Shownotes
Did you know it costs 5x more to convert a new customer than to get additional orders from a past buyer?
And if you can get just 5% of your first-time customers to buy again, it can increase your profits anywhere from 25-95%.
These stats say it all - it definitely pays to learn how to turn first-time customers into repeat buyers!
On the show today, you’ll hear about a strategy you most likely haven't heard of before. And best of all - it doesn't cost any money, just your time!
Monica is a digital brand, marketing & strategy professional with 17 years of experience building global brands. She’s worked across multiple business sectors, from startups to Fortune 500 companies.
Additionally, she’s been hired by Google to coach their premium partners who work with eCommerce businesses.
Monica is Dutch by birth and Indian by heritage. Global by choice & education. A creative thinker. A dancer. A chai fanatic. A mom of 2 girls.
How To Get First-Time Customers To Buy Again
- The difference between your Ideal Customer and your Real Customer (and why it's important)
- Step by step, how to turn customers into loyal fans who buy more and tell their friends about your products, too!
- How to know what your customers really want
- The 4 questions you need to ask your customers
- The secret to building customer loyalty
- How to get stories from your customers
- The key to attracting people who resonate with your product or services.
- How to build an irresistible brand that empathizes, inspires, and captivates your customers
- Your 3 action steps so you can put all this to work in your biz right now!
- and lots more!
Tune into this full episode for the scoop on how to get your first-time customers to buy again and again!
Resources Mentioned
Monica's Contact Links
Website | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn
Be part of the newest Gift Biz Opportunities!
The Gift Biz Bash offers you the chance to get added visibility for your business - for free. Who can't use that?! But seats are limited. To see the dates and times and to grab your spot, click here.
A Gift Biz Boost is a free one-on-one strategy session discussing a part of your business you're trying to grow. Maybe it's the first steps to getting started, or how to attract more sales, whatever your current focus is. You'll leave with actionable steps to "boost" you forward.
Join our community of handmade product makers
Gift Biz Breeze is an active and inspiring group of creators at all levels of business development. Ask questions, see what others are working on, learn new things - it's all there and we're waiting for you to join us!
Finally, would you please leave a review? Thanks!
It helps other makers like you find the show and build their businesses too. You can do so right here: Rate This Podcast
Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify
Thank you so much! Sue
Know someone who needs to hear this episode?
Click a button below to share it!
Transcripts
Gift is Unwrapped,
Speaker:episode 394.
Speaker:It's that core loyal customers who are gonna buy from you
Speaker:again and again that are going to be the more profitable
Speaker:customers. Attention,
Speaker:Gifters, Bakers,
Speaker:crafters and makers.
Speaker:Pursuing your dream can be fun.
Speaker:Whether you have an established business or looking to start one
Speaker:now you are in the right place.
Speaker:This is Gift Biz Unwrapped,
Speaker:helping you turn your skill into a flourishing business.
Speaker:Join us for an episode packed full of invaluable guidance,
Speaker:resources, and the support you need to grow your gift biz.
Speaker:Here is your host Gift Biz gal Sue Moon Heights.
Speaker:Hi there,
Speaker:and thanks for joining me here today.
Speaker:It's just a few days away from Halloween,
Speaker:and the topic I have in store for you includes a
Speaker:trick and a treat.
Speaker:The trick is to employ the strategy you'll hear about shortly
Speaker:and the treat is what you're always striving for.
Speaker:More sales,
Speaker:we'll get to all that in a minute.
Speaker:But first,
Speaker:one of the most fulfilling things I've discovered through starting Gift
Speaker:Biz Unwrapped is the warmth,
Speaker:camaraderie, and generosity of the community that we formed.
Speaker:You're so giving and so talented and of course I always
Speaker:want to give back to you too,
Speaker:to do something that can make your efforts easier and your
Speaker:results greater.
Speaker:So I asked you how,
Speaker:and you surprised me,
Speaker:it wasn't help with an email marketing strategy.
Speaker:It wasn't about selling it shows or any other number of
Speaker:topics that make up a solid growing business.
Speaker:Nope. What you're overwhelmingly asking for is help with social media
Speaker:posting. You've been telling me that you're putting in the time
Speaker:you're posting frequently and you're discouraged because you aren't seeing any
Speaker:of this.
Speaker:Move the needle for your sales message received,
Speaker:putting in more and more time,
Speaker:posting in the same way isn't going to magically bring you
Speaker:in the sales you need to change the way you're posting
Speaker:and what you're posting.
Speaker:You don't need to put in more work.
Speaker:You need to put in the right work,
Speaker:and that's when you'll see things change.
Speaker:And I've created your guide to do just that.
Speaker:It's called Content for Makers and it's specially designed for handmade
Speaker:product makers like you.
Speaker:Content for Makers will help you understand why your current social
Speaker:media activities aren't converting into sales.
Speaker:It will also show you how to put in less time
Speaker:and start seeing activity through social that will lead to increased
Speaker:sales. Just imagine knowing exactly what to post and getting it
Speaker:done in just minutes each day.
Speaker:That frees up space for you to interact with potential clients,
Speaker:deepen relationships with those you already know.
Speaker:And all of this continues to build upon itself Naturally,
Speaker:yes, this really is possible.
Speaker:Content for Makers will accomplish this for you.
Speaker:To see all the details,
Speaker:jump over to gift biz unwraps.com/content
Speaker:for Makers.
Speaker:But honestly,
Speaker:at only $27 it's a no-brainer.
Speaker:Plus you only have to pay for it once for use
Speaker:year after year.
Speaker:Why carry on posting as you've been doing all along,
Speaker:expecting different results?
Speaker:Sign up for content for Makers now and see the transformation
Speaker:of your posting experience change right before your very eyes.
Speaker:Gift biz unwrapped.com/content
Speaker:for Makers.
Speaker:It's ready and waiting for your immediate access right now.
Speaker:Okay, remember the trick I teased about at the top of
Speaker:the show?
Speaker:It's about how to turn first time customers into repeat customers.
Speaker:Although you'll naturally have a small number of people by again,
Speaker:you can do so much better if you don't leave it
Speaker:up to chance.
Speaker:Why put energy into this effort?
Speaker:According to outbound engine,
Speaker:it costs five times more to convert a new customer than
Speaker:to get additional orders from a past buyer.
Speaker:And if you're able to get just 5% of your first
Speaker:time customers to buy again,
Speaker:listen to this,
Speaker:it can increase profits anywhere from 25 to 95%.
Speaker:How's that for a treat on the show today?
Speaker:Monica's going to lay out all the details.
Speaker:You'll hear about the difference between your ideal customer and your
Speaker:real customer.
Speaker:And then step by step how to turn them into loyal
Speaker:fans who buy more from you and go on to tell
Speaker:their friends about your products too.
Speaker:Stay tuned.
Speaker:This is a strategy you most likely haven't heard before and
Speaker:it doesn't cost any money.
Speaker:Just your time.
Speaker:So open your Halloween bag because we're about to give you
Speaker:a delicious sweet treat Today.
Speaker:It's my pleasure to introduce you to Monica Sharma Pater.
Speaker:Monica is a digital brand marketing and strategy professional.
Speaker:With 17 years experience building global brands,
Speaker:she's worked across multiple business sectors and with startups to Fortune
Speaker:500 companies.
Speaker:Additionally, she's been hired by Google to coach their premium partners
Speaker:who work with e-commerce businesses.
Speaker:Monica is Dutch by birth,
Speaker:an Indian by Heritage,
Speaker:global by choice in education,
Speaker:a creative thinker,
Speaker:a dancer,
Speaker:a chi fanatic,
Speaker:and the mom of two girls.
