What you're about to read is a clear case for turning your personal story to sales during your next launch…and how you can start doing it right now.
Have you heard this story?
Girl starts blog.
After blogging for a few month, girl says she wants to make money and have her own online business.
So, girl writes ecourse. She’s going pro. She’s ready to play bigger.
She spends 3 months creating in her cave. She’s ready to share this puppy with the world.
So she sends out a few tweets – an email to her very small list – hoping, praying, fingers crossed.
Girl “launches” said ecourse – but no one buys, her list doesn’t grow, there are no side effects.
Except – the Girl wonders what went wrong.
Girl resumes blogging. Follows all the same advice.
Regular newsletter.
Guest posting.
Tweets.
6 months later, she tries again with the same response.
What’s missing in this story?
Well, there are 2 things missing and you've probably heard about them before – because they are missing from many people's not so successful launches.
Let’s assume Girl has an amazing product.
So far – we haven't heard about 2 things related to this amazing product:
She’s missing the why – the deep seeded – real reason she created her amazing product.
She’s missing the who this amazing product will be valuable for.
(And the girl’s audience and followers are also missing out on this too!)
So – those 2 things = no value is shared.
But the heroine of our story is a smarty pants. She realizes that 1 faulty launch is probably normal, but 2 in a row – there’s got to be a reason.
So far in Girl’s story, we’ve heard nothing about the why she created this product, what led her to put together such a transformative training, what she hopes to teach others in this training…nada.
We’ve only heard that she wants to make money online. Nothing more.
So Girl’s audience is left with no context, no reason for bonding with her, no supporting her – no reason to give a crap or buy her offerings.
This is an exaggerated story but is sadly very common when it comes to people starting out online.
Time to build a foundation – and do it with a simple little piece of gold called the backstory.
Our heroine needs to find a way to turn her story to sales.
The importance of backstory: 2 case studies
I’m going to take you back to 2009 when I first submerged myself into the online business world. At the start of my journey I was looking for teachers…the right teachers.
What’s important about all 3 of these examples is that I started to follow them – I signed on – bought a program, because they told me their story.
Marie Forleo
In early 2010 I subscribed to her list….not sure how – one of those magical moments you can’t quite track the genesis of…
The moment:
Revealing backstory mp3 that she shared during her launch of Virtual Mastery where she told a story about running down the street in NYC to make sure her fiance was okay. The emotion, the raw-ness of it. That got me in a real, genuine way.
The outcome:
Connected me with her story and showed me what I needed to know during those first moments in this world – that she was real. Needless to say, I joined the program without any hesitation.
Since then – I’ve been fortunate enough to get to know her well and work with her on the first 2 rounds of B-School and she is one of those people who is so dear to me and I joke about this – but it has happened more than once where I thought about her and she called me on the same day. Spooky but true.
Danielle LaPorte
I became aware of Danielle, followed her, read/consumed/drooled over her blog – all of the normal subscriber routes. But I never fully connected with her voice until I heard her recount her story in person at Rich,Happy, and Hot Live…
From the moment I heard the timbre of her voice, sharing her personal business journey, I became a lifetime customer – and I will go see her, buy what she has to offer because of the connection she made with me during that “speech”.
The story, the background, getting to know her in the right format – this changed my experience.
And – this is what you need to look for – the moment when people pay attention.
How to know if your story is worthy?
HA! Trick question. Your story is worthy. ‘nough said, okay?
You are worthy, what you have to say is worthy…and it will benefit someone in this world.
Don’t hold back. Be proud of your geeky, nerdy, dorky swagger.
When I was working as a pilates teacher, I’d often talk to my clients about how I became a teacher. They were curious, so I told them. What I focused on was this – that I had always been the weakling growing up – the one who conveniently got “sick” during gym class because I never felt like I measured up or had any physical ability. After discovering Pilates, I had a sudden realization of strength, feeling of grace, and that’s why I knew I owed it to other weakling, clutzes, non-athletes to teach.
Funny thing too – many of my clients came to me thinking they would probably “fail” at Pilates, but I put them at ease and was excited to see people who hadn’t dared to move – finally move. Not only did my story help me find the perfect client – but my story helped me talk to that client too!
Story To Sales Hot Spots
Your About page
This is the easiest, most obvious place to tell people who you are, what you’re about, your mission in life, and how your experience can help others. Check out my ever-evolving one here and also a little post on about pages too.
At the beginning of every video
Doing a quick – hey – here’s who I am and what do is a quick reminder to people about who you are. When I first watched Brendon Burchard videos, I heard his story about an automobile crash several times… and the way he told it every single time – felt new to me. I knew the story, but him telling it was important for me. Now, he doesn’t tell that story so often, but he always puts his past, his story into the videos, so we feel a connection with him on some level.
