As a professional hypnotist, I recognise the importance of language, and even more so as a business networker. For example, the potential for improving your business and quality of referrals is directly related to how easily people remember you, isn’ it.
And if you want to be truly remembered, you need to ensure the language you utilise is specifically directed to keeping you in mind. Now how grateful would you be to hear of a technique that keeps you remembered, long after that momentary networking hand-shake has been and gone?
The other day I attended a presentation skills workshop, and the room was full to the brim with business networkers eager to improve their presentation skills … and some needed more help than others, of course.
But one thing I learned early on in my career as a hypnotist, is that if you use the right words, you’ll get the right results … and the more artful you can be with your words, the more predictable the results you can achieve.
“How do you do. And what do you do?”
“I’m an accountant”
“Oh”
The conversation stops before it’s even begun.
“How do you do. And what do you do?”
“I’m a solicitor”
“Oh”
… another brick wall.
You see, we have a wonderful opportunity to tell people precisely how we can help them and their contacts (friends, relatives, colleagues, team buddies, etc etc) … all we have to do is speak to the pain.
For example, I still remember Paul Taylor from AGN Shipleys in the UK. The conversation with him would go along the lines of:
“How do you do. And what do you do?”
“I’m the modern day Robin Hood … without the tights!”
“Uh?!”
“I steal from the chancellor and give the money back to the business owner by helping them reduce their taxes.”
Now everyone wants to pay less tax, don’t they? At least it seems that way on the surface. And I always remember Paul Taylor because of that wonderful pattern interrupt of an introduction “The modern day Robin Hood … without the tights”
… it paints a vivid picture, doesn’t it. And of course it works, because it gives you that jolt, that “Uh?!” factor inside. And he doesn’t just answer the question “What do you do” with a job title.
Whenever people asked me what I do, I used to say “I’m a hypnotist” which conjured up images in people’s minds that wasn’t really relevent – there they were thinking that I performed some sort of stage magic when really that was nothing like what I did. Then I used to answer “I’m a hypotherapist” but even that brings up images of a Freudian looking old gentleman with round-rimmed glasses and a goatie beard …
(… or is that just my opinion of what a “hypnotherapist” should look like? Hmmmm …. food for thought there, eh?)
Now there are other ways to be remembered, and I would like to share this with you, just for that moment when you meet someone whilst networking and you want them to remember exactly what you do AND refer you on to their friends, colleagues, family etc. when the time is right.
It’s a powerful technique. But it only works when you practice it dilligently …
First of all, take some time now, to think about the ideal customer or client you want to attract. What is it about what you do that makes this person want to use your services or product? How do they feel before they’ve used your product or service? And how do they feel afterwards? …
… i.e. you want to speak to the pain
And now that you have these things in mind, you can begin to work on your “elevator pitch”.
Before you tell anyone what you do, you want to make sure that the person is going to remember you, and that they will bring you to mind whenever they come across your ideal client. The way to do this is to open a mental folder in their mind, and once they’ve opened that folder you can then slip in your information and details. In the future, from that moment on, whenever they come across the situation, they mentally open that folder and bring your details to mind. Trust me, this works wonders …
So how do you open that mental folder?
Start with the words “You know when …” and then continue by describing how that ideal client feels before they’ve used your product or services, or describe the situation that the ideal customer finds themselves in. For example, for a computer intranet software developer:
“You know when an organisation has more than one department? … or more than one location? … and you know how one department doesn’t talk to any other department? …”
And then STOP …
… and wait until you get some recognition. Wait until you get a “nod” or an “ah yes” affirmation. At this point the folder is open, that mental folder is ready to take your details! So tell them what you do!
“Well … we write software, that allows those organisations to communicate …”
But don’t stop there, because they’ll either be asking the question “So that?” or “So what?” … so answer it for them … because, it’s better for you to supply a “So that” before they say to themselves “So what?”, isn’t it?
“… so that they can be more profitable by sharing relevant business information, and thereby making informed business decisions far more quicker than their competitors ever can.”
And that’s all there is to it …
… or is there?
Well, you can easily follow this up with:
“And we all know organisations like that, don’t we …?”
And then STOP again, waiting for a response like “Oh yes there’s such and such who I was only just talking to the other day …” … KERCHING!! … another sale.
Now, there are some caveats, some pitfalls, some traps that you don’t want to fall into. To start off with, you have to wait for that recognition, that “nod” or “ah yes”, that confirmation that they’ve opened the mental folder. Without that opened folder, the chances of being remembered are dramatically reduced. But you don’t want to describe a situation that doesn’t speak to the pain. As a marketing guru for instance, the last thing you want to say is:
“You know when you want to spend some money on marketing …”
or
“You know when you want to send out a mailshot …”
Well, actually NO, I don’t want to spend any money on marketing or advertising. I know I have to do it to grow my business, but I’d rather not do it! No, I never want to send out a mailshot. I’d rather spend the time and money on the things I enjoy doing instead. So these two phrases don’t really speak to the pain, do they? And people won’t really engage, they won’t really “nod” or go “ah yes” inside, will they? Or if they do, they’re just being polite, and you’ll easily notice the difference between politeness and engagement.
A better example would be:
“You know when you begin to wonder how you might be able to attract more customers …”
(Yes, I always wonder that!) [and did you notice the hypnotic language pattern in there?! <giggle>]
“… well, I work with premium businesses to find their Decisive Power Points so that they can attract the right type of customers with the minimum of effort … and we all know businesses that want that, don’t we?”
(Incidentally, if you want to know what a Decisive Power Point is, take a careful look at Coaching Charisma – it’s full of tips on marketing information and ways to improve your customer base – and it’s not only applicable to Coaches, either – so do it today, because you won’t regret it.)
or
“You know when you feel you’re working too hard … for what seems like very little reward …”
(Hmmm … sometimes … what’s this leading up to? …)
“… like you spend most of your time looking after the client that moans too much, but pays you the least amount of money, and all the really nice clients have to wait because the moaning client takes up all your time and resources …”
(Ah, yes … I understand now …)
“… well, I work with forward thinking business owners who want to identify their best clients … so that you can spend more time in attracting them, and less time searching out unprofitable customers … which ultimately means you get to work with people you enjoy working with, and therefore feel rewarded at the end of the day … and we all know people like that, don’t we?”
Get the picture?
So, practice your elevator pitch, because you never know when you’re next going to meet your biggest referral giver. Practice your “You know when …” presentation, and open those mental folders in your potential clients and referrers.
And if you’d like to email me your “you know when” pitch, I’ll gladly let you know how it works on me … elevatorpitch@fastimprovement.co.uk
Until next time, practice and above all … HAVE FUN 
p.s. by the way, I have several “elevator pitches” that I use on a regular basis, depending on who I’m with. For example …
[When talking to someone who looks over tired or run down ...]
“You know when you can’t get to sleep at night … or you continually wake up for no apparent reason? … [wait for the nod, because I know it's coming!] … well, I successfully use hypnosis … to quite literally knock that problem on the head … so that you can satisfyingly treat yourself to a good night’s sleep, and finally experience a deep and restful slumber … and we all know people who can benefit from that, don’t we? <grin>”
[When talking to someone who has to give presentations but seems a little nervous ...]
“You know when people dread standing up and talking in front of strangers … you know, when you feel a sense of anxiety just before you give an important presentation … well I use hypnosis, either via CD or in a 1-2-1 session, to give people confidence … so that you can naturally improve your performance and successfully get your message across … and we all know people who are concerned about their presentation skills, aren’t we?”
It’s easy, isn’t it?
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