Finding the Voice of Your Customer and Why it Really Matters - #023

Show Notes

You may have heard it’s important to use the Voice of the Customer (VOC) in all marketing and branding? But why and can it really make a difference in sales? Those questions and many others were at the forefront of Nola Boeá and Vajda’s mind when they sat down with their guest, Rebecca Batisto, Founder and Chief Marketing Officer on Demand, at Abask Marketing.

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Sticky Brand Lab

Marketing and branding strategies are in the works. Come have a listen!

In This Episode You’ll Learn

• Tips for finding the voice of your ideal customer (VOC)
• How the voc helps businesses hone their products or services into something customers truly want to buy
• Why you need to build a loyal customer base to stay relevant in the market and how using the voice of your customers helps you do it 
• The benefits of building and implementing an effective Voice of Customer.

In a study conducted by Bain and Company, 80% of companies said they’re customer-centric, but only 8% of their customers agreed. The customer voice is at the core of any successful customer experience. And when your customers’ expectations of the product or service you’re offering matches with their experience, the result is a satisfied customer, and often a loyal one at that. As Lori and Nola quickly understood many aspiring side hustlers and solopreneurs miss the mark on creating relevant content that resonates with their customers and prospects. By shifting your business focus towards a more customer-centric model, you not only demonstrate you’re listening and acting on what your customers are telling you, you also gain a competitive advantage.

• (5:22.56) Using the right words, the words your customers use builds trust and loyalty. 
• (7:50.10) It’s no longer about ‘What’s In It For Me’ (WIIFM) that customers pay attention to, it’s now MMFI. 
• (8:25.28) This is the most important word in customer messaging and too many businesses don’t use it. 
• (10:42:17) The 3 most common mistakes aspiring side hustlers make when writing their own content for their websites, social media and marketing collateral.
• (13:29.15) Try these simple tips, techniques and hacks to DIY website content that resonates with your target customer. 
• (16:46:57) The best places to ‘data mine’ your competition to get the copywriting advantage.
• (18:05:43) This simple hack will help you write website copy that is sure to connect with your target audience.

Resources
This episode was supported by: Be-YOU-nique
​
Bain and Company research: https://media.bain.com/bainweb/PDFs/cms/hotTopics/closingdeliverygap.pdf 

Transcript

Lori: [00:00:00] When most entrepreneurs have an idea for a business, they immediately go to work on designing a logo, launching a website and putting content on it, then search for customers. So what's the problem. When you build your business around your idea, your ideal customer becomes the afterthought.

The right way to build a business is to deeply understand your customer and not just any customer, your ideal customer. Now, how do you do that? That is what we're going to be talking about on today's show. So come join us and find out why you need to understand the language of your ideal customer first.

Announcer: [00:00:36] You're listening to the Sticky Brand Lab podcast, where time strapped professionals, like you learn how to create a business you love in as little as three hours a week.

Nola: [00:00:48] Do you remember the movie, pretty woman? In the movie, Julia Roberts' character. Vivian Ward is out with Richard Gere's character, Edward at a polo match. And she's embarrassed when she doesn't know which fork to use or how to carry herself. So what's the point with the movie reference? Well, let's just say she did not relate to her audience and therefore they really couldn't relate to her. You see, if you want to demonstrate that you understand your ideal customers, you have to make them feel you're talking directly to them. You're in their head, understanding their pain and even speaking their language.

Hello and welcome aspiring side hustlers, Nola and Lori here with an insider's guide to writing content that attracts prospects and converts them into customers in this episode of Sticky Brand Lab. But before we show you how to speak to the head and heart of your ideal customer, be sure to subscribe to our podcast on Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts that way you'll never miss out on any of our weekly helpful, informative, and always opinionated podcasts. Now let's get this captivating rhetoric show started.

Lori: [00:01:57] All great written communication has one thing in common. It resonates with you.  As a business owner, when you know who the customer is that you want to attract and are confident that your website and all of your marketing and branding material are focused on the right individuals, you have an advantage over your competition. Not only that you're helping your business grow by generating leads that convert into paying customers. And that's the message our guest Rebecca wants to make abundantly clear. Yes, words matter, and they matter most to the customer, the real person, your growing business wants to help.  That's why Rebecca Battisto, founder, and chief marketing officer on demand at Abask Marketing works with business and business owners of all sizes.  Her company works with some of the biggest fortune 100 companies to develop their content marketing and public relations strategies and turn them into actionable goals that attract, engage and create loyal clients. Rebecca, doesn't only work with enterprise companies. Through her service untangled writer. She helps people from all over successfully break into the business of freelance writing, providing resources, templates, courses, and coaching. Welcome Rebecca. Woo.

