Real Relationships Real Revenue - Video Edition | Invest in Relationships to Build Your Business and Your Career

So far we have covered how to have the right mindset when talking about money, and in this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are talking about how to price your offers. There are two specific anchors that you want to think about when you talk about the value of your pricing so that clients are compelled to work with you.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  What the value anchor is Why estimates are fine when talking with clients What the price anchor is Setting your price anchor at a rate that will keep you in the game This stuff is so important so you don’t want to go into the money conversation without thinking of these things beforehand. Get your team together and think long and hard about what your desired price is and set your price anchor at the maximum level.  There is so much contextual significance that there’s no way I could tell you what’s right or wrong. It all depends on the context! If you want to learn more, I highly recommend you check out Galinsky’s research on this topic. There’s a lot of very good information in there.    Resources Mentioned: Check out Galinsky’s research on price offers as anchors

This week on Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are talking all about money. In this episode, we are diving into the topic of money mindset. How you talk about money matters. Many people wilt when it comes to the money conversation. It’s so important that you’re engaged when you talk about money and how great your work is with confidence.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Auditing how you talk about money Why bad experiences outweigh good experiences The importance of speaking with confidence about money You are the expert.  You know what clients can do and what they can’t do. You should have the same level of confidence when you talk about your expertise as you do when you talk about money.  Bring up your pricing just like you do with everything else. Hold your shoulders back, use a calm tone, and just be confident.  Make sure to check out the Baumeister study. It’s classic peer-reviewed literature, and it’s really powerful stuff.    Resources Mentioned: Read the Baumeister study

How do you position yourself uniquely so that you can win more often? In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, I’m diving into the topic of positioning. I have found that this is very rarely taught but it’s a critical skill to make yourself unique in the mind of the buyer. I’m sharing tips for creating your three key messages, how to become more memorable, pro tips for communicating, and so much more so that you can truly stand out amongst the competition.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  The law of positioning Why people don’t care about your accolades The three words to use when talking to a client  Why three is the perfect number Why you need to include three reasons a client should work with you The research that supports this method Why 3s and 4s are more memorable The three levels at which you might talk about your positioning Why it’s up to you to determine how to add more value The five things you need to choose your three key messages The four reasons that clients choose someone else  When to be bold in your positioning Using one to two words per message How exactly to word your three messages The benefits of using rhyming or alliteration It is up to you to figure out how you're clearly going to add more value than anybody else. Boil it down to three things, because that's more believable and memorable to your clients. Show how in this exact position, you are going to provide a unique value.  Make sure your team is on board so everything is aligned and make sure you learn how to communicate effectively using the tips I shared today so that clients will choose you more often.  If you do these things right and embed them in your habits, you can use them forever! Resources Mentioned: Read the Cryder research Read Dr. Suzanne Shu’s research Read the Rouder research about 3s Check out the positioning Wikipedia page Get the Al Ries and Jack Trout book on positioning Read the study about rhyming

The last few episodes have been all about positioning yourself uniquely in the mind of your client or decision-maker. You’ll want to use these methods and frameworks every time you are speaking with a client and especially when the stakes are high. You want them to see you as the only one who can give them what they are looking for. In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, I’m sharing some pro tips on how exactly you can communicate these three messages more effectively.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Using one to two words per message How exactly to word your three messages The benefits of using rhyming or alliteration You're striving for simplicity, believability, the benefit to your client, and all these other things that we've been talking about in these episodes. The last thing I want is for you to do all of the work to come up with your unique positioning and then not communicate them effectively.  If you do these things right and embed them in your habits, you can use them forever. If you want to learn more about the study of why rhyming is so effective, check it out here. It’s a super interesting study.    Resources Mentioned: Read the study about rhyming

In the last few episodes, we have talked all about the science of positioning. We talked about how to show your clear value and how to be more believable and memorable to clients when you’re sharing why they should work with you. In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we’re talking about how to get your team together to have a discussion on the five key elements to arrive at your three key messages.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  The five things you need to choose your three key messages The four reasons that clients choose someone else  When to be bold in your positioning This is a very important conversation and you want to have it at the very beginning of this process. If you do this, then throughout your communication, proposal, and any other formal or informal process when the stakes are high, you will have your three key messages ready to go which will set you apart.  Your team will buy into this better if they’re the ones shaping it, so make sure to get everyone involved in the process. When you do it upfront, everything is aligned throughout the entire process. Make sure to check out the Wikipedia page on positioning. You can also grab the Al Ries and Jack Trout book on positioning if you want to go deeper and make sure to get the 20th-anniversary edition NOT the original because it has pictures and illustrations.    Resources Mentioned: Check out the positioning Wikipedia page Get the Al Ries and Jack Trout book on positioning