Speaker:Monica, welcome to the Gift Biz on Wrapped podcast.
Speaker:Hi Sue.
Speaker:Thank you for having me.
Speaker:I am so excited that you are here and we're gonna
Speaker:get into a topic in a minute that is really important
Speaker:for people to understand about their business and focus on.
Speaker:So when I saw that you were looking to be on
Speaker:the show,
Speaker:I was like,
Speaker:Yes, we have touched on this a little bit,
Speaker:but we've not dived in.
Speaker:I'm gonna keep everyone in suspense about what that is because
Speaker:I'd like you to share with us your motivational candle.
Speaker:So this is something that I've been doing for the seven
Speaker:plus years I've been podcasting and it's such an interesting way
Speaker:to learn more about you besides just through the intro that
Speaker:we just did.
Speaker:So if you were to create a candle that was all,
Speaker:yours speaks totally,
Speaker:Monica, what would it look like by color and a quote
Speaker:or a saying?
Speaker:So it would probably be yellow love,
Speaker:bright colors.
Speaker:And my quotas saying,
Speaker:Well, that actually changes by season.
Speaker:So currently I'm in a season where what I'm using a
Speaker:lot is a bene brown quote.
Speaker:Courage is when you know there is a chance you can
Speaker:fail, but you do it anyways.
Speaker:Oh yeah.
Speaker:Because so many people won't start because they're afraid they're gonna
Speaker:fail. There's this dream out there that just keeps going and
Speaker:never has the chance of even being real because people just
Speaker:stop themselves.
Speaker:Yeah. And it just gives us a permission that it's okay
Speaker:to be afraid as well.
Speaker:And that's normal.
Speaker:I think sometimes we say we're always telling our kids or
Speaker:somebody or the other don't be afraid,
Speaker:but it's okay to be afraid.
Speaker:It's just that we choose to take the action despite being
Speaker:afraid and still move on.
Speaker:And it's been a big reminder for myself.
Speaker:It's big reminder I'm using with my girls as well and
Speaker:it's really been helping me in the last few months.
Speaker:Is there something you can share with us,
Speaker:like an example that you can tell us about?
Speaker:Ooh, let me see.
Speaker:So recently I think it was,
Speaker:I would just finished a large project.
Speaker:I was working up with a client on a freelance project
Speaker:and there was a decision I had to make,
Speaker:which meant that I was only gonna work with certain type
Speaker:of freelance clients and which where I was only gonna be
Speaker:able to charge a certain rate.
Speaker:But that meant really clearly that I was gonna be earn
Speaker:certain time for a little while and I may not have
Speaker:a few clients for a little while.
Speaker:And I was really,
Speaker:really scared.
Speaker:It was like I'm taking a wrong decision,
Speaker:being irresponsible,
Speaker:what does that mean?
Speaker:But I've decided to move ahead anyways with that.
Speaker:And that was just a quote that really helped me at
Speaker:that moment when I read it to say,
Speaker:Okay, you know what?
Speaker:Sometimes you have to take those decisions and it's okay to
Speaker:be afraid about it.
Speaker:It's normal not knowing what's gonna happen next.
Speaker:Yeah. And we often talk about being fearful and jumping into
Speaker:starting a business,
Speaker:but the fact is this fear factor and being courageous is
Speaker:something that never goes away.
Speaker:Like you always have to call on it again and again.
Speaker:I mean I've been in business now corporate life,
Speaker:my own businesses for a long time and I thought at
Speaker:some point,
Speaker:Oh, you'll just nail it.
Speaker:Like you know,
Speaker:you'll be so confident with every single thing,
Speaker:but it's not true.
Speaker:You always have to just decide,
Speaker:you know what,
Speaker:I'm gonna try it.
Speaker:And some things work,
Speaker:many things don't.
Speaker:But it's the only way you can make progress is by
Speaker:not being afraid of failing,
Speaker:Not being afraid.
Speaker:And that's how you learn what works and what doesn't work
Speaker:and making the right choices going forward.
Speaker:We've all learned lessons from those things and I think that's
Speaker:what we need to remind ourselves and that it's okay to
Speaker:make those mistakes and grow slowly and that not everything will
Speaker:work in the first time.
Speaker:Yeah. And it's okay to be afraid and uncertain in the
Speaker:process. And I think you can look at your actions as
Speaker:experiments. This is something you're gonna try and you're gonna see
Speaker:if it works.
Speaker:And if it does,
Speaker:great. If it doesn't,
Speaker:all right.
Speaker:You've learned something to your point and so you'll try it
Speaker:from a different angle or do something different.
Speaker:Yeah, and that actually reminds me of another quote I use
Speaker:a lot with my girls as well is you never lose,
Speaker:you either win or you learn.
Speaker:There You go.
Speaker:I love it.
Speaker:You win or you learn,
Speaker:maybe both.
Speaker:Cause when you win you'll also see what's working.
Speaker:Exactly. All right,
Speaker:love it.
Speaker:So talk to me a little bit about how you got
Speaker:into the business that you're doing now.
Speaker:Give us a little of your story.
Speaker:I think the red thread of my entire career,
Speaker:I've done a master's in business major in marketing,
Speaker:went into the marketing and strategy and brand profession in my
Speaker:corporate career with Fortune 500 businesses,
Speaker:pure brand management,
Speaker:launching new brands as well as managing heritage brands,
Speaker:moving into strategy consulting and global marketing.
Speaker:But then 10 years into that I was like I was
Speaker:itching to start my own business.
Speaker:I quit when I had my second child and started my
Speaker:own online store bringing handmade curated products from India in the
Speaker:home accessory space here to Europe.
Speaker:I continued to freelance at the same time,
Speaker:but I realized that actually it was an old dream I
Speaker:was chasing.
Speaker:So this was something where you learn it was an old
Speaker:dream I was chasing.
Speaker:And what my heart was really in building brands,
Speaker:something I continuously did.
Speaker:The only thing what I decided to do at that time
Speaker:is to to niche down to both smaller business owners and
Speaker:scale-ups versus the bigger corporates because I love to see the
Speaker:action that people are taking immediately,
Speaker:the results that they're making,
Speaker:which takes much longer in the corporate space.
Speaker:And something I noticed a lot around me with all the
Speaker:businesses I was in the networks with is there were just
Speaker:a key foundational things that were,
Speaker:I found were constantly missing,
Speaker:which was really related to your customer and your brand.
Speaker:And that was what my strength is and what I'm great
Speaker:at and what I'm passionate about.
Speaker:So that's where I decided to just niche down and focus
Speaker:on that.
Speaker:I love that you've niche down to startups and the people
Speaker:who are scaling.
Speaker:I have had a similar experience,
Speaker:although I think from a little farther back,
Speaker:cuz I'm a little bit older than you are,
Speaker:but I worked also with a lot of corporate brands and
Speaker:you again seem to think that they've got it all together.
Speaker:Their systems are totally tied up and perfectly executed in all
Speaker:of that.
Speaker:And you end up seeing that when you're behind the scenes
Speaker:and you really know that that's not the case.
Speaker:And I also have always found,
Speaker:and you talked about this a little bit already,
Speaker:is that things take forever to happen in corporate where smaller
Speaker:businesses, even if you're a one man show or one woman
Speaker:show I should say,
Speaker:and you've got a small team,
Speaker:you can move so much quicker than corporations.
Speaker:So together with the fact that the big brands don't always
Speaker:have it all buckled down,
Speaker:I'm not gonna say nobody does because they've probably done business
Speaker:with you Monica,
Speaker:but some of them are buckled down but many of them
Speaker:aren't. And also things take so long it's like moving a
Speaker:boulder. These are two areas where as small businesses we have
Speaker:so much of an advantage over the big guys.
