How to Get Your Dream Clients to See Themselves in Your Content

INTRO: After generating over a million dollars in sales and selling one of her businesses with a single email, your host, Kathryn Thompson, takes an unconventional approach to marketing and sales. So if you're ready to tap into a more powerful way to be seen, heard, and a sought after entrepreneur in your industry without having to spend endless hours marketing your business and chasing clients, you're in the right place. Be The Sought After Entrepreneur Podcast is here to help you ditch the cookie cutter, one size fits all approach to marketing and use your unique energy to effortlessly attract the most aligned clients. When you do this, you can spend less time marketing your business and more time doing your soul work and enjoying the richness of your life. Welcome to Be The Sought After Entrepreneur Podcast. And here's your host, Kathryn Thompson.

Kathryn Thompson: Hey, hey, I am so glad you're here today and I cannot wait to dive into [00:01:00] today's topic because I want to unpack how to really get your people that you're wanting to connect with to see themselves in what it is that you're saying to a point that they're like, I feel like you wrote that exactly for me or I feel so seen and understood just by reading Your content, maybe they came across your ad, maybe they're in a free training.

Either way, they feel so deeply seen and understood that they can't help but reach out and inquire about what it is that you do. And this is so vital because if somebody doesn't feel seen and understood, They're likely going to have a hard time developing trust with you. And this is not, and I'll be really clear, this isn't about communicating in a way that's manufactured or engineered.

So that you get people to see themselves in what you're doing from a manipulative place. This is really about speaking from the heart in [00:02:00] a lot of ways. And I know that's going to sound maybe a little basic, or, I already know this, Kathryn, or whatnot. But it's one of the biggest things that I Support my clients with is crafting communication and articulating what they do in a way that has their clients or potential clients wanting to work with them before they ever get on a sales call before they ever land on a sales page.

And again, from a very pure and genuine place. So before I dive into how I walk my clients through this inside of Spellbound, I want to unpack why it is so difficult for us to communicate in a way that has our people seeing themselves reflected in what it is that we're doing. And that is because We are disconnected from our truth and disconnected from our genuine message.

Oftentimes, this happens [00:03:00] because we believe we have to package and position what we do and articulate what we do and communicate what we do in a way that actually isn't true. a true reflection of us, we're trying to fit ourselves into some protocol or framework or prescribed method that ends up either diluting our message and stripping away the very thing that our people are ultimately going to be magnetized towards.

And the more real and honest we can get with where and how that's happening, the more we can get in tune with our, our actual true message. Now this is a evolution and it's a process and it's very much like deep transformational work, which again, a lot of my clients who leave Spellbound will say, I feel like I just went through this deeply transformational experience.

That's [00:04:00] beyond just strategies and practical ways of applying and implementing And oftentimes people will say to me, who does the best? Like who gets the best results when they work with you? And what's interesting is I'm, I never say like, oh, this type of business or this type of person. I never actually even speak to like, well, they're hardworking or they're determined or they're disciplined.

That's actually never really at play for me and my clients, but also what I've experienced and what I see they experience. And this word is really overused and that's the word alignment. But what I mean by that is when somebody is in full resonance with what it is they're saying and they're so, So connected to the message, like they're actually just speaking and they're not mentally trying to think of what they need to say next in order to get their people to do something.

There's a frequency behind that, and that is often sensed [00:05:00] versus ever even. coming across in the written word, like it's not even comprehended when people are reading it. And I know this to be true because nine times out of 10, when people come on a sales call with me or one of my team members, they will often always say, I never click on ads.

I hear that so frequently and yet that is predominantly how I promote. Spellbound. Running ads via Facebook and Instagram, quite literally, is a huge part of my strategy. And it's a huge part of my strategy, one, because I don't want to rely on social media and having to be a content factory. That was my deciding factor.

Now, I know my people are very, very, very sensitive to adverts. They're very, very, very sensitive to marketing tactics and strategies that are not genuine and are not authentic. [00:06:00] And when I ask people, then why'd you click on the ad? They always go back to the energy of it. They always go back to this energy that felt like it was grounding.

It was calm. I never felt like When I experienced any of your work that I felt like if I didn't take you up on your offer that somehow my life would fall apart or my business would fall apart, they always felt very grounded and regulated. They never felt like they were in a rush or they had to do the thing or that they were doing a hundred things wrong.

And that's because I don't approach my business in that way. I don't believe there's a one size fits all. I don't believe there's a cookie cutter. And therefore I can't. put out an ad that's like, this is the only way to do it. The reason why you're not getting clients is because you're not doing this right.

I don't live in a right or wrong. I don't live in an us versus them mentality. Never have. And so [00:07:00] I don't sell that way, right? And I'm not saying that I've always done things perfectly because I'm human, right? We are human and we all have our own stuff we need to unravel and unpack. But the biggest reason why I feel like a lot of messaging and copy and content and marketing falls flat is because it's not coming from that sort of genuine expression.

