Underground
There’s not much to like about the London Underground. It’s stuffy, gloomy, and there are humans everywhere (along with a few mice, but they’re cute). If you’re lucky enough to get a seat, you know around forty million butts have imprinted themselves there before you, and if you’re not lucky enough to get a seat, prepare to get acquainted with an armpit that does not belong to you. All that said, there’s one thing I DO enjoy when taking the underground. I can do it when taking the longest escalators in existence. I can do it when hovering on the platform waiting for a gust of wind to hit me from the tunnel and make my hair look either Vogue-worthy or a total shitshow. I can do it when hurtling along at who-knows-how-fast in the carriage that somehow got itself 50 metres below London. I’m talking about reading the ads. Ads are evvvvvverywhere on the underground. You can’t escape them for a split second. There’s so much space and so much opportunity to captivate the massive guaranteed audience, and yet, so few brands capitalize on it. Because they forget that the point isn’t just to get their ad noticed (easy) it’s to get their ad REMEMBERED (hard). There’s no internet underground, so unless you’re smart/weird enough to take a photo of an ad you’ve got to remember the brand and whatever the ad is promoting while being pummelled by hundreds of other ads. I was consciously consuming these underground ads when I was in London for a couple of days last week, and there’s ONLY ONE I can remember well enough to search online for more information. It was for Caspar, a mattress company. You know why I remembered it? BECAUSE THE MESSAGE WAS SO DAMN GOOD. And it was only four words long. “We have drift off.“ The simplicity of this makes me more excited than the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones. It’s clear AND clever, which is a winning combination in my house. Brand captivation is about strategy AND creativity. The work you do and the way you do it might not be original, but the way you talk about it should be. So if you have the signature service perfectly packaged, or the funnels all systemized, or the website copy structured like the templates say, but you’re still not getting traction with your best-fit clients, ask yourself these two questions: What is it about your brand that’s worth remembering? How can you communicate that in a more creative way?
Personal name or brand name?
I was 10 years old and strutting towards the school gates in my scarlet sweater and oversized rucksack when my friend asked me whether I knew that my surname was also a “rude word”. I did not know. But since that day, I’ve been reluctant to say my surname out loud. If I have to, I immediately spell it afterwards. H-O-A-R-E. No W to be found here! Move along! When I started my business on my 27th birthday, almost four years ago, there were two things I was sure of: I wanted it to be a brand I didn’t want my surname to be a part of that brand That meant using my personal name as my business name was never an option for me. But if it is an option for you, and you’re not sure whether to use your personal name or a brand name, keep reading. Most of the time, a name is the first thing people will see or hear about your business. A name should get people’s attention (you want it to intrigue them enough to delve deeper) and it should be memorable beyond 5 minutes of hearing it (you want it to be the name that sticks with them). Think of your name as one of the breadcrumbs that leads people to your online home. Easier said than done, right? Behold, a list of pros and cons. Cons of using a personal name The name alone doesn’t give people any idea what you do. Which means your first opportunity to stand out is wasted. It’s unlikely to be memorable unless you are. People will come into contact with so many other people every day, you can end up being just another name in just another online ocean. It can be difficult to spell. If they go to Google you, and they can’t find you because your name is like a Countdown conundrum, then what? (I once had a client with four different vowels in a row at the end of her surname and I couldn’t pronounce it right, let alone spell it right.) It’s can be booooooring. Why not use the opportunity to delight, especially if you’re a creative or the work you do is in some way creative. If you have a fairly common name, someone else may already have the domain. (Is there anything more soul-punching than discovering the domain you want is taken at 2.37am?) You may change your name in the future and then you’re faced with the decision of sticking with your old name or rebranding to your new name. Pros of using a personal name It’s your name, it’s who you are and no one can take that from you. You can turn that into a brand. You could have a really interesting name that you can turn into a brand concept. I once had a client with the surname Bold which you could have a creative frenzy with. To make what you do clearer for people, you can pair it with your service. For example, Rosie Does Digital is a name I came up with for a friend a few years ago. It may well never change, so