Speaker:We just need to know what to do and how to
Speaker:use it.
Speaker:Exactly. And I just love seeing the impact cause it's not
Speaker:just impact on their business,
Speaker:but when I work a lot of female entrepreneurs to seeing
Speaker:the impact it has in their life,
Speaker:that's what really inspires me.
Speaker:The change that I'm helping them make because it impacts them
Speaker:to get into even as one person business owner into a
Speaker:leadership position in their business,
Speaker:but also impact on their family the time they have for
Speaker:each other.
Speaker:And it's just so inspiring to see that kind of effect
Speaker:that I'm having on people.
Speaker:Yes, for sure.
Speaker:Okay, so I alluded to this a topic that we haven't
Speaker:really dived into in depth before and this is one of
Speaker:your specialties,
Speaker:Monica. And that is how to take a first time customer
Speaker:and make them a loyal customer.
Speaker:So often all of our energy is getting new customers,
Speaker:getting more exposure to our product from people who have never
Speaker:seen us before and not remembering that those people who have
Speaker:already opened their pocketbook or pressed the buy button are way
Speaker:more likely to buy again,
Speaker:have already experienced what hopefully has been a beautiful product experience.
Speaker:And through the whole sales process,
Speaker:everything has been so smooth.
Speaker:Of course these are the people that we should be talking
Speaker:to more and focusing on.
Speaker:Absolutely. Why don't we do that?
Speaker:It seems so obvious,
Speaker:but the natural thing is always get more,
Speaker:Get more,
Speaker:get more customers.
Speaker:Yeah. Because I think that's how everyone thinks that they need
Speaker:to grow their business obviously.
Speaker:And I think what we need to remember,
Speaker:it's going to be a combination.
Speaker:It is,
Speaker:you have to have new customers coming in to keep that
Speaker:growth, but it's that core loyal customers who are gonna buy
Speaker:from you again and again and who are gonna bring others
Speaker:with them.
Speaker:Like I say to the party to buy from you as
Speaker:well that are going to be the more profitable customers cuz
Speaker:you need to spend obviously to bring people in,
Speaker:but as they buy from you again,
Speaker:that's what's gonna really allow you to build a long-term sustainable
Speaker:business. And that's what sometimes we forget it costs more actually
Speaker:to bring in a new customer than to keep an existing
Speaker:one A lot more.
Speaker:Do you know what the number is?
Speaker:How much more?
Speaker:I forgot the exact number but I know it keeps changing
Speaker:with the online World.
Speaker:Yeah, but it's significant.
Speaker:It's significant.
Speaker:It's like 3,
Speaker:5, 7 times more.
Speaker:I mean it's not just even double,
Speaker:it's more than That.
Speaker:It is more than that.
Speaker:I'm gonna research and see if I can find that and
Speaker:if I can I'll add it into the show notes here.
Speaker:But that's always been the case.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:way back in my corporate life when retail,
Speaker:there wasn't even online in the very beginning when I started
Speaker:it was also the case.
Speaker:So this is a solid baseline issue with businesses.
Speaker:It always takes more to attract a new customer versus to
Speaker:keep the ones that you have.
Speaker:Exactly. Yeah.
Speaker:And the other thing is,
Speaker:and I think this is based on the business that you
Speaker:have, Monica,
Speaker:you may be able to tell me more on this.
Speaker:You're always gonna have some people who will fall off.
Speaker:So naturally there will always,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:even if you have a loyal customer base,
Speaker:there's always gonna be people who will fall off for whatever
Speaker:reason. And so you always wanna keep filling your base,
Speaker:but the focus should be on your current customers.
Speaker:I'm gonna even say first,
Speaker:would you agree?
Speaker:Absolutely a hundred percent agree with that.
Speaker:Of course it's gonna change as per the business you have.
Speaker:How often is your product one that there's a need to
Speaker:buy it more often?
Speaker:Does it have one where you can only need it once
Speaker:a year again or you are not gonna buy a TV
Speaker:every year for example.
Speaker:Things like that will obviously affect it,
Speaker:but the more you can build that relationship and keep them
Speaker:and even if your product is not something they need to
Speaker:buy as often,
Speaker:but if you build that relationship they will talk to others
Speaker:about it as well.
Speaker:Which is also a slightly cheaper way obviously to bring in
Speaker:new customers.
Speaker:So absolutely focus,
Speaker:especially in this current environment.
Speaker:I say there is nothing like focusing on your current loyal
Speaker:customers or help them become loyal and give them what they're
Speaker:looking for.
Speaker:Yeah, and we're gonna get into a little bit of your
Speaker:advice on how to do that,
Speaker:but I just wanna make one point about referrals.
Speaker:I feel like referrals,
Speaker:and think about this for yourself too.
Speaker:So any product that you've been referred to,
Speaker:your friend has said,
Speaker:Oh my gosh,
Speaker:you should try this product.
Speaker:It's so great.
Speaker:I feel like that if you think of like a football
Speaker:game, the ball's already at the one yard line.
Speaker:All you gotta do is carry it over the goal line.
Speaker:Yeah. Because you've already made so much progress just by a
Speaker:friend referring a product.
Speaker:So, so much value and a benefit to you.
Speaker:Like your sales will come in so much faster if you've
Speaker:got all these potential customers at the one yard line,
Speaker:they just have to get over.
Speaker:I know.
Speaker:It just saves you so much more energy and action that
Speaker:you have to take just from in terms of more,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:the cold,
Speaker:warm, and hot leads.
Speaker:They're coming in already as a warm lead.
Speaker:So you just need to make them like super hot at
Speaker:that moment.
Speaker:Exactly. Super hot.
Speaker:All right,
Speaker:so for repeat business and referral business,
Speaker:it all goes back to deepening a connection and a relationship
Speaker:with your customers,
Speaker:right? Right.
Speaker:Is this the best place to start?
Speaker:We're not talking about converting prospects to sales,
Speaker:we're starting right at the customer point,
Speaker:right? Focusing on our customers,
Speaker:Right? Absolutely.
Speaker:Focusing right on customers though these techniques will also help you
Speaker:with the prospect,
Speaker:but I always focus first on your Customers.
Speaker:Okay. All right,
Speaker:wonderful. So we've got a group of people who have purchased
Speaker:from us,
Speaker:we might not even know them,
Speaker:they may just be a name that has come through because
Speaker:it's been a sale online.
Speaker:Yes. Well that's where we actually start.
Speaker:That's the point.
Speaker:Which is what the,
Speaker:one of the biggest things I have noticed with anyone I
Speaker:work with or even speak with,
Speaker:I call it real over ideal.
Speaker:We are all out there trying to make these ideal customer
Speaker:personas and ideal literally means something made up in your imagination
Speaker:if you look it up in the dictionary.
Speaker:So people are drawing out these personas on paper without really
Speaker:knowing who these people are.
Speaker:So I say get to know who your real customers are
Speaker:first, which means having conversations with them.
Speaker:Literally that's how you make actual customer persona is through actual
Speaker:conversations with them.
Speaker:You can call them interviews if you want,
Speaker:but sounds too formal.
Speaker:So I always say having this real meaningful customer conversations with
Speaker:them, reach out to them,
Speaker:pick up the phone and get to know them.
Speaker:That is the starting point.
Speaker:Wait, pick up the phone,
Speaker:actually call somebody.
Speaker:Well yeah,
Speaker:obviously we email them first and make appointments and you do
Speaker:video calls or calls or you do face to face if
Speaker:they live in the same city.
Speaker:I don't care.
Speaker:But it has to be an actual conversation,
Speaker:not just a survey going out because that's the only way
Speaker:to really speak.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:just think about when you speak to a friend,
Speaker:you're not gonna just nail them a few questions and see
Speaker:how they're doing.