Rebecca: [00:03:14] Thank you so much for having me.

Lori: [00:03:20] As the saying goes, the pen is mightier than the sword. Today, that could be the keyboard is mightier than the sword words definitely matter. And for you, Rebecca, you've made a livelihood with words. You write regularly, and you've told us just how passionate you are about it. Can you tell us, how did you become interested in the topic of businesses speaking the language of their customers?

Rebecca: [00:03:45] So this is a topic that has probably always fascinated me. I don't really think that there was a start date, but, um, I think when I got to do my bachelor's degree, I took a bachelor's degree in journalism. And that just that snippet of information, that what we say can really persuade other people or what we write can really persuade other people that is something that they focus on in journalism, because you are not supposed to persuade other people when you have a journalism background.

And so based on that, I started studying propaganda and it kind of led me down a different path. And so I went from that bachelor's degree to a master's degree in rhetoric and started learning how certain words, persuade people in how session was trigger feelings and emotions. And I did a lot of studying to get too down and dirty in the nitty-gritties of it all, but. I loved studying propaganda from the media. I loved studying how even songs during times, like, um, the Vietnam war really affected the counterculture and how it like made people get out and march and believe in session things.

Nola: [00:04:57] Well, that's, that's fascinating, so far you've been talking about, you know, the propaganda and song and on a mass level. How these things will, motivate the masses. But, can you tell us why it's important to use the words or specific language that your target customer uses as opposed to using words or language that speaks to a general audience?

Rebecca: [00:05:22] Yeah, sure. So we call this VOC and it's a very copywriting terms, the voice of the customer, and you want to use the voice of the customer because it helps first of all, to attract yourself to the customer. So it's just like a first date, right? When you're on a first date, if you're not using the same words, you kind of noticed that there is a difference between you and the person you're trying to meet and get along with, and you already get that feeling like we're not jelling. And so if you use the same words, the same terminology, you start to gel and your words start to come together. So that's how you attract the customer. By using their words. Um, you also make that connection to them. They start to trust you and they start to believe in you. So when they ask you for your price, then there's that feeling that you are trustworthy and you're worth that money. And that's what the whole point of using the voice of the customer comes down to, is that value, making sure that you are showing your own value to the customer. So I know we're going to talk a little bit more about how to get to the voice of the customer.

But one of the things that I was taught right from the beginning, when I first started my career with AutoNation was when we're selling to someone, you have to think about what's in it for me. And that's not you that's the customer. He or she is listening to you and they're thinking, yeah, great. You can do all this stuff. What's in it for me? How does this help me? And so that's finding those words to respond to that question, whether it's actually spoken or not, that's finding the voice of your customer using their words.

Nola: [00:07:12] You mentioned what's in it for me and in my a copywriting background,   understood it, that the audience has always tuned into the station. W I I F M.

Rebecca: [00:07:23] Yeah.

Lori: [00:07:27] That's good.

Nola: [00:07:30] If it's not telling what's in it for me as I, as a customer, then, you know, um, this person is on the wrong station. They're broadcasting from the wrong station, basically.

Rebecca: [00:07:40] Yeah, that's a great analogy.

Lori: [00:07:42] I have, , definitely heard what's in it for me, but I recently heard a new, a new station, which is, um, M M F I make me feel important

Rebecca: [00:07:54] I'm so happy. You mentioned that because this is a big thing now with everybody being digital, especially now that more people are remote working than ever. Everybody is so slammed with these voices, whether it's the social media or like we were talking about the news media or all of these things are just flying at us and to break through that noise and make the connection with your potential customer, you have to do that.
Because we don't, we don't feel important. We feel overwhelmed by all of this noise and along the same lines, we say that the most important word in copywriting is you.

Nola: [00:08:37] Yes.

Rebecca: [00:08:38] So when we try to write anything we say you, or if we can use somebody's last name, that's even better. You were talking to you. This is how this is going to make your life easier.

Nola: [00:08:50] When we come back, Rebecca, we would love to get inside your head and get your advice and feedback on common mistakes entrepreneurs make in their DIY approach to writing website content as well as tips for improving marketing material.

Ad Spot: [00:09:04] Are you an aspiring entrepreneur, who's ready to share your vision with the world, but you're not sure exactly what that would look like? Or do you just want a safe soundboard to help you evaluate your top business ideas? Then Be You-nique session is just what you're looking for. This two part clarity session is customized and based on your individual goals and experience. Together, we will help you determine your ideal business niche, target audience, and strategy. You'll leave the session with a realistic timeline and a set of small step, big win goals that make sense for you and your lifestyle. Sign up today for a free 20 minute consultation@stickybrandlab.com / shop.