even if you shift your business model in the future, or pivot in any way, your name can remain a constant. Cons of using a brand name You might feel like every single possible brand name in the entire world has already been taken, so it can be tough and time-consuming to find one that feels good and fits your business… that’s still available. It may feel limiting if you choose a brand name that puts you in a box and you have to change it if you pivot in the future. You can outgrow or fall out of love with it, like I did with PepperJar (more on that story in my Behind Closed Doors email coming on Friday). Pros of using a brand name You can get super creative with it and find a name that hints at the kind of work you do and/or gets people curious enough to want to know more. You can make it expansive, so if you choose to scale in the future to a point where you don’t want to be the face of your business, or you want to become an agency, or you want to sell up, a brand name can easily allow you to do that. It helps you stand out and create a unique story that people can talk about and share. You can build an entire concept and brand foundation on the name, like I’ve done and am doing with Captivation House. (This gives direction to almost every single business decision I have to make, which is SO FLAMING HELPFUL.) It can make your brand clearer and more cohesive which are crucial to building a captivating brand. Choosing your first business name or rebranding to a different business name is always a brain tornado. It takes time, mental energy, and lots of discarded ideas to find the right one. And whether you go with a personal name or a brand name, it always comes down to this question: Would you be happy for your brand legacy to bear this title?
Become ridiculously captivating with this one word
How many times have you taken on a client and instantly regretted it? Those are usually the projects that stretch out waaaay longer than anticipated, or that feel like a special kind of hell to deliver, and that drown us in resentment. We ask ourselves why we did it. Never again we promise ourselves! It’s so not worth it. And then the next not-a-great-fit client comes along and we take them on anyway because our brain tells us if we don’t our whole business will probably crumble to the ground and we’ll be eating ramen noodles with a spork in the street this time next month. Taking on clients who are anything but a good fit is inevitable (and necessary) when first starting out, but as you evolve and learn more about what you love to do and who you love to work with, your business growth depends on you being able to use one tiny word. Fail to use it, and you could be inadvertently drawing more and more of the wrong people closer to you – and pushing the right ones further away. Probably into the clawing clutches of another. That word is, of course, NO. I love those two beautiful little letters. For some reason, I’ve never found it particularly difficult to use them in life situations. Do I want an espresso martini after that glass of wine? No. And if you buy it for me anyway I won’t drink it and I won’t feel guilty about it. Do I want to go to that party? No. I’ll stay home with my blanket, slippers, Ben, and Jerry, thanks. Do I want to apologise and come back to English class even though the teacher was way out of line in the way he spoke to me? No. He can keep his temper, I’ll keep my principles. However, chuck money into the equation and suddenly those two letters have a habit of burying themselves somewhere inside our throats and before we can find them other letters pop out in their place. Oh, you want me to squeeze you into my calendar when I have no capacity? Sure, putting myself under unnecessary pressure is one of my favourite hobbies! You’d like a completely different package from the one I put together specifically so that I didn’t have to create proposals? Yeah why not, I’ll have your proposal over in the next 48 hours! It’s not your policy to pay upfront and you’d like 30-day terms? Well that sounds like a win-win! These are all things that I have agreed to, albeit quite a long time ago – even as someone who is generally comfortable saying no. The point is, when you find the strength to say no – and say it with conviction – something rather interesting happens. First, it makes the person you’re saying no to want you even more. Think of it like “playing hard to get” in dating. And if you decide to cave in, make sure there’s enough in it for you (like a rush fee, for example). But second, and this is the less obvious consequence, it means you start to become known for something specific. No longer are you a business owner who says yes to whatever is brought to their table, you are , and you have boundaries and integrity and are fiercely intentional about who and what you let inside your virtual home. This is when you don’t just start to build a stronger business, you start to build a ridiculously captivating brand. You’re always the one in control. And the more you say no to the wrong kinds of clients / projects / opportunities, the more space you create to say yes to best-fit ones.
