the first example, “mastering the skill of questioning” actually isn’t as specific and precise of a diagnosis as we’d give in my post-writing framework. The real diagnosis is likely even deeper (i.e. – what ABOUT the skill of questioning are they missing?) And we’d need to peel off a few layers to get to it. But that’s a topic for another time.
I invite you to really marinate in these examples for a bit and reflect on how you feel as a reader taking in the diagnosis by itself – vs. the problem and the problem + diagnosis together.
Can you feel how different it is when the post leads with what the client is actually thinking?
It invites them into an interesting conversation that’s going to be extremely relevant to them and to something they’re dealing with every day.
In contrast, when a post starts off with a diagnosis and then launches into describing that diagnosis or phenomenon, it can come off as academic, stuffy and even preachy.
And yep, it’s almost certainly going to feel “too long” to the reader, too! – because they were never really interested in the subject matter to begin with.
(Side note, even if they ARE interested in the subject matter, these “diagnosis only” posts can still feel tiresome to read. I surprised myself once by realizing I had no interest in reading a post titled “WHAT IS POSITIONING AND WHY MUST YOU GET YOURS RIGHT” even though positioning is a topic I’m really interested in and even coach on.)
Want me to help you clear up the topics you’re writing about and the beginnings of your posts so they align with what your client is actually thinking?
That’s exactly the type of help I provide in my 1:1 30-day program.
I also help with any/all other details of post-writing, of course, to help you apply my writing framework as accurately as possible to get pre-sold prospects DMing you for your high-ticket program and only have a question or two (or none) before they’re ready to sign up without a phone call.
And we also fine-tune your ideal client, your offer/program itself, and how you’re describing both of the above – including writing posts/emails in my 500-word direct offer framework to pitch your program (no more explaining it over and over on sales calls).
If needed/wanted, I also give advice on tailoring my organic audience growth strategy to your business.
Send me a DM on Facebook if interested in the program and we’ll chat to see if it’s a good match for what you’re looking to achieve right now. ❤