Lori: [00:09:45] Welcome back to Sticky Brand Lab, where we show you how to turn your knowledge, passion, and great idea into an income stream so you can create a business and lifestyle you're excited about. Rebecca. When I first moved from Colorado to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, I felt like a foreigner in a foreign land.

I didn't know my way around. I didn't even have clothing for the South Florida lifestyle. I felt so out of place. And I was reminded of that because I recently saw a picture where we were all together and you and somebody else had, these strapless dresses on. And I had this, uh, shirt on over a tank top and I think that that analogy is often what happens when a prospective customer comes to a website and they see messaging that totally does not relate to them in any way, shape or form. They feel like they've landed on the wrong page. can you tell us what are some of the common mistakes people writing on behalf of their business make when they're trying to communicate to their customer?

Rebecca: [00:10:56] Overall people focus too much on themselves when they're writing their website. Here's what we do. And of course, that's important, but. I think what is more important is what is the intended value? Like what happens when you do what you do? What is the result of what you do? So again, um, people are going to spend money on whatever it is that you do, what will they get back? What's the feeling that they're going to have? What's the outcome? Like what, how will that then lead into other things? Like talk to them about that.

 I think another thing that people do at the moment is they may not know a lot about search engine optimization. And this is a new topic. I don't want to get too involved in SEO, but I will say but quite often SEO and the voice of the customer. So it let's go all funny and go SEO and VOC are intertwined more than you realize. So the reason that search engine optimization works is because Google thinks what is your customer searching for? And if you're using the same words that your customer is using, then you're going to match. Google is going to match you with your customer. So finding them, those words is going to help you in every way. Not only are you talking directly to your client using the right words, that help them trust you and believe in you and feel like there's a connection, but you'll also reach them easier because Google will deliver your website directly to them because you're using their words same way as they searched for. So going back to the what's, the main mistake thing they do is they. People try to explain the service more than the value of the service.

Lori: [00:12:52] I think of your earlier analogy about being on a date. And I think about a bad date is when the other person talks about themselves all the time. And doesn't ask any questions about you. And I often when I get to a website and the company talks about uses their name, they somehow think that SEO relates to, if they put their name in the copy all the time, that somehow that will elevate them up in being found.

Rebecca: [00:13:20] Yeah, there's no, one's really searching for their company that way. And if they are, they're going to get found anyway, like that's easy to find.

Nola: [00:13:29] So why don't we switch gears a little bit? so as a business owner, listening to this podcast and who does want to write their own content with the goal of having prospective customers come to their website and go, okay, yes, this is exactly how I feel. OMG. So what tips with that goal? What, you know, what, what techniques or hacks can you offer that, would help them to find the actual words that their ideal customer would use?

Rebecca: [00:14:05] Depending on the client that we're working with, we start by doing what we call data mining, and that's what everyone calls it. I don't know why I said we call it. We do.

Lori: [00:14:16] what is that? Cause it sounds terrible.

Rebecca: [00:14:21] Absolutely not because if you are somebody who likes to write, which hopefully you are, then you'll like researching as well. And that's all, this is data mining is when you look for the right words that the customer is using. And so there's several ways that you can do this. The most obvious would be talking to a potential client, right? Once you talk to that client, you figure out the words that you use and the words that they used, and you figure out which ones matched, which ones didn't work and you start taking notes. So that's the first place and the easiest place to get the right data. I have to say, you have to take notes. Just have a notebook all the time. Take copious notes.

Nola: [00:15:04]  You have to listen to them with an ear for not only the information they're conveying to you, but also the words that they're using to convey that information.

Lori: [00:15:15] Do you have any example that you could use? Like an example of if I were writing and I didn't do that. W how I might write versus if I were talking and listening and making notes, the word substitute, for example, that I might use.

Rebecca: [00:15:35] So I'm not sure if this is going to answer your question, but one of the things that we do, when we first started trying to work with a new client, we will go to the competitor's website and take notes there, figure out what words they use that are driving traffic.

Then we'll go to a competitors’ review site, like either on Google and check the reviews there, or look for what are people saying on Facebook or Instagram about them, and we'll write down those words. And the words quite often, the words that they get in there, negative reviews are the words that they're missing. So let's say company a has hired us to do, um, their copywriting, but they don't have any clients yet. So we will find their competitor who has company B. And we will go to Google and company B got a one-star review on Google and it tells you where they missed the mark. And usually, those words are the words that they are not using in their copywriting. So we will use them.