The £8,750 ball of yarn
Would you spend £8,750 on a ball of yarn? No? Not even if it was designed by New York artisans and made from sterling silver? I wouldn’t either. That money could stretch to at least 8 holidays featuring more sun, sand, and steak than currently feature in my life. Does that make it a ridiculous idea, then? Because… a silver ball of yarn is exactly what Tiffany & Co is selling for £8,750. (It’s listed under “everyday objects” LOL.) Of course it doesn’t! There will absolutely be a market for this – and for the £965 tin can, £470 ruler, and £290 yo-yo – even if I’m not part of it. And I’d say here’s how you can take a leaf out of Tiffany’s book, but the leaf would probably cost a small fortune so let’s skip the leaf. POSITIONING Tiffany & Co has been positioned as a luxury brand for years and years, and as the meaning of and market for luxury shifts, so does their approach. Even the CEO has stated that the brand became “synonymous with expensive, exclusive, formal, somehow arrogant, and this is not the way society is going”. That may be so, but Tiffany is the iconic brand it is today BECAUSE of its positioning as expensive and exclusive. It can price a silver ball of yarn at £8,750 not because it’s necessarily worth that much but because it knows there are a minority of people who will buy it. EXCLUSIVITY To dig further into the point I made above, people buy from Tiffany & Co because of the quality and the design and whatever, but also because they know not everyone can. When I was in high school, a few people had these chunky Tiffany bracelets with a dangling heart on them. (This was a small teenage trend that came a few years after the yo-yo trend – and you can be sure the yo-yos we used in the playground did not cost £290.) The teens who had these bracelets felt like they were part of some special club, courtesy of the bank of Mum & Dad, and the teens who didn’t weren’t invited. UNIQUENESS If you buy from Tiffany & Co, the idea is that you’re not buying a piece of jewellery or an “everyday object”. You’re buying a piece of art. That piece of art will make you feel something. It will say something to you and others about the kind of person you are or wish to be. And it will only be available from Tiffany & Co. Think of it this way, where else can you buy a sterling silver piece of yarn? So, are you positioned in a way that makes it easy for you to charge what your work is truly worth? It’s not about the majority who won’t buy, it’s about finding that small group of best-fit humans who will. Are you intentionally making it clear that your brand is exclusive to that small group of best-fit humans? Are you bringing some kind of uniqueness to the table that makes those best-fit humans feel something? If not, this will help. As for Tiffany & Co, the only thing I’m interested in is whether one day they’ll sell breakfasts. Oh wait, they already do.
Why your best-fit clients aren’t hiring you
Have you ever wondered why you’re not getting more errmmaagaahhhddd-more-please clients banging down your virtual door, money in metaphorical palms, begging to work with you, the whole you, and nobody but you? It’s probably for one of these 4 reasons… 1. You have no idea who they are If you want your best-fit clients to come knocking for you, you’ve got to be diamond-clear on what a best-fit client actually looks like. And I don’t mean how old they are and where they live, I mean knowing things like what their personality is like, what’s most important to them, what their worldview is, and what they believe in. Psychographics ???? over ???? demographics ???? When you’re clear on those deeper aspects of a person, you can start talking to them in deeper – and more strategic – ways. For example, I love to work with people who have a light and sarcastic sense of humour, who value creativity in branding and business, and who don’t subscribe to the hustling way of making money, so I communicate to them (you?) appropriately. I use sarcasm in my content and try to be funny, I’m in my element when I get to be creative with messaging (have you seen my website?!), and I talk a lot about how I’m dead against the culture of being busy and doingallthethingsallthetime. As a result, I end up working with people who match the vibe I give off. 2. They have no idea you exist Being a best-kept secret is not a strategy unless you’re so exclusive you charge one million dollars for your service. (If you do this, email me back immediately and tell me your ways.) Once you’re clear on who your best-fit clients are, you’ve got to become a beacon for them. As much as we’d love to have them turn up on our doorsteps unannounced, that rarely happens unless we invite them. Or someone else invites them for us. Or they’re a stalker. Get to know where your best-fit clients spend their time, hang out there, get seen there, get known there, and then open up your door to them. (Freshly-baked cookies help.) 3. They’re not clear on the results you can help them get / they don’t believe in your service Once a best-fit client knows who you are but still isn’t hiring you, it probably means they have questions, reservations, and DOUBTS. They’re going to be making an investment in you, which means they expect a return. What does that return look like? Is that return one they actually want? Can you really help them get it? How, exactly? These are questions you can answer before your potential client even needs to ask them by shaping your copy and content around them, sharing client success stories, and taking the lead on a sales call. You’re the expert, and that call should be less “what would you like to know” and more “this is how we do things around here”. Confidence is contagious. 4. They see you as one of many instead of The One Once a best-fit client feels confident you can deliver the results they want but still isn’t saying yes, they’re likely considering other service-providers alongside you. This is why building a captivating brand is so important, because it allows you to position yourself in a league of your own. A best-fit client will choose you not just because of the result you can get them, but because they really want to work with you. Whoever said “it’s not about you, it’s about your client” missed the point. It’s always about you – in relation to what you can do / give / create / generate for your client. Unless you’re infusing your own personality, philosophy, beliefs, and stories to your brand, you join the ring to become “just another” service-provider. But the world, and those best-fit clients who live it in, doesn’t need “just another” service-provider. It needs you. The business owner AND the weird, unique, utterly delightful human.