Speaker:You speak to them to get to really know them.
Speaker:It's the same way with your customers and you have to
Speaker:know who's buying from you to be able to attract one
Speaker:more of them,
Speaker:but also to be able to serve these people much better.
Speaker:Right. I love this idea.
Speaker:Like who would think,
Speaker:pick up the phone and actually talk,
Speaker:Right? I mean it's just think of any company on this
Speaker:earth that has been super successful and didn't know who's buying
Speaker:from them.
Speaker:Right? I'm thinking this through here.
Speaker:You would do this with your customer when they first interact
Speaker:with you,
Speaker:the first purchase,
Speaker:something like that,
Speaker:right? How long into your business can you do that?
Speaker:If you're just starting,
Speaker:you may only have a handful of customers,
Speaker:right? And as you grow,
Speaker:hopefully you're gonna have many more customers.
Speaker:Yeah. That are gonna come in all the time.
Speaker:So how do you work this through as you're growing your
Speaker:business? Yeah,
Speaker:so I mean if you've never done this,
Speaker:of course it's a great place to just start.
Speaker:And I would speak to both the customers who've just bought
Speaker:from you,
Speaker:but some who've already been buying more often and that also
Speaker:gives you good idea of the differences and commonalities.
Speaker:But otherwise,
Speaker:this for me should be an ongoing process in your business.
Speaker:Getting to know who your customers are as your business changes,
Speaker:your growing,
Speaker:your business is growing,
Speaker:your products are evolving,
Speaker:your customers are also evolving,
Speaker:the economy is evolving,
Speaker:the markets are evolving,
Speaker:there are other choices coming in.
Speaker:So as long as you stay on top of that and
Speaker:keep this as an on ongoing process in your business that
Speaker:every month you speak to a few customers,
Speaker:you're always gonna be on top of what's really happening and
Speaker:what they want and they're gonna be able to reach out
Speaker:to those customers for ongoing feedback as well.
Speaker:Okay. So in the beginning you can talk to everybody because
Speaker:you have a smaller number of customers and then as you
Speaker:get bigger,
Speaker:maybe you make a goal for yourself,
Speaker:you wanna talk to three to five customers a week or
Speaker:whatever it is.
Speaker:Even if you start a month,
Speaker:I think that's a great place to start.
Speaker:Yeah. Just you know,
Speaker:and then depending if you have a team in place or
Speaker:are you still,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:sole business owner,
Speaker:it's a little harder.
Speaker:So keep it per month.
Speaker:How many you'd like to speak to.
Speaker:Do you have a team in place?
Speaker:You can put a process in place where they speak to
Speaker:customers a certain time after they come in and make their
Speaker:purchase with you for example.
Speaker:But just keeping it an ongoing process that you constantly know
Speaker:who your customer is,
Speaker:who's buying from you,
Speaker:why they're buying from you,
Speaker:what are those triggers and barriers along the journey for them
Speaker:as well as.
Speaker:So when things happen like we are now,
Speaker:I see so much uncertainty in people's minds.
Speaker:Whether it's the algorithms changing or the markets changing.
Speaker:My only feedback always is please just speak to your customers.
Speaker:They'll tell you what they need.
Speaker:Right. And not everyone that you reach out to will be
Speaker:willing to speak with you either.
Speaker:So don't worry about that.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:your goal is just to get in contact with customers so
Speaker:that you can learn more.
Speaker:I love what you're saying here,
Speaker:Monica, about your real,
Speaker:the true person,
Speaker:which is what you're getting at,
Speaker:versus what you thought was the ideal customer when you first
Speaker:started. You know,
Speaker:cuz you have to put something out there to start with,
Speaker:but who is actually really buying your product.
Speaker:Exactly. So let's take this down a little more granular.
Speaker:Someone makes a purchase,
Speaker:let's just say online for now.
Speaker:Okay, someone makes a purchase,
Speaker:how do I reach out to them?
Speaker:Yep. Email you'll have gotten either,
Speaker:depends on how they sign up with SMS or email.
Speaker:But emails usually the easiest.
Speaker:Write to them a personal email.
Speaker:Make sure it doesn't go through the automated email service providers
Speaker:so that it really,
Speaker:they know it's really coming from you.
Speaker:Write to them an email and just reach out to them.
Speaker:Say, Hey,
Speaker:I've seen you've made your first purchase.
Speaker:Or somebody who's been with you longer seen you've bought very
Speaker:often. I'm always trying to work and improve my business to
Speaker:able to serve you better.
Speaker:I would just love some feedback and some,
Speaker:a little bit of your time to speak to you one
Speaker:on one over call or video call,
Speaker:whichever works for You.
Speaker:Would you be interested?
Speaker:And when would be possible?
Speaker:So write something in your tone of voice that sounds like
Speaker:you, that's heartfelt and genuinely is really like,
Speaker:I'm looking for your help to grow my business so I
Speaker:can serve you better.
Speaker:So you're doing it for them.
Speaker:Right? Okay.
Speaker:So very personal,
Speaker:just like you would talk to anybody or communicate with anybody
Speaker:one on one.
Speaker:But you're saying don't make it an automated email even if
Speaker:it's personal.
Speaker:No, I've noticed the you can do that,
Speaker:you can send out automated emails as well.
Speaker:People will respond but you'll have a higher response rate when
Speaker:it's personal.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:And you might also wanna target in,
Speaker:let's say you've added a new product to your lineup.
Speaker:So you might wanna target people who have purchased that product
Speaker:specifically too.
Speaker:So you might have certain questions,
Speaker:This is great for research of all sorts.
Speaker:I think This is great for everything that was at any
Speaker:stage of business,
Speaker:you are actually,
Speaker:you can keep using this add,
Speaker:especially when people haven't done it before.
Speaker:I always say,
Speaker:okay, like choose a certain segment and then send an email
Speaker:out from your email services provider,
Speaker:but then pick out a handful where you say,
Speaker:I really wanna speak to these and send those personally for
Speaker:example. So you can always do a combination.
Speaker:Cuz depending on how big your list is,
Speaker:it may be impossible to reach out to everyone personally,
Speaker:but therefore you can always do a combination as well.
Speaker:But people love helping and you'll see the,
Speaker:if they have the time they're gonna respond.
Speaker:Especially with small business owners,
Speaker:I've noticed there is this common link or some desire that
Speaker:people have to help you.
Speaker:So don't be afraid as well for,
Speaker:you'll be really surprised how much people love helping other people.
Speaker:Yeah. And they feeling noticed.
Speaker:If you reach out specifically,
Speaker:then that customer is like,
Speaker:gosh, they see me,
Speaker:they recognize me and they really value me as a customer.
Speaker:I love this idea,
Speaker:Monica, of talking one on one with a customer,
Speaker:but now we've got them on the phone or video chat,
Speaker:What do we ask them?
Speaker:Stay tuned.
Speaker:We'll be back with detailed steps of what to say in
Speaker:these calls after.
Speaker:A quick word from my other business,
Speaker:the ribbon print company.
Speaker:Yes, it's possible.
Speaker:Increase your sales without adding a single customer.
Speaker:How you ask by offering personalization with your products.
Speaker:Rapid cake box with a ribbon saying happy 30th birthday Annie.
Speaker:Or add a special message and date to wedding or party
Speaker:favors for an extra meaningful touch.
Speaker:Where else can you get customization with a creatively spelled name
Speaker:or find packaging That includes a saying whose meaning is known
Speaker:to a select to not only are customers willing to pay
Speaker:for these special touches,
Speaker:they'll tell their friends and word will spread about your company
Speaker:and products.