So where do we data mine? We data mine in competitors' websites, competitor's reviews, those interviews that we talked about, any trial and error, like when we make mistakes, we make sure that we make note of what that mistake was, because those are incredibly valuable. And then sometimes we send out surveys as well.

So for example, we have a customer that, um, works with the logistics industry. Some of their clients say that they're in the logistics industry. Some of them say that they're in light industrial. So we ask and we try to find out who says what and use the words that they, the majority of them use.

Nola: [00:17:28] So, okay. Bringing it back to W I I F M.  how, how then do I apply this information? What do I do next to make sure I’m getting the results I want?

Rebecca: [00:17:39] Okay, so great question. So when we talk about how to start writing a landing page, for example, so we've done the research we have, like you said, we've looked at the competitors, we've looked at reviews, we've maybe interviewed some potential clients. We've got our notebook and we've got all these words.

What I love to do before I start really getting into the writing of the website. I will write a letter and I think about my potential client and I think about, okay, I try to get it as, as narrowed down as possible. Is this a woman? How old is this person, where did they live? What are, what problem am I trying to solve for them? So I write that down. Then I write that person and I usually give them a name. I write that person a letter, and I tell them in the most honest, most, empathetic way that I can, why they should buy this product or service.

And at the end, I give them their call to action. So instead of saying, thanks so much, love Rebecca, I will write, so if I've really engaged, you are really interested you in this here is how you take the next step. That's your call to action. If you don't have that, you haven't really closed the deal, or even tried to close the deal. So that's how I start. I write that letter. Now, depending if my target audience was a man or a woman, or, you know, if I don't know that, right, you'll have some ideas in your head of who you can send this to, that would be able to read it and match your customer's thoughts.

So for my, for myself, I think of my husband for that very masculine. And I know I'm stereotyping, but you kind of have to put your target audience into buckets until you really know them. So I, I think of that very masculine, very straightforward personality. And I sent that to him and I asked him, read through it. What did you think? What questions do you have? And sometimes I will offer him suggestions. Did this make you feel good? Did this, make you feel like you wanted to take action? Did this lay out the service correctly? Were you, was it clear? Was it concise? Was it too wordy? How did it just ask them all these questions? And I do that to my husband. If it's a very masculine sensibility, sometimes I'll do it to my mother  so that's how I get started. That way. I know I'm not just jumping in. It gives me a kind of an outline for my website or my brochure. And so then that letter yes, it does take longer, but it's going to take longer if you do it the other way and just jump in and make the mistake. And you're going to feel like you're, you're doubling back on yourself and that's really hard for your own feelings when you have to double back on yourself and fix something. So putting the work in upfront will help you feel better about what you've done in the long run. And it hopefully will work.  Anything that doesn't work, that's okay too, because you learn so much from that. So don't feel like, you know, you failed when something doesn't work, you didn't fail. You got something out of it.

Lori: [00:20:56] That's a really good point.

Nola: [00:20:58] I like the idea of a letter because it takes off the pressure of, Oh, I've got to write this website content just right. And it allows me to just spill out what I'm thinking and what I'm feeling and why I think this would be beneficial. Of course, I understand your it's a persuasive letter, but it's one-on-one I really think that this is going to benefit you and here's why, and I can imagine that it would really help me gain clarity on how to articulate how this will help this person. And why.

Rebecca: [00:21:33] Yeah. And to get back to my dorky standpoint, I, one of the things that you study when you study rhetoric is, um, logos, pathos and ethos, what those things are as ethos is your own credibility. How much do you know about what you're talking about and how much can you be trusted? Logos is the facts. And pathos is the feeling. So when you're writing a letter just like you said, you don't think that you're writing for this general audience, the big worldwide web, and you feel like you're being judged. You're not, you're writing for that one person whose name you put on the letter because you have that one person in your mind and you can get all three of those things into the letter very easily. It makes it much easier. And yeah, it takes that pressure off.

Lori: [00:22:22] Brilliant. All right. Well, this has been invaluable information and we are so fortunate that you've been our guest today, but we want to switch gears just a little. Um, one of the things that Nola and I believe in is inspiring quotes and inspiring messaging. And matter of fact, we actually have a PDF with inspirational quotes for, uh, aspiring side hustlers and entrepreneurs, and we thought it would be interesting to see what your personal favorite quote or motto is and tell us how that reflects your journey in entrepreneurship.