Getting heard in a noisy world
I’m perched in my favourite marina-side cafe having wolfed down the best smashed avocado, poached eggs, and bacon lunch in the history of food and I’m here to write to you about getting noticed in a noisy world. Because it’s really effing noisy, isn’t it? Studies estimate that we see, on average, 5000 ads a day. 5000! A DAY! But the real problem isn’t the noise itself, it’s what that noise does to us. Distraction is lying in wait around every corner or behind every click, ready to pounce on our eyeballs and brains and steal our attention without remorse. Even as I write this, I’m only 72% focused because there’s a bloke in the corner paying his bill, there are crashing sounds coming from the galley kitchen, one of the waiters is tidying the counter, there’s another bloke painting a boat outside the window, and I Just Can’t Get Enough is playing through the sound system. It’s all noise, and it’s all vying for my attention (which I already put in the wrong places far too easily). The online world is just the same. There are websites, Instagram posts, FB lives, YouTube videos, and emails like this one, all reaching out from the screen whispering pick me, pick me! The problem is, over time, those compelling whispers have turned into deafening screams. Instead of spreading new messages and ideas that are worth paying attention to, the same messages and ideas are being regurgitated at an ever-increasing decibel level. Hence a pile-up of “same-same” brands… Here’s the thing I want you to know. When you say something worth listening to, volume is irrelevant. So instead of questioning how on earth it’s possible for you to be noticed unless you shout from the rooftops and consider taking your top off while you’re up there, ask yourself: What special thing do you bring to the table? Even if other people bring similar things to the table (which is inevitable) how can you communicate yours in a way that feels fresh, original, and sticky? Hint: Focus more on who you are than what you do. What do your best-fit humans really need to hear right now that isn’t already being said? When you start spreading messages and ideas that your people are craving (without even realising it), you won’t have to worry about their attention being stolen by distractions. You’ll become the distraction. And you won’t have to strain to be heard above the noise because you’ll be playing a tune nobody’s heard before.