Speaker:You can create personalized ribbons and labels in seconds.
Speaker:Make just one or thousands without waiting weeks or having to
Speaker:spend money to order yards and yards.
Speaker:Print words in any language or font.
Speaker:Add logos,
Speaker:images, even photos,
Speaker:perfect for branding or adding ingredient and flavor labels too.
Speaker:For more information,
Speaker:go to the ribbon print company.com.
Speaker:So okay,
Speaker:yes, obviously the common introduction,
Speaker:get to know them,
Speaker:make it a friendly conversation like you would with anyone.
Speaker:Don't make it feel like you're gonna be questioning them on
Speaker:something really serious.
Speaker:And then I have four buckets of questions that you ask
Speaker:them. So we start with the demographics,
Speaker:right? You just wanna get to know who the person is.
Speaker:Obviously it's not the most important aspect,
Speaker:but it will help you with a lot of online targeting
Speaker:and other things that you do.
Speaker:Second one is desire.
Speaker:This is one most people will skip on.
Speaker:And for me this is one of the most crucial ones.
Speaker:Then we have the do and then we have delight.
Speaker:Oh, I'm excited.
Speaker:This is interesting.
Speaker:And I have a really awesome link I think,
Speaker:where you can download this so that if you are not
Speaker:able to catch up one and write it down,
Speaker:you can download it as Well.
Speaker:Okay. So I'll put that in the show notes for this.
Speaker:Okay. All right.
Speaker:So let's talk about each of these in detail then.
Speaker:Demographics, it's the basic,
Speaker:basic. It can be age lifecycle,
Speaker:life stage,
Speaker:sorry, if it's a business,
Speaker:it's a lifecycle.
Speaker:But as a person it's a life stage.
Speaker:You're and you know,
Speaker:married single with kids without kids.
Speaker:I would always say think about the things that would be
Speaker:relevant for your business,
Speaker:right? Is some clients I've worked with,
Speaker:they really want to know if people are a homeowner or
Speaker:not of their renting for example,
Speaker:especially in the home accessory space.
Speaker:Others would love to know.
Speaker:They feel like the kind of car you own tells a
Speaker:lot about you as well.
Speaker:So you can choose the elements.
Speaker:These are the factual information about the person that can just
Speaker:help describe who they are.
Speaker:Okay, so in this one I would imagine like we don't
Speaker:wanna feel like we're taking a census.
Speaker:No, right?
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:everyone is a little bit uncomfortable with revealing some of that
Speaker:information. So I'm thinking that you could talk about it just
Speaker:in a conversation.
Speaker:Like obviously you kind of know the life stage based on
Speaker:if you're in a video chat,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:you can tell approximately ages,
Speaker:certainly you know,
Speaker:younger versus older,
Speaker:you'll know if they're a family,
Speaker:if they've got kids in the back.
Speaker:So I'm feeling like in that very beginning,
Speaker:if you're talking to them,
Speaker:it doesn't have to be what's your age,
Speaker:what's your,
Speaker:no, but you just,
Speaker:Hi, how are you?
Speaker:Where do you live in the country?
Speaker:I'm in so and so just comfortable conversation,
Speaker:not question,
Speaker:answer, question,
Speaker:answer, right?
Speaker:Absolutely. Shit that needs to be an open conversation.
Speaker:You just ask them to start telling them a little about
Speaker:themselves. I always say introduce yourself a little bit first so
Speaker:they feel they know you as well.
Speaker:Then you ask them,
Speaker:and I actually have a technique there called story probing.
Speaker:So we,
Speaker:after the four buckets,
Speaker:we can touch on that which will help in how to
Speaker:ask those questions correctly as well.
Speaker:Okay. But just open conversation.
Speaker:But the checklist,
Speaker:you can have it with yourself so you know what areas
Speaker:you wanna cover.
Speaker:And if you feel some questions are more sensitive,
Speaker:you can always bring those at the end and say,
Speaker:just to end up the conversation,
Speaker:do you mind sharing with me?
Speaker:And then just make sure you have,
Speaker:And by that time they're usually more comfortable sharing things with
Speaker:you as well,
Speaker:Right? And I'm thinking you could also give them the reason
Speaker:why you're interested in knowing I wanna know more about my
Speaker:customers so that I can match new products that I'm creating
Speaker:along with your lifestyle or what's important to you at the
Speaker:time or whatever.
Speaker:So that they understand why you're asking these questions.
Speaker:Absolutely. Okay.
Speaker:Alright. So demos that's kind of easy but a little more
Speaker:challenging to get and maybe you only say,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:targeted on two or three of 'em,
Speaker:those are the ones you really wanna get.
Speaker:Anytime you speak to your customer,
Speaker:you need to focus on the couple of questions in each
Speaker:box that you think are the most important and will help
Speaker:you and the rest.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:if you're having a general conversation like we are doing,
Speaker:we kind of slide into different directions as well based on
Speaker:what they're saying.
Speaker:And you have to leave the space and room to do
Speaker:that as well,
Speaker:Right? Desire.
Speaker:Tell me about desire.
Speaker:Desire. So what we're always trying to get into is what
Speaker:I call the customer desire insight or the human insight,
Speaker:whatever you wanna call it.
Speaker:This is their needs once in desire.
Speaker:This is what your customer is longing for in life.
Speaker:What they are looking for.
Speaker:It's like this end state that they're working towards.
Speaker:It's not the solution that you're providing yet.
Speaker:It's not what you're doing with your products yet.
Speaker:This is really about them.
Speaker:What's going on in their life,
Speaker:what's makes them happy,
Speaker:what are maybe the struggles,
Speaker:what are desires that they have?
Speaker:And especially in the lifestyles kind of space.
Speaker:I think also,
Speaker:especially with people who make handmade products,
Speaker:you'll see you're not really always solving a problem as a
Speaker:you fulfilling a desire.
Speaker:What is it that they want and what's going on in
Speaker:their life?
Speaker:Get to know them still as a person on a slightly
Speaker:deeper level before you dive into things that are all immediately
Speaker:and directly related to your product.
Speaker:If you've not known them ever before,
Speaker:how do you get them to start talking like that?
Speaker:So, okay,
Speaker:so we'll jump ahead.
Speaker:This is where I use my technique called story proving.
Speaker:So just think about it.
Speaker:If somebody suddenly,
Speaker:even especially when you ask a kid,
Speaker:why most of the time they're like really stumped.
Speaker:It's the same with adults.
Speaker:It's so difficult for us to sometimes explain,
Speaker:we end up rationalizing,
Speaker:like we know that majority of customer purchases are subconscious.
Speaker:It's, it's based on feelings and that's what you're trying to
Speaker:get to.
Speaker:So therefore I always say is ask stories.
Speaker:Don't ask the why questions.
Speaker:You have to ask them stories,
Speaker:you have to ask them things that have happened in their
Speaker:life. You can't ask people to predict the future cuz nobody
Speaker:can. So it's really using stories as a basis to get
Speaker:to know somebody.
Speaker:So you invite them to talk about a moment that they
Speaker:really remember and they'll tell you a little story about it.
Speaker:And what that reveals is usually the most amazing.
Speaker:Interesting, Okay.
Speaker:This one feels a little challenging to me,
Speaker:I have to say because I just feel like someone that
Speaker:you've never known.
Speaker:I don't know that they'll tell you a bunch of stories
Speaker:that don't have anything to do with their product,
Speaker:but maybe you just kind of,
Speaker:it's available and you weave it in as the conversation flows.
Speaker:I mean all of this has to just be,
Speaker:every conversation's gonna be different.
Speaker:Some people will talk to you probably longer than you have
Speaker:time for and other people won't.
Speaker:So you just have to go with the flow.
