Services & Approach

I approach every project in the same way. It seems downright basic on the face of it, but it works. I dig deep, ask a lot of questions, and often challenge my clients to go beyond traditional thinking. I won’t write anything before I have answers to a few questions. In the end, I can take what may seem at first like a jumbled wad of thoughts and ideas and weave them into a word display that makes sense and motivates.

Who The Heck Are You?

First, I must understand the essence of your brand. That means experiencing it first-hand if I can. I want to know the cadence of your culture, how you behave with one another and your customers, what you believe in, and how you speak (your brand’s voice). I’ll research your company like a nerd and get to know your competitors as well. Fundamentally, I put your brand on and wear it until I feel it instinctively.

What Are You Really Selling?

Clearly, it’s important to know materially what you’re selling—what is the product or service, and what are its tangible traits. But the power in the selling message comes when you can answer the intangible question, “What are you really selling.” Charles Revson, founder of Revlon Cosmetics suggested that they weren’t really selling makeup. He said, “We sell hope.” In other words, what are the intangible benefits of your product or service? What do people experience with your product/service? How does what you’re selling make them feel after the purchase? When you can grab onto that, you have something to say that goes beyond just describing another widget. You have a motivational, emotional force that will be hard to ignore.

Who Do You Think You’re Talking To?

Knowing who you’re selling to is the only way to know how to communicate your message. Maybe you have more than one audience—in that case, the trick is to carve your story in a way that appeals to all of them without alienating anyone. Sometimes it may mean you speak to them separately, through different platforms (media types), but in broad-reach places like websites or television, audience inclusivity is critical.

Paper Airplane or Megaphone?

Finally, the type and depth of communication depends on what your message conduit is. Is it a social media ad/post or billboard (which calls for shorter-form, sound bite language), or do you need to tell more of your story (in a brochure, blog, sales proposal/presentation, or website)? Whatever the case, I try to keep it as pithy as possible. Consumers today are pressed for time and have thousands of messages coming at them like a firehose every day. Patience of the masses is at an all-time low. They want you to quickly say what you need to say in a way that makes sense to them so they can move along!

So, that’s it in a nutshell. Any questions? Let’s get started!