Author bio box
You’re doing all those expert-status building guest posts. Make sure to write a tight, thoughtful, real bio of yourself. Do the same with your Twitter Bio and Facebook About description. Check out my author box at LKR or Mogul Mom.
During your launch
This is the place where all your hard work and sharing will hopefully have helped people get to know you a little better. Share even more of you, your story, how you got to where you are in your pre-launch content and communication to your list.
Storytelling Isn’t about you
A few words of warning and a reminder –
First – you don’t need to be transparent about every single aspect of your life, but share specific stories related to what you are launching.
Second – not every life story in your library is going to be relevant to your business. Pick the right stories that show people turning points or an overall change in your approach which led to success.
Third – always ask yourself if what you’re sharing will somehow help someone – even one person – in your audience. It’s not about you – it’s about THEM and about the lessons they need to hear (and learn).
Time to write it out
Now that you see some pretty basic reasons why your story is important to share – time to spend some time figuring out what that story is.
It should be simple – it is your story after all.
So – here’s what you should do right now – think about what you teach, what your blog is about, what your mission is, who you want to help… and imagine someone is standing right in front of you who needs your help.
Write it out as if you’re telling that person your story.
To get you started here is an easy story starter – that people love to hear…
When I first started my business, I used to do x… when I switched to y things really took off for me….
Leave a url in the comments below to your about page or best example of sharing your story!
Ready to learn more about launching from the moment you have an idea to when people can click buy? Check out Fearless Launching to see if it's right for you.
Really great post! Funny, this is the very thing I’m in the process of reworking. This post helped me out a lot, thank you.
http://www.SalVasquez.com/about
Thanks for stopping by and sharing Sal – Let me know how people respond to you!
Anne, what a great post. I love your honesty and value your tips here as I’m starting my online journey. I’ve written Part 1 of my story but have yet to post it. I think I’ll do that before the end of the year though. I want to say goodbye to this phase of my life – to move on and get on with creating Part 2 of my story. I hope you’ll watch out for it as I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on it!
Thanks Anne, this really resonates with me as I am currently working on a video for my Home Page which goes into where things were 4 years ago and how things have changed, and what my site offers people today. I am also trying to cut down on the number of things I try to do at once … so thanks for the inspiration.
Wonderful post Anne – tell it like it is!!! xo
For what it’s worth…although you may have already seen it.
http://jeancompton.com/about-jean/
Oh gosh, I don’t think mine is up to par! http://www.kissyourself.com/about
Anne,
Thank you for writing this post. I included my personal War and Peace About Page.
I’ve been working like hell on finishing a course to teach women to overcome obstacles, boost their confidence, and keep going for their goals no matter what!
http://www.tangelaekhoff.com/sample-page/
Oooohh, brilliant piece.
I’ve just been given a chance to reach hundreds more people, and have realised that my site is just not up to it, and have been wondering what I needed to do about it. This is the answer!
Thank you, and happy new year!
claire
This a great post and it has inspired me. I will definitely be reworking my page. I am veteran entertainmnet exec and entertainment career expert. My site/business is about helping people break in and move up in the industry, but I realized my “about” story needs to be about my own frustrations when I was just starting out, instead of my experience as a hiring exec. Right now, it’s a 3rd person story and it could be a stronger 1st person story if I apply your advice. Curious to see if you – and/or the other readers – agree.
http://yourindustryinsider.com/about/
Hi Anne – I adore you and highly admire you and your work. I think I’ve written and re-written my about page about a hundred times over the past 2 years, but each time I get more clear about exactly what and how much I should share. http://tamishaford.com/about.
Thanks Anne. I needed reminding about why I do what I do and what I am trying to share with others and how I am hoping to make change happen in people’s lives – through the power of color, mood and space where they live – some people call it decorating.
Thanks Anne. I love synchronicity and this is a perfect example of it. I am in the process of launching a book….my very first solo authored one:) and this will help me highlight the way to share “why it is that stress is so harmful and causes despair and ill health. Also what you can do about it, so that your stress bucket is empty:)” I found your instructions very relevant and easy to understand. Ta
This is a great post – I buy for the same reasons you do: I like knowing that I am buying something from a real, living, breathing person who UNDERSTANDS me and/or my needs. I don’t buy from automatons or for people who seem to be only about getting my cash. Stories sell because they help form a connection.
LOVE THIS!
I have to say, I’m the “Girl” in the story. My about page tells my overall story, but I never once told my story in regards to my new program. Now, I’m running an Online Marketing Boot Camp for CharityWater in January, and I re-wrote the intro this morning to tell my story and why I created the boot camp.