Speaker:But the intent is to try and get that second level
Speaker:of the desires in,
Speaker:right? Exactly.
Speaker:And this is the one that most people struggle with.
Speaker:So it's really normal because you've not done this before.
Speaker:Obviously I've been doing this for years.
Speaker:So the first time,
Speaker:the second time it may feel a bit uncomfortable,
Speaker:but you'll be surprised at again how much people tend to
Speaker:open up.
Speaker:And it's also about how you ask,
Speaker:Like I say,
Speaker:it's how you ask that questions.
Speaker:And if I'm gonna ask somebody,
Speaker:Are you happy?
Speaker:Well that's gonna be really strange,
Speaker:right? Yeah,
Speaker:no closed ended,
Speaker:no, yes,
Speaker:no questions,
Speaker:right? No,
Speaker:but if I'm asking or say,
Speaker:okay, if somebody says I'm happy,
Speaker:say why are you happy?
Speaker:It's really difficult for people to describe that.
Speaker:But instead ask like we've all been through difficult time last
Speaker:year with the pandemics and anything happening.
Speaker:So you can use that as an inroad for example.
Speaker:And just ask something like,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:just tell me about a recent moment that really made you
Speaker:happy. When you ask that people will certainly describe a situation
Speaker:the other words might not and which gives you then a
Speaker:chance to pick up things from that and dive in.
Speaker:And what happens is with stories,
Speaker:stories are memorable.
Speaker:Stories bring out emotions.
Speaker:People will therefore,
Speaker:instead of just what makes you happy and people will list
Speaker:things, they will tell you about a genuine situation that happened
Speaker:in their life actually made them happy.
Speaker:And that will give you an idea of what's truly important
Speaker:for them.
Speaker:Cuz that's what they remember to tell you about.
Speaker:So it's really about asking the recent moments and ask them
Speaker:to tell you a little story about different things.
Speaker:Okay, so I'm trying to put myself in this place doing
Speaker:this and here's how this could work for me.
Speaker:Okay, let's say make candles,
Speaker:which no one's surprised that I bring this up as the
Speaker:example cuz candles are like my all time favorite thing in
Speaker:life. Let's say I'm at this question and could I say
Speaker:to the person that I'm talking to,
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:one of the things that's really important to me is that
Speaker:you get an experience out of my product that I'm intending.
Speaker:Like the,
Speaker:I'm wanting candles to just fill your life and make you
Speaker:happy and make you comfortable,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:all of that on a deeper level.
Speaker:What are other things or what's happened recently where you've just
Speaker:been happy apart from candles in my product and all of
Speaker:that. What other things make you happy?
Speaker:Could that be a way of doing like kind of grounding
Speaker:the question?
Speaker:Yes. The only thing what you're doing though here is you're
Speaker:already prompting them with a certain direction,
Speaker:what you want to achieve with your candles.
Speaker:Whereas what you want to know is what does your candles
Speaker:def actually really do for them?
Speaker:Okay, So could you say something like,
Speaker:I'm wanting to understand over and above that the candles are
Speaker:beautiful and smell good,
Speaker:What other experiences do you have with candles or something like
Speaker:that? So I'll give you a very concrete example what you
Speaker:want to know?
Speaker:What Yeah,
Speaker:I need a concrete example for sure.
Speaker:Clearly We are moving into though is the next box already
Speaker:because the desires is more general,
Speaker:right? Understanding their life.
Speaker:And the questions now we're moving into do and do is
Speaker:the next box where how do they behave?
Speaker:Whether they're doing within your industry sector,
Speaker:the kind of products product category that you sell.
Speaker:Okay? So in your case you wanna know what does candles
Speaker:actually mean to them or your candles specifically.
Speaker:So I would literally ask them,
Speaker:okay, you know,
Speaker:tell me a little story or a moment where you recently
Speaker:used one of my candles.
Speaker:Tell me about that moment.
Speaker:Literally, it feels really vague,
Speaker:I know,
Speaker:but you've gotta wait and see the response that comes out
Speaker:of that.
Speaker:And that's when you realize,
Speaker:and that's when people start telling you,
Speaker:they'll tell you about a moment that they actually use your
Speaker:candle versus what you think they would've used it for.
Speaker:And then that gives you the opening to dive deeper because
Speaker:then you can go into more specific and standard questions that
Speaker:you wanna ask.
Speaker:But this gives you a moment to really say,
Speaker:okay, so somebody may tell you,
Speaker:I for example,
Speaker:Oh I like my candles every night before I sleep for
Speaker:15, 20 minutes for example.
Speaker:That tells you immediately what I'm using it for.
Speaker:And that that moment is really important for me cuz this
Speaker:is the one I talked about.
Speaker:I may use it for more things,
Speaker:but this is the one that really stuck with me.
Speaker:And I'll tell you what I,
Speaker:I have this whole ritual that I follow follow when I
Speaker:do that.
Speaker:So, and that's what people will open up with with you
Speaker:and then you dive in based on what they're saying,
Speaker:you can dive in deeper into the various aspects that they
Speaker:talk about.
Speaker:And that's why I call it story probing.
Speaker:Cuz you're probing further into it based on what they say,
Speaker:but you wanna keep it as open as possible in the
Speaker:beginning. And once they talk to you more,
Speaker:you can always go to more specific questions down the funnel.
Speaker:Okay. All right,
Speaker:got it.
Speaker:I think I actually am getting this now.
Speaker:So that's all still under due,
Speaker:right? We had demographics,
Speaker:we had desire,
Speaker:we had due.
Speaker:And then the last one is delight.
Speaker:Delight is what makes them truly happy about the experience of
Speaker:say, shopping with you or competitors or alternatives.
Speaker:What will they even tell others about buying from you?
Speaker:So this way,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:the whole experience that they have,
Speaker:you've gotten to know who this person is,
Speaker:what are their real needs in their life right now,
Speaker:and how does candles,
Speaker:in your case,
Speaker:candles specifically fulfill that for them and then therefore what makes
Speaker:them happy in the whole shopping experience that they have.
Speaker:Okay. Alright.
Speaker:And so then what do you do with all of this
Speaker:information? Once you've had your conversations and you've had multiples,
Speaker:right? What do you do with all of this information?
Speaker:Then you've got some great stories,
Speaker:you've probably learned a little bit more about your product in
Speaker:terms of how people are using.
Speaker:It started to really be more clear about who your real
Speaker:customer is.
Speaker:So now you have all this information,
Speaker:how is this valuable to us?
Speaker:What do we do with it?
Speaker:Well, while you obviously pull out the red thread that's coming
Speaker:out across all of them,
Speaker:and you will find those,
Speaker:you pull out those red thread and keep doing these going
Speaker:forward in your business as well,
Speaker:right? And that's when you use it to really define what
Speaker:you stand for as a brand.
Speaker:Now you know where your customers are,
Speaker:you know what your product is.
Speaker:So how does that there fulfill those desires and those experiences
Speaker:that they're talking about?
Speaker:And what I use there is called the benefit ladder,
Speaker:which is,
Speaker:so most people focus a lot on what we call the
Speaker:features. So the candle smells good,
Speaker:the colors,
Speaker:what it is made of,
Speaker:but what we wanna say,
Speaker:what does that really mean to the customer?
Speaker:So we go into the benefits and you have different steps
Speaker:within the benefit ladder,
Speaker:and there's also a lot of research that shows that the
Speaker:more benefits you can offer on different runs of the value
Speaker:ladder, the more loyalty you build with people as well over
Speaker:the longer term.
Speaker:And what that means is,
Speaker:so you have functional benefits,
Speaker:this is what does my product actually do candle?
