Content That CLOSES Business: The Supertight ESPN Formula

I'm begging you: please, please just stop.

Under no circumstances do I want you to read any further.

Stop reading now!

Okay, fine. You Little Rebel.

I get it. I, too, have some problems with authority!

But you know there's a much bigger problem. . .

However, it's also a problem that you can 100% use to your advantage here on this platform!

This is a problem that you can navigate to attract the really luscious, lucrative, delicious clients. The ones that haunt all our dreams of glory!

The problem is this: the average quality of content on LinkedIn was never really what you might call "riveting."

And now, with the help of AI, our beloved platform is even more stuffed with content that is. . . um. . . not helping experts attract, connect, and close business with GOOD clients - the "right fit/best fit" kind.

So this fall, we're going to do our best to share ideas from LinkedIn's most powerful, creative, and clever client attraction experts that helps close that gap.

And. . . we'll take advantage of the wonderful, real dirty truth of this platform:

All the best people are here at this party called LinkedIn, but very few are having a super fun time and just can't wait to come back!

But still. They (or their poor assistant) has to keep returning, day after day, week after week.

We'll start right now with one of my favorite formulas: The ESPN formula for killer content that connects and closes business, even before a personal conversation takes place. Yup. This is a thing that can happen.

The ESPN "Content That Closes" Formula is simple.

We begin with "E" for EMOTION: before you write/film/Chat GPT any piece of content, what is the EMOTION you want to generate? What do you want your audience to FEEL?

Smart marketers the world over will tell you: we might all think we're buying because of logic, data, and facts.

But actually, it's all about THE FEELS.

This is true of even the smartest of us, according to direct mail marketing genius Dan Kennedy.

First, we feel something. Then the reasoning part of our brain darts in with all the analytical justification for why we like - or don't like - something.

So. . . what emotion do you want your audience to FEEL?

Personally, for all you Hunter S. Thomson fans out there, I usually like to inspire a little Fear and Longing.

First, I want to scare y'all a bit with some "facts" about what really makes people choose to buy. Or not to buy, from you. Or me!

Next, I hope to inspire you with some longing. . . "Now that I know THIS is the strategy to 3X my business, I would really love to work with Ellen some day!"

The "S" is for SPECIFIC. I don't know if we truly understand how atrocious the average "professional" LinkedIn profile, content, and messaging looks to so many of our connections.

I see profile after profile where I have literally NO clue as to the target audience - or even (I hate to say this) the actual offer of help, not to mention the problem being solved.

What is happening here? "Coach/Speaker/Trainer/Author/Business Growth Consultant/Transformation Specialist/

What? Huh?

And your target audience is "any business from startup to $20M"?

I see. So. . . . 99% of all businesses in existence, then?

Want to see a SPECIFIC profile, content, and messaging strategy for a specific audience?

Go look at the LinkedIn profile of Indie Books founder Henry DeVries.

This is what "specific" actually looks like.

The "P" is for PERSONAL. People get real nervous about getting "personal" on LinkedIn, but it makes an enormous difference in ROI, revenue, momentum, and literally All The Things.

First, if you're targeting "The Top 1% on LinkedIn" - meaning that your target audience can afford to be picky - a personalized outreach strategy can get you 9 out of 10 connection requests accepted, and at least five Zoom meetings scheduled with people who've got that sweet, sweet ATP/ETP combo.

(This is our acronym for "Ability to Pay" and "Eagerness to Pay.")

Secondly, your content could be way more personal - in other words, let us see who you are as a PERSON.

In real life, you have a "voice" - you speak a certain way. Lean in to writing in that voice, or sharing it on video (short clips, 40 seconds or shorter - this is not YouTube).

Mix in content where you share personal moments from your life, or even your top 10 best show lists for "Years I Will Never Get Back Since the Invention of Netflix."

Remember, there is never, ever, a "corporation" reading/watching your content, even if your target audience is Fortune 500 C-Level leaders.

It is always, always a person reading. Or watching.

And guess what?

Mostly, if they are here on this platform, they are bored, frustrated, confused, a bit anxious, and/or wondering whether being active here is honestly worth a minute of their time.

And last? The "N." The "N" stands for NOT PAYING ATTENTION, Because The Title, Captions, or First Line of Your Post Did No Work Whatsoever to Engage Me.

People, I'm sorry to have to report this sad fact, but according to some experts in the Attention Economy, the average adult attention span shrank to FOUR SECONDS during the pandemic.

Or maybe it's FOUR SECONDS SHORTER than it was before the pandemic?

I honestly can't remember.

Obviously didn't pay enough attention.

But think of it this way: as we scroll through our feed, invitations, and notifications, we decide in less than 4 seconds if we're actually going to read or watch something.

Yowza. That's a hell of a thing to actually have to - hey! You know what? Let's go ride bikes!!!

There you have it, friends.

Next time you're creating that superfly, super-valuable piece of red-hot content, run it through your handy ESPN calculator.

You data types can even give yourself a 1-5 score for each letter. . . and keep working to go one point higher each time.

Congratulations. You've just become officially better at this than 99% of people active on this platform!

__________________________________________________________

Want to whip your profile, content strategy, and messaging into a social selling machine that actually, you know, sells your services and closes business?

Sign up here for a LinkedIn Profile Audit, where I will share my best immediate personalized updates in 30 minutes on Zoom, with absolutely zero time spent talking about my fabulous offers.

https://schedulesupertight.as.me/LIA