Two-word brand value trick
I think we can both agree that roses are all sorts of different colours, violets are actually violet, and a brand without diamond-standard clarity feels like a brain tornado. The thing about brain tornadoes is they whisk up all sorts of self-doubts we don’t like and questions we can’t answer and then making smart business decisions becomes so hard we seek to outsource them, inevitably, to someone who doesn’t know our business half as well as we do. Which makes approximately zero sense. If this happens (ahem, when this happens), there’s a little brand values trick you can try to first ground you and then guide you. Choosing your brand values is the kind of exercise we’re told we “must” do as part of our brand strategy. And while brand values are important… the standard exercise is stale as last week’s leftover sourdough. And what kind of person would let good sourdough go stale? You’ve probably done some version of this exercise before. (Maybe it feels like you’ve done it 347 times.) If I asked what your brand values were, you’d probably give me a list of about 5 words. These could include words like: Transparent Freedom Collaborative Playful Innovative Quirky Simple Etc etc Having a list of words is a good first step, but the problem is they have too much scope and not enough context. >> You want your brand to be original… But anyone could pluck these words from a list. >> You want your brand to be one-of-a-kind… But there’s nothing unique about these words themselves. >> You want your brand to be memorable… But these words on their own lack specificity. While a list of words can go some way to get you clearer on what’s truly important, they need to go so much further than that if they’re to get you clearer on what decision to make. That’s where the two-word trick comes in. “But not.” This… but not… that. Add those two tiny words into the mix and suddenly you can turn a vague one-word value into a much clearer signpost for your whole brand and business. Transparent… but not oversharing So when you’re wondering whether to write a piece of vulnerable content, you focus it on an issue you’ve already worked through, not one you’re working through right now. Freedom… but not complacent So when you want to switch to working three days a week because your systems are doing their job, you still carve out time and energy to perfect the service or program you’re delivering. Collaborative… but not people pleasing So when you’re asked to take part in a summit run by someone you admire, but you hate summits, you confidently say no. Playful… but not overly familiar So when you’re connecting with your audience on social media, you have fun while being firm about your “no FB messages” boundary. Innovative… but not unnecessarily complicated So when you come up with an awesome new idea for a training that nobody in your industry has done, you strip it back to the core transformation rather than turning it into an 8-week course. Quirky… but not off the wall So when you want to inject more “you-ness” into your brand, you don’t feel pressure to be brash, bold, or irreverent with your communications if it doesn’t feel aligned with your real personality. Simple… but not ever boring So when you decide to have only one lead magnet, one email funnel, one signature service, or one marketing platform, you make sure all your content has both educational value and entertainment or emotional value (or both). Try it – and let me know if it helps! Because the fewer brain tornadoes you have, the more space becomes available for lightbulb moments.
Obsession
I’ve been wearing the same camel-coloured jumper for six days in a row. Not because I don’t know how to do laundry, but because I’m actually in love with its irresistibly soft and snuggly embrace. A perfect antidote to this British monsoon. If I hear a song that has me jigging and bopping, I’ll listen to it on repeat. To the point where whoever has to ensure listening to it with me snaps and throws the Sonos into the marina. (Okay, that’s never actually happened BUT IT COULD.) When I discover an enthralling TV program, I’ll binge the whole series in a couple of sittings. I am trying SO HARD to only watch one episode a day of The Marvelous Mrs Maisel season 2. When Olly and I go into the city to eat, we end up going to the same place 90% of the time because the pork pibil and fiery pink onion tacos are drool-worthy. There’s also a waiter there called Gavin and who wouldn’t want to go to a place with a waiter called Gavin? Oh, and I can’t just have one piece of chocolate. If it’s there, I’ll eat the whole frigging bar. You could say I have an obsessive personality. Seriously? It’s the reason I’ve never done drugs. I was so worried that if I did drugs just once, I’d get hooked. Or die. But that obsessive personality is why a few select people have made lots of money off me since I started my business in 2015. Because when I come across somebody smart and entertaining in the online space, whose ideas and philosophies align with mine, I’ll devour as much of their content as I can in one go. Then I’ll buy from them. And if my obsession endures, I’ll buy from them again. The whole point of captivating your best-fit humans is so they buy from you. More than once. Of course you want to give them value. Of course you want to be of service. But you’re a business, and the only reason you’re giving value and being of service is so that you get paid. People don’t pay money to those they feel luke-warm about. They pay money to those they’re obsessed with. Those whose content they crave. Those they would miss if they were gone. Obsession must be part of your brand strategy. Captivation is always the first step. But it’s continuous captivation that leads to obsession. So consider this: why would your best-fit humans miss you if you were gone? If you can’t answer, we should talk.