Speaker:Well, it lights up my space or it smells great,
Speaker:that's what it does.
Speaker:But then you have the emotional benefits.
Speaker:How does it make me feel a candle?
Speaker:I feel super relaxed and cozy when I like my candle
Speaker:so emotional and then transformational,
Speaker:therefore, how does it change my life?
Speaker:I'm gonna stretch it here a little bit,
Speaker:but say,
Speaker:well the more relaxed I feel every night before I go
Speaker:to bed,
Speaker:the better.
Speaker:I'm, for example,
Speaker:doing my work the next day.
Speaker:The more relaxed I'm with my children,
Speaker:the happier my life at home is or the better sleep
Speaker:I have.
Speaker:Things like that.
Speaker:And then you get to your societal benefits.
Speaker:So therefore what does that do for society?
Speaker:And that kind of comes back and links to your purpose
Speaker:that you're trying to achieve with candles as well,
Speaker:for example,
Speaker:which is,
Speaker:well, you know,
Speaker:happier moms mean a happier society,
Speaker:for example.
Speaker:I'm doing very vague ones at the moment,
Speaker:but I hope that gives,
Speaker:I'm trying to keep it broad so that people can understand
Speaker:how this would work for them.
Speaker:And then this directly links to your messaging,
Speaker:to your content,
Speaker:to everything you're putting out there,
Speaker:the ads you're putting out and the stories that you've gained
Speaker:from the interviews can literally be things you can pick out
Speaker:and tweak a little bit and use also in all your
Speaker:content. So whatever messaging you're doing out there in your content,
Speaker:your website,
Speaker:your emails,
Speaker:the ads you're putting out,
Speaker:that's where you'll end up using all of this.
Speaker:Yes. Oh my gosh,
Speaker:perfect. This is so perfect because all right,
Speaker:so the end result of all of this going through the
Speaker:four Ds of the interview,
Speaker:capturing the information,
Speaker:then establishing your benefit ladder of,
Speaker:again, four sections,
Speaker:right? Functional,
Speaker:emotional, transformational,
Speaker:societal, all circles back to understanding your brand in terms of
Speaker:who's actually being attracted to you and who uses it.
Speaker:And then once you know that,
Speaker:then it's what's the messaging look like for your business?
Speaker:Because the stronger and the more keyed in your messaging is
Speaker:you are going to attract more people who align with what
Speaker:your product is naturally attracting and then they're going to buy
Speaker:it more and tell their friends.
Speaker:Is that right?
Speaker:Absolutely. And if you combine the benefit letter with also what
Speaker:makes you really different,
Speaker:what's makes you unique,
Speaker:what you're basically answering is,
Speaker:who's my customer and why should they buy for me in
Speaker:simple terms?
Speaker:And that's what you then use.
Speaker:So you make building that irresistible brand,
Speaker:that empathizes with your customer,
Speaker:it captivates them,
Speaker:it inspires them.
Speaker:And then he'll also will keep converting them ongoing and building
Speaker:that long term loyal relationship with the content that you keep
Speaker:putting out to Them.
Speaker:Perfect. I love this so much and I had no idea
Speaker:that this was going to be so timely because two podcasts
Speaker:from now,
Speaker:we are gonna be talking about how to take what you've
Speaker:learned and make those words colorful and impactful and uniquely you
Speaker:aligned with your brand.
Speaker:So stay tuned for that podcast episode.
Speaker:But this Monica,
Speaker:where we're talking about is the first step because you don't
Speaker:need to create words against your ideal customer.
Speaker:You wanna create the words and experiences and all the messaging
Speaker:to your real customer.
Speaker:Real customers,
Speaker:yes. Oh no,
Speaker:this is like magic.
Speaker:It's back to foundations.
Speaker:I can't say that enough.
Speaker:Back to foundations sort of just trying to put content out
Speaker:there and just testing.
Speaker:And this will be more educated testing that you can do.
Speaker:You have the words,
Speaker:you have the benefit ladder,
Speaker:and you can communicate at different stages.
Speaker:We always say you bring people in on emotions and you
Speaker:urge them to buy and convert them on more facts.
Speaker:So what happens is when you're starting broader with emotionals,
Speaker:the stories,
Speaker:the feelings that you're putting out there with people,
Speaker:that's when you're bringing them in.
Speaker:And then the closer they get to actually converting and buying
Speaker:from you again,
Speaker:that's when sometimes they need facts to rationalize that decision,
Speaker:you could say.
Speaker:So it works together.
Speaker:So it's not that the features are not important,
Speaker:they play a role in the funnel as well.
Speaker:But remember that you bring people in on emotions and yours
Speaker:to buy,
Speaker:in fact.
Speaker:So use that interchangeably.
Speaker:And that's why the ladder is so important.
Speaker:You've got your features,
Speaker:you know what the functional benefits and then the emotional and
Speaker:transformational. So depending on what stage your customer's in,
Speaker:you can use different things to communicate with them.
Speaker:Fabulous. Okay,
Speaker:as we're winding down here,
Speaker:we know the whole strategy,
Speaker:we know the understanding,
Speaker:we know the details behind all of the different steps.
Speaker:What should somebody do right after they're done listening to the
Speaker:show? What are the three action steps that they should take
Speaker:to get this in play to start moving?
Speaker:Cause you know how it is,
Speaker:everyone can hear like,
Speaker:this sounds great.
Speaker:And then we get back into our business and don't do
Speaker:anything. So what are the three things we should do coming
Speaker:off of this podcast?
Speaker:Well, first and foremost,
Speaker:reach out,
Speaker:go to your list and reach out to a few customers
Speaker:and ask them for time to interview them and get that
Speaker:booked and planned in literally even to make it easy.
Speaker:Let's just start with three.
Speaker:If that's all you can do at the moment,
Speaker:just get three done.
Speaker:And from there,
Speaker:I'm sure you're gonna end up doing more.
Speaker:Write your questions in the meantime while those being are booked
Speaker:in, get your questions that you really want to ask them
Speaker:in those four buckets.
Speaker:And I have a very handy download for that to remind
Speaker:you what those buckets are with a checklist under each D
Speaker:so that you also know what are the kind of things
Speaker:you wanna be focusing on and you have the questions,
Speaker:then interview them and get the red thread out of those.
Speaker:Okay. And define red thread again.
Speaker:Explain what that is,
Speaker:The commonalities and that you will find across the different interviews
Speaker:for those different buckets.
Speaker:So in terms of demographics,
Speaker:roughly what do you see,
Speaker:what kind of person they are?
Speaker:It could be that the demographics are not the most important,
Speaker:like I said,
Speaker:but then under desires and due and delight,
Speaker:what are the commonalities you see in terms of what their
Speaker:needs and ones are,
Speaker:how they're behaving within your product category,
Speaker:where they're making their choices,
Speaker:what are their triggers and barriers along the journey and what
Speaker:really makes them happy when they do those,
Speaker:make those purchases.
Speaker:Okay, perfect.
Speaker:Perfect, perfect.
Speaker:All right,
Speaker:three, everybody.
Speaker:1, 2,
Speaker:3. I want you to go and find those three customers
Speaker:and seriously don't cheat.
Speaker:So don't just call your friends to do these interviews.
Speaker:Cause you're doing this for a goal,
Speaker:right? Like maybe it's one of these people is someone that
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:but just to get in the groove.
Speaker:But really what I think you want are people that you
Speaker:don't know.
Speaker:And that's one of my rules actually when I work with
Speaker:my clients.
Speaker:Oh, you're not allowed to interview any immediate friends or family
Speaker:unless you are a hundred percent sure you can convince me
Speaker:that they've actually been your genuine customers and not just buying
Speaker:to support you.