Rebecca: [00:23:01] I love this question. So my favorite quote is very long, but it's from a speech by Teddy Roosevelt. The speech I believe is called the man in the arena.  Should I read the whole thing?

Lori: [00:23:14] You should read the whole thing. otherwise, how would we get a full understanding of why it's, you're so passionate about it.

Rebecca: [00:23:22] Okay, here we go.
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."

So the reason this quote, and you might recognize some of the words like daring greatly was a Brene Brown book. This quote is so important to me that we actually have it typed out and framed above our mental in our house. Both my husband and I are both entrepreneurs. And we have two children that we believe that they do inherit our entrepreneurial spirit because they see how we work all the time. So, um, the reason that this quote is so very important for us is because when you are trying to do something, there are a hundred people or a thousand people, a million people who are right there ready to put you down. And whether they are actually trying to put you down, or whether you feel like they're trying to put you down, those voices are there, they're in your head and you have to keep going. There's like crazy statistics about how many entrepreneurships fail in the first year or something like that. And I think it's because you just get bogged down with all these voices and most of them are inside your head and you have to remember that you have to keep going. You're the only one who can make you feel good about what you're doing. No one else can do that. Doesn't matter how many times you get that person, you know, the co the client, who's like, this is a great job. You're a great writer. Then one person comes forward and says, I didn't like it. And you feel like you are the worst writer in the world.

So it's so bad that you're doing it to yourself. And you need to understand that. So this quote basically says, you're the one who counts in this. You are the one who is getting up every day, daring greatly. You're the one who's in the arena doing the fight, getting dirty.

Lori: [00:26:03] . You're right. Your, your, the, the, the one in the arena. I think what stood out for me in that quote, which I think is very powerful is the difference between you taking the risk as the side hustler, entrepreneur, and the people who never take the risk, but leave the judgment on you. you're the one doing it. And you have to remember that you're in there, you're doing it. They're on the sidelines. They, they didn't take the gamble. They didn't take the risk. They don't have the passion for it.

Rebecca: [00:26:38] Just having that frame of mind, it's your frame of mind that counts.

Lori: [00:26:43] That's great. And you've, you've shared, um, um, your family philosophy and you've opened up that part and we'd like to ask you just a few fun questions to get to know you on a, on a little different level. So what are some common misconceptions about the work you do?

Rebecca: [00:27:05] I think the word copywriter throws people off a lot. And so a lot of people will say, Oh, you're a lawyer.

Lori: [00:27:15] for copyright copyright law?

Rebecca: [00:27:20] I'm not a lawyer. I can't represent anybody.
Nola: [00:27:25] that's cute.

Lori: [00:27:26] Okay. If you were to wake up tomorrow and have gained one quality or one ability, what would it be?

Rebecca: [00:27:34] I would love to be able to pause time with whoever I choose to pause time with. Um, I feel like time just goes so fast and there are moments where I'm like, Oh, keep going, keep going. But there are probably more moments where I wish I could drag it out. And some of them are just the simplest moments, but yeah, that would be my choice.

Lori: [00:28:00] That's that is a pretty good superpower. I never thought of that. And I love it.

Rebecca: [00:28:05] Yeah.

Nola: [00:28:06] I love that answer.
Well, thank you Rebecca, for being our guest and for helping us and our listeners write in the language of their ideal customer. Please tell our listeners how they can learn more about you and your company.

Rebecca: [00:28:20] So we have our website. It is Abask Marketing.com and that is a, B a S K marketing.com. And for your side, hustlers, I think the part that might be very beneficial is the service that Lori mentioned earlier, which is untangled writer. And we have various, um, coaching opportunities on there, different downloads, things like that, that might be very helpful, especially if anybody is looking to start copywriting side hustle. So you can find that by either going to www.entangledwriter.com or abaskmarketing.com/untangledwriter

Nola: [00:29:01] Excellent. Listeners, you can also get the links, details and information about Rebecca, her company, a basket marketing, the services she offers, including untangled writer, as well as her amazing quote by Teddy Roosevelt. By visiting our website stickybrandlab.com/resources.

Lori: [00:29:18] Be sure to come back next Tuesday and every Tuesday for another informative, inspiring and motivating episode. And remember actions create results. So tap into your desire to create a business and brand you love by taking 1% action every day, small steps, big effects.
Do you have questions about creating a personal brand side hustle or small business? Sign up for one of our clarity sessions for more information, contact us at stickybrandlab.com/contact

Outtake:
pretty woman walking down the street,