In the last couple of episodes, we talked about the power of positioning. We covered how you can communicate value to your client and the importance of using three reasons to make it more believable. In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are diving into how using three is more memorable as well. Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Why 3s and 4s are more memorable The three levels that you might talk about your positioning Why it’s up to you to determine how to add more value It is up to you to figure out how you're clearly going to add more value than anybody else. Boil it down to three things, because that's more believable and memorable to your clients. Show how in this exact position, you are going to provide a unique value.  Don’t just rely on simple marketing-driven differentiation. I want you to go up two notches to the “deal” level and help them understand how you are truly unique and how working with you will benefit them. Make sure to check out the research about why 3s are more memorable.  Resources Mentioned: Read the Rouder research about 3s

This week we are talking about positioning and how you can communicate your value in a way that’s memorable and clearly benefits the client, so you can start getting chosen more often. In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, I’m diving into the Power of Three and why it matters when talking to clients. Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Why three is the perfect number Why you need to include three reasons a client should work with you The research that supports this method Having too many reasons a client should work with you is too confusing; having too few reasons can be confusing as well. There is research that shows three is the perfect number of reasons you should include when talking to a potential client about why they should work with you.  If you want to learn more about the research about this from Dr. Suzanne Shu, make sure to check it out here. This study is actually quite readable and the concept is incredibly powerful so I highly recommend that you dig in.  Resources Mentioned: Read Dr. Suzanne Shu’s research: https://doi.org/10.1509/jm.11.0504

How do you position yourself uniquely so that you can win more often? In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, I’m diving into the topic of positioning. I have found that this is very rarely taught but it’s a critical skill to make yourself unique in the mind of the buyer.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  The law of positioning Why people don’t care about your accolades The three words to use when talking to a client  People don’t care about your accolades, they care about how you are going to impact them. So try to avoid talking too much about yourself when speaking to clients. Simple messages win. You want to shape the decision criteria and convey your messages so that it shows a clear benefit to the client.  This may seem nebulous, but I’m going to give you the process of how to accomplish this over the next couple of videos. Make sure to check out the Cryder research that I mentioned in this episode. This research is incredibly powerful and I think you’ll really enjoy it.  Resources Mentioned: Read the Cryder research: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2012.08.002

Storytelling is an incredibly powerful tool for business growth. It’s even more important than most people realize. Studies show that when people create a story around facts, it drastically increases the ability of people to remember those facts.   This week on Real Relationships Real Revenue, I’m sharing the elements that make up a compelling story and the most important types of stories that you need to have ready to go to really make an impact on your clients.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Why storytelling is important How stories help people remember what they’re told How stories connect people  The power of using words that convey the five senses The importance of taking stories seriously What the Call is in a story Using a hero and a villain in your story When the hero accepts the Call How to use the Call when you talk to clients What needs to be included in the Conflict How to choose the elements to highlight in your conflict The most critical part of sharing the Conflict in your story The importance of cutting out the extra detail and only including what’s important to the recipient  What to cover during the Conclusion Why stories fall flat without the Conclusion Why you should never skip over this part of your story Why you need to have an origin story The elements to include in your origin story Why you need to have a client success story How many client success stories you need How to perfect your stories Storytelling is an incredibly powerful way to get people to remember you and connect with you on a deeper level. When used in business, you can wow your clients by telling compelling stories that illustrate your expertise and experiences.  By including the three essential elements of your story: the Call, the Conflict, and the Conclusion, you will deliver more powerful stories that people can’t help but remember.  It’s so important that you don’t take these stories for granted. Take the time to figure them out.  If you pay attention to the key stories and really tighten the screws, you will use them forever and your time spent will be well worth it.  Resources Mentioned: Check out Dr. Bollinger’s study Listen to my conversation with Nancy about storytelling Learn more about Joseph Campbell Check out The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers Watch The Power of Myth videos with Joseph Campbell Listen to my origin story

We have covered the three powerful elements of a story - the Call, the Conflict, and the Conclusion. In today’s episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are going to learn about the most important types of stories that you’ll want to have memorized and ready to go so that you can share them whenever you need a compelling allusion. Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Why you need to have an origin story The elements to include in your origin story Why you need to have a client success story How many client success stories you need How to perfect your stories It’s important that you really take the time to get these stories right. Your origin story should be only a few minutes but it should give a really compelling story about why you do what you do and how you came to have the expertise you have.  You should have as many client success stories as you have offers. That way, no matter what offer you’re talking about, you have an engaging and compelling story ready to share with that client.  It’s so important that you don’t take these stories for granted. Take the time to figure them out.  If you pay attention to the key stories and really tighten the screws, you will use them forever and your time spent will be well worth it.    Resources Mentioned: Listen to my origin story