Why your “turning point” is essential to your brand story
When you meet new people in real life (if you ever do meet new people in real life… #hermit) does the conversation ever go something like this: Them: Hi, nice to meet you. So, what do you do? You: Hi, umm, <mumble something about having an online business and pray they understand about 62% of it>. I’ve been guilty of asking this same question in the past, as if a person’s most interesting topic of conversation is about the work they do. But we’re more than the work we do. We’re multi-faceted, complex, fascinating humans with thoughts and feelings and experiences and stories that go far beyond how we make a living. These days, when I meet someone new, I’m more likely to ask them to tell me their story. And usually, I’ll get a chronology of major life events that somehow relate back to the work they do. (Funny how we think our worth is always linked to our work.) This is actually an approach I used to take when I first started writing about pages for clients. I’d show the reader why a person was “qualified” to do the work they do based on various past events in their life. I don’t do that anymore. Not because it’s irrelevant, but because it’s not always relatable – and therefore captivating – for the reader. Chronologies are dull. Vulnerable stories are not. These days, I like to hunt for what I call the “turning point”. What is the ONE most significant thing that happened in your life to lead you to the work you’re doing now? It’s less about the work itself, and more about who you are as a human (your drives, your desires, your fears, and your resilience) and how that all relates to your reader. Your reader being a person you ultimately want to buy something from you, who shares some of your drives, desires, fears, and resilience. Your turning point is about peeling back the curtain to reveal an irreversible change in who you are. It doesn’t have to be dramatic or shocking, but you have to be able to distinguish between who you were before the turning point, and who you became afterwards. The way you express this HAS to resonate with your reader. Not because they’ve been through the same thing, necessarily, but because it helps them understand who you are and how you’re like them. When you nail your turning point, your best-fit humans feel a connection that runs far deeper than words on a screen. They suddenly can’t imagine not having you in their life in some way. And they feel compelled to reach out to you because your message has buried itself under their skin so that they, too, feel changed in some way. This is exactly the reaction you want. Because those best-fit humans have to feel like they know you, and that you know them, before they’ll buy from you.
Simplification is a strategy
I’m writing to you from an eye-poppingly gorgeous converted barn in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by horses, sheep, and… peacocks, of all things. Think exposed brick walls, a roaring log fire, old wooden beams, soft ice-white bedsheets, and a roll top bath, where I will absolutely be turning myself into a prune every night. I’m on my third annual solo business retreat where I look at what went well this past year, what didn’t go so well (PASS ME THE SCROLL), and get my plans rolling for next year. Every year, no matter how vivid my vision, I encourage myself to keep things simple. Because: SIMPLIFICATION IS A STRATEGY. If you want to add more value to your life / brand / business / service / program, choose something to remove from it first. You don’t need a full schedule to be a successful human. You don’t need a fancy “out there” brand to captivate people. You don’t need multiple sales channels to have a sustainable business. You don’t need a huge pile of deliverables for your service to sell. You don’t need to bolt 4 bonuses on to your program for people to be excited about buying it. You might want “more.” Your people might want “more.” But what does “more” really mean? Because the truth is, “too much” is overwhelming. The more you throw at something, the more you risk diluting what really matters. So decide what really matters, and then strip back the excess. As part of my rebrand, I’ve had to remind myself to simplify my approach over and over again. I wanted to have a place on the new website for copywriters because I LOVE teaching copywriters how to run better online businesses. But, now that I’m positioned as a brand strategist first and foremost, adding this element risked confusing people, so I cut it. I wanted my group program, The Captivation Code, to cover the entire Brand Captivation Framework in 4-6 weeks. But, it was going to be too much for the timeframe, so I cut it down. I wanted to have different opt-ins for people who were at different stages in their branding / rebranding journey. But, the thought of making everything work together (especially tech-wise) made me anxious, so I created one opt-in that would be super valuable for any online coach, creative, or consultant building or rebuilding a personality-driven brand that captivates more ideal clients. That opt-in is the Brand Captivation Framework which you can download here right now if you haven’t already: [et_bloom_inline optin_id=optin_3] When it comes to the way you’re showing up in and expressing your brand to the world, ask yourself: 1. What could you simplify to make YOURSELF feel lighter? 2. What could you simplify to make your prospects / clients feel lighter? You might find that whoever said “less is more” was actually right.