Speaker:And the reason being is I've noticed that really close family
Speaker:and friends,
Speaker:they're two extremes.
Speaker:They can either be so supportive that they wanna tell you
Speaker:anything negative at all.
Speaker:They feel like they'll be hurting you if they are telling
Speaker:you things that which probably could genuinely help you or the
Speaker:other way they can be so critical cause they feel they
Speaker:need to help you,
Speaker:that they get too critical.
Speaker:So you wanna really get to know from your genuine customers
Speaker:who are a little more removed from you.
Speaker:Those will give you the best insights.
Speaker:Right? And I think the conversation is already slanted to what
Speaker:you're saying,
Speaker:but you already know each other,
Speaker:so there's preconceived ideas on both sides already.
Speaker:But that could be like a practice one,
Speaker:right? Monica?
Speaker:At The practice.
Speaker:Go ahead do It.
Speaker:Yeah, That doesn't count in those three.
Speaker:Oh, you're tough.
Speaker:Okay. And so you've mentioned this download a couple of times,
Speaker:and the best thing for me to do is just put
Speaker:it in the show notes.
Speaker:Is that the way to do it?
Speaker:Yes, that's The best thing.
Speaker:And tell us one more time what's included in this download
Speaker:so people remember why they should go and get it.
Speaker:It's my desires over demographics framework.
Speaker:So it will actually show you these four D's that I
Speaker:talk about.
Speaker:It's like a checklist.
Speaker:It will explain you what the four D's are again.
Speaker:And under each you'll have like four bullet point kind of
Speaker:checklists, so you know the type of focus topics you want
Speaker:in each of those boxes.
Speaker:So you've done a lot of the work for us.
Speaker:So once again,
Speaker:no excuses.
Speaker:You can definitely do your three easily.
Speaker:Okay. All right,
Speaker:wonderful. Share a little bit more about your company business with
Speaker:Monica. So business with Monica,
Speaker:I basically help creative and conscious product-based retail,
Speaker:e-commerce entrepreneurs better know how to communicate and connect with the
Speaker:real audience so that you get out of that vicious cycle
Speaker:of Facebook ads or content and just not converting and work
Speaker:from a more focused vision that you have for your brand
Speaker:as a whole.
Speaker:So you do more one-on-one into a deeper level as we've
Speaker:been doing here,
Speaker:or just take it further and more handholding of what you've
Speaker:shared with us here today?
Speaker:Yes, lots of handholding.
Speaker:I work one on one with my customer because I go
Speaker:so deep with them.
Speaker:That's harder to do in a group format.
Speaker:So I have either through a six week foundational mentorship or
Speaker:people who want more support over six months,
Speaker:but work one on one and literally through this whole process
Speaker:of really getting to know a customer,
Speaker:defining your brand,
Speaker:what that means even for your product portfolio.
Speaker:And then define looking at your numbers and defining pro strategy
Speaker:using the knowledge of your customers.
Speaker:There you go Across the customer journey to make sure that
Speaker:you have a plan of action in place.
Speaker:Love it.
Speaker:Because if you don't know your customer,
Speaker:you might be working off of something that is then a
Speaker:total disconnect from the people who are actually buying your products.
Speaker:And I think a lot of us could be guilty of
Speaker:that. I won't say our but could be unknowingly guilty of
Speaker:that, right?
Speaker:Yeah. And that's one thing I wanna give.
Speaker:Don't think that you've been doing everything wrong as business owners,
Speaker:that's what we do.
Speaker:We get started somewhere and we start with some ideas we
Speaker:have and that's great.
Speaker:But now take that the customers that are coming to you
Speaker:as a the next step to say,
Speaker:Okay, I wanna get into the next stage of my business,
Speaker:next growth stage.
Speaker:Let me get to know who my customers are and then
Speaker:take it from there.
Speaker:And I've seen this time and time again with all my
Speaker:customers that everybody always had this thing in their imagination where
Speaker:the ID client was.
Speaker:And they were always surprised once they spoke to them in
Speaker:truly getting to know them.
Speaker:Oh, that's good information because I think a lot of us
Speaker:feel like we have it locked in.
Speaker:We know who our customers are.
Speaker:And so if nothing else,
Speaker:this will be validating that what you're thinking is accurate or
Speaker:time to change what reality is versus what you were thinking
Speaker:before. Yeah,
Speaker:and this from an idea they have themselves,
Speaker:which is great,
Speaker:but you can't build a business just selling to yourself and
Speaker:nobody is gonna be like you exactly like you.
Speaker:So you really have to get to know.
Speaker:So if you're not your own customer,
Speaker:get to know who the ones are actually buying from You.
Speaker:Monica, this has been really insightful and inspiring and interesting.
Speaker:I'm very excited about this.
Speaker:You've shared with us really how to identify and know for
Speaker:sure who our customers are and then also how to start
Speaker:enhancing that relationship so that they will be repeat customers and
Speaker:tell everybody else about your business too.
Speaker:Yep, exactly.
Speaker:Let's keep growing that business and build it into a long
Speaker:term sustainable one.
Speaker:Wonderful. Thank you so much for sharing today.
Speaker:I really appreciate It.
Speaker:And thank you for having me.
Speaker:Turning first time customers into loyal repeat brand fans.
Speaker:It's so obvious,
Speaker:but most people don't do it.
Speaker:Do you accept the challenge of trying it out?
Speaker:Only three people download Monica's guide on the four types of
Speaker:questions to ask your customers@businesswithmonica.com
Speaker:slash gift biz unwrapped,
Speaker:and make those calls.
Speaker:Yes, it will feel unnatural at first,
Speaker:but as with everything you'll get in the groove,
Speaker:then do it every month,
Speaker:maybe even more than three.
Speaker:And see your order counts go up and up.
Speaker:If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to show support,
Speaker:a rating and review would be wonderful.
Speaker:It helps spread the word about the show too,
Speaker:so it's a great way to pay it forward.
Speaker:There's also another way to get something tangible in exchange for
Speaker:your support.
Speaker:Visit my merch shop for a wide variety of inspirational items
Speaker:like mugs,
Speaker:journals, water bottles,
Speaker:and more featuring logos,
Speaker:images, and quotes to inspire you throughout your day.
Speaker:Makes a great gift too.
Speaker:And we've just added some new products for the season,
Speaker:which is my favorite design right now.
Speaker:It's a toss up with that gorgeous lemonade image and a
Speaker:quote about refreshing and the beautiful butterfly design,
Speaker:What's yours?
Speaker:Turnaround is quick and the quality is top notch,
Speaker:nothing but the best for you.
Speaker:Take a look at all the options@giftbizunwrapped.com
Speaker:slash shop.
Speaker:All proceeds from these purchases helps me offset the costs of
Speaker:producing this podcast.
Speaker:And now be safe and well and I'll see you again
Speaker:next time on the Gift Biz Unwrapped podcast.
Speaker:I wanna make sure you're familiar with my free Facebook group
Speaker:called Gift Bi Breeze.
Speaker:It's a place where we all gather and are a community
Speaker:to support each other.
Speaker:I got a really fun post in there that's my favorite
Speaker:of the week,
Speaker:I have to say,
Speaker:where I invite all of you to share what you're doing
Speaker:to show pictures of your product,
Speaker:to show what you're working on for the week,
Speaker:to get reaction from other people.
Speaker:And just for fun,
Speaker:because we all get to see the wonderful products That everybody
Speaker:in the community is making my favorite post every single week.
Speaker:Without doubt.
Speaker:Wait, what?
Speaker:Aren't you part of the group already?
Speaker:If not,
Speaker:make sure to jump over to Facebook and search for the
Speaker:group gift.
Speaker:Bre don't delay.