Not only do I feel more authentic, but it was way easier to write! And, I have a whole blog post coming out that “tells my story” on Thursday.
This was the best piece of advice for me to hear, at the exact time that I needed to hear it. It’s like you’re psychic or something!
Thanks for sharing your story!
hahah Felicty!
I’m so glad it hit you at the right time… you know I passed on one of your recent posts that I thought was brilliant – the one about the different types of social media parties! So fun!
Thanks Theresa! I’m the same way- I need the personal connection first – then once they have me there – I’m done – I’m in… and I’m on their train indefinitely!
How cool – you are launching a book! Check out my toolkit if you haven’t grabbed it already. It’ll get you started with your launch planning. So glad you found this post helpful!
Christine, I’ve seen your site and you do such a great job curating content and finding some amazing images and resources for people. I want to know more about you now! Lead with you and your story.
You’ll be noodling that page forever I think. The main thing you can do when you get into revision mode is to think about writing it for the person reading it – what do you offer them? Derek Halpern has a great post about about pages and how they should focus on the reader – but still tell your story. Google it and you’ll get a ton out of that one!
Thank you, Anne. I will!
Hi Christine – I checked out your site because I absolutely love decor & design. Your blog is really great – I have to agree with Anne on your curation of content also. 🙂
At the risk of tooting my own horn, I think the social media party post is the single best post I’ve written to date. I’m glad you thought so as well – you have no idea how many times I edited it to get it just right!
Use that feeling you had while writing it, the actual practice it took you to get there – because girl – I think I agree! Something about it was so clearly you and so fun to read… I was immediately surfing through your site because of that one. And… make sure you keep on sharing that on Twitter/FB… !!
oh and also toot it girl! Post that link here!
You are such a great writer, story teller and teacher Anne! Thanks for todays post. It really resonated with me. http://devanifreeman.com/about-devani/
Devani – thank you so much for this comment! So grateful to know you and I turned my head up the hill > sending you my New Year’s blessing last night! xoAnne
Post your story here Jane! If there’s anything I love – it’s stories of transformation – whether it’s business or personal. Who doesn’t love a good “makeover” story? Thank you so much for commenting!
xoAnne
Joanna – great! I think it’s important to share your story – and I would only make sure that you trim the fat wherever possible. And by fat – I just mean – think about your story in terms of teachable lessons. Like 3 things that have changed which you think other people should apply/do too – that really caused a shift in you (your life, biz, or something else!).
I hadn’t seen some of these changes Jean – new header or maybe I just hadn’t seen it yet! Great job posting and sharing!
I love it – and I think you’ve got it down! Love the image and love that you speak to why people would want to connect with you >> how you serve others as opposed to what you do. Love it Marinda!
Tangela! Great to see you here… and you do an amazing job being REAL. This is going to work wonders for attracting the right people to you. xoAnne
Go go go! Come back + share your about page/story when you’re ready! I want to know how you take action!
Jenny,
Perhaps you can start off the about page with questions that you had when you were starting out – like a list of common frustrations for that person trying to break into the industry.
Like here are the questions you might have… and you’re in the right place if you want to get these questions and more answered.
I started this site to… {list goals of site} and make sure you know don’t have to go through what I did… or to ease the struggle to open the locked doors of Hollywood.
Jenny – side note, I worked in the industry too for more than 10 years – straight out of college…so I totally love your topic!
One of my current goals is to get more of me in my site. I’m working with someone to add video to my site, for instance, and I am going to start doing webinars on topics of most concern to newbies, such as on “The Big L.A. Move.” Thanks for your feedback and ideas. Will definitley use as I edit that page.
I initially wrote my “About” page like a brief resumé, until I realized that I wasn’t focusing enough on my clients’ concerns. So I modified it, but am feeling like I’m not free to express myself. How much is too much info? I guess I’ll have to read Derek Halpern’s articles, but here’s the link to my About Page after only 2 months of finally launching my website:
http://www.bijucreative.com/about. Thank you Anne for writing your post and sharing!
Interesting I read now, Anne.. I think my About page does a first class job but nor my home page. I’m seriously considering making a short video with my ‘briefly’ told story but the actual point of the video is to connect vis emotion. Watch this space:)
Katya – that video you made about launching in the Fearless Launching group – that is you… and if you do a video like that – totally raw and you… I think you’ll reach people. I seriously haven’t forgotten about it. It was honest, kind of spooky following you around, but I just got you all the sudden when I watched that. So I say YES – make a homepage video…
This is one of the things that I know about but just haven’t put it in my priority list to apply. Now I am starting to make sure I include myself in my blog posts, and will be revamping my about page soon. Thanks for the timely reminder!!