Three Questions That Will Change Everything

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This is week eleven of a series where I'll be sharing a chapter from my book (Stop Selling Start Helping) each week. If you missed the previous weeks, click here to view all chapters. To learn more about Stop Selling Start Helping, click here.

CH 11 Three Questions That Will Change Everything

Want to break down content marketing into its simplest form? The concept of “Youtility” from Jay Baer’s book by that name (http://www.youtility.com) all comes down to a few simple questions.

If you can answer these three questions, it will change everything!

  1. Who is your ideal customer?
  2. What do they need?
  3. How can you help?

Seriously. That’s it.

Okay, there’s a little more, but it’s just details from this point. You may have multiple personas (ideal customers), and they may need a lot of different things; and you may be able to help them in a variety of ways.

The tough part is narrowing down your focus. I’m amazed how often I get an answer to the first question - Who is your ideal customer? - that sounds something like this:

“Well, we do X for _________, ___________, ___________ and sometimes _____________. We can really work with all these types of people/companies. Oh, and we also do Y for ____________ and ___________.”

I actually asked a new client this question recently in a written questionnaire. “Who is your ideal customer, your ideal audience?”

His answer: “future customers.”

Come on! You’re killin’ me!

Often times, it takes an outsider to look at your situation from another perspective. I love it when I’m talking with someone about their business and the opportunities that exist for them, and then an idea comes up and they say, “I’ve never thought of that before. I’m gonna write that down.”

Following up on the new client I referenced above, after a while, he came around to understanding my question better. And, what originally started as four primary audiences turned into five once we talked through how each targeted audience’s needs and challenges are different. An audience they used to consider one, was actually two distinctly unique groups, each with its own “persona.”

Remember, no one cares about your product or service. They only care HOW your product or service will help them. Focus on that, and you’re miles ahead of your competition – and in a great position with your prospect.

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