Master your Message: Understanding the buyer’s journey for effective engagement

In today’s saturated digital landscape, effectively engaging potential clients is no easy?feat.

Yet, many freelancing creatives find themselves missing the mark in their client messaging, inadvertently alienating their audience with solutions-focused content.

In this article, I discuss the intricacies of client engagement, exploring the nuances of the buyer’s journey, and the importance of resonant messaging.

Master your message to truly connect with your audience and achieve success in your freelancing endeavors.

How not to master your?message

When you post on social media, write a mailing, design a brochure or talk to potential clients, are you focussing on any of these things?

• Your skills and services
• Super Wicked Problems i.e. climate change and offer tips to ‘be more sustainable’
• Your knowledge and experience
• Your degrees and certifications
• Closing that sale

If so, your message may not be hitting home because you’re talking about solutions and why you’re the best person to deliver them.

So, they’ll be like, ‘Um, ok, that’s nice, good for you, but that’s not relevant to me’ and move on.

Because they’re ‘not there yet’.

They won’t resonate because they are currently in the Unaware or Problem Aware stage.

They either don’t know they even have a problem (Unaware) or they know they have a problem and are currently scrambling to find a solution (Problem aware), probably making a ton of mistakes along the way, making the problem worse.

Hell, we’ve all been there, right?

Stop immediately jumping to the?solution

Those in the Solution Aware stage already know they need copywriting, illustrations, a rebranding, professional photos, whatever your solution/service is.

They are an easier sell because you don’t have to spend time and lead them to the solution. psst. That’s another article for another day…

Many people coming into your world though, are in the first two stages (Unaware and Problem Aware), so they need different messaging and nurturing.

What they need?—?and actually want?—?from you is to resonate with what you’re saying and be 100% confident that you’re the person to help them solve their problem.

A list of services won’t cut it.

Start to master your?message

Instead, try switching up your messaging to focus on these things:

• What is your audience’s biggest challenge?
• What are they experiencing that they don’t want to be experiencing?
• What are they doing to cause their problem?
• What are they doing to try to fix their problem?
• How are they feeling when they experience this problem?
• What are they saying, believing, thinking when it comes to their problem?

Understanding your clients by knowing their world is the most effective way to really help them.

By tailoring your message to address their needs directly, you can foster stronger connections and drive meaningful change in your client relationships.

Master your message to enhance your client communication and build lasting connections.

Mastery takes?time

Now, deeply understanding your clients takes time.

You can’t expect to have all the answers with just one coffee chat, nor one survey. That won’t cut it either.

Even after 11 years of working with creatives and eco-friendly brands, I’m still learning because behaviors, beliefs, problems, mistakes made, etc. change.

We now have BC and AC (Before and After Corona), so what helped creatives before 2020 may not be relevant today.

And then again, some things never change, i.e. the biggest challenge for freelancing creatives = ‘Finding clients’.

Funny thing about ‘Finding clients’. It’s what creatives continuously tell me, however, it’s NOT the challenge.

The actual challenge is ‘Attracting clients’, so it’s a VISIBILITY, not a localization problem, requiring a completely different conversation.

If I were to jump straight to the solution: Create a marketing strategy, I will lose you.

Meet them where they’re?at

I have to meet them where they’re at which I’m sure you’ve heard before.

It means to find out what they’re experiencing and tailor your message to address their needs, desires, and pain points directly.

When you master your message and understand the nuances of your audience’s journey, you not only build stronger connections, you also position yourself as the go-to solution provider they’ve been searching for.

So, let’s dive deeper into the art of client resonance and explore how you can elevate your messaging to truly connect with your audience on a deeper level.

Ready to master your message and attract ideal clients?

Schedule a call with me to assess your situation and discover the next right step for your business.

Create on and prosper,

Jessica