And what I mean by that is, is that The message that's being translated out into words or in video is coming from the mental plane. It's coming from a framework that we have to follow in order to get it right. If I'm going to put the effort in, I need to get it right, or I want to get it right, or I want there to be results.

And this particular coach is telling me to write a hook this way. And this particular coach is telling me I need to Right. Copy in this format. And this particular coach is telling me I need to structure my [00:08:00] offers this way if I want to be successful. And what ends up happening is, is that there's that incongruency, right?

Because deep down, you might feel in your gut or your heart or whatnot, that what you're putting out there, you're doing it from a place of, I need to get it right, or I'm doing it from a place of manufactured, like it's very much robotic, right? It's like being in an assembly line where you're just sitting there following the assembly in order to make sure all the cans get the stickers in the right order and all the lids get put on correctly and there's no sort of duds or imperfections, everything's perfect.

The same is true for your message. If It's not genuine. And if it doesn't come with flaws, people will often sense something. There will be a lack of trust that happens because we know on a subconscious level that people aren't [00:09:00] perfect. We know that people fumble over their words and don't always say the right thing.

We know that if we're going to get on video and speak and just riff, that oftentimes that riffing is a lot more genuine because we're not thinking about what we're going to say and how we're going to say it, right? Um, which is why video can be, really uber powerful when not following a script and just showing up and talking.

Now, I digress from that because I, I don't want to spend a ton of time on why this happens, because to me, the real work here is to really start to sit and contemplate where in your business and where in your life and all of that Are you holding back what you truly ultimately want to do and [00:10:00] say out of any type of fear, right?

Um, and again, fear isn't a bad thing. We're not trying to abolish fear and get rid of it. I think there will always be a sense of worry and doubt and fear that comes up, especially as an entrepreneur when we're stepping into the uncertainty and the unknown and we're taking risks and all of that. A hundred percent.

but it's our ability to navigate that and change our relationship with that. But it's also to get really clear and be able to spot where I might be softening my message or diluting it. And all of us have our own tune and our own frequency. And mine is different than yours and yours is different than somebody else's.

But when we can truly step into our unique tune or tone or frequency. And when we can come from a place of neutrality, not trying to convince people, not trying to streamline them [00:11:00] into an offer. I had a beautiful conversation with a woman recently and she said, How do I know that this is the investment for me?

And she was referring to Spellbound. And my response to her was, You'll know. And she looked at me sort of in shock and awe because she had spent years training in NLP and she was waiting for me to bust her objection. She was waiting for me to sort of get to the root and try to like, you know, get her into saying yes.

And I wasn't going to do that. And I wasn't going to do that because I truly believe that we internally and innately know what's right for us. And a big part of the work that I do in Spellbound is reminding people of that. And so if I'm asking them not to trust themselves in the buying process, then I've, I am absolutely incongruent with what I'm here to do.

And that's what I [00:12:00] mean by living the message. Because when we speak our truth, and when we show up in that truth, then people feel it. And literally, I was sitting and watching her. She was in shock. And then she said, now I really want to join. And it's because I wasn't trying to get her to join. I wasn't trying to maneuver or control the conversation.

I literally was like, you'll know in your heart. And part of knowing in your heart is also how you lead your business. And those that do the best in Spellbound are the ones that continually come back to the heart. It doesn't mean that their brain doesn't try to override them and their ego isn't at play.

That's not at all. But it's that reminder to come back to the heart center and go, what is it that I truly want? And is this the thing that's going to bring aliveness in my body? Am I freaking excited to talk about this? Am I excited to offer this? Am I excited to put this out there? [00:13:00] And am I selling and communicating in a way that fully aligns with my values?

And that's the question you need to ask yourself, because if you want people to see themselves in what it is you say, and you want people to go, I want to work with you because you align with me so deeply, then you've got to be in alignment with yourself. You know, I'm in the midst of getting ready to raise my prices for Spellbound and there, people were like, well, what's the deadline?

And I said, it's technically July 1, but anybody I'm talking to right now, I'm giving them until July 15th, because I don't want to rush your decision process. And five of the people looked at me and said, out of the five people that I was talking to this week, they literally all said to me, you know, your audience so well.

And I said, the reason I know them so well is because I'm always asking myself, how would that make me feel? If I was in a position like that, looking to make a big investment in my life or business, [00:14:00] how would it make me feel if somebody told me I had less than 24 hours to make that decision? I would feel panicked, I would feel rushed, and I would probably make a decision out of alignment because I would feel like I had the pressure to do it in that moment, right?

It wasn't congruent in a lot of ways. So I'm always checking in going, What feels right for me? And I can promise you that when we align with that, and we align with what we want to say, how we want to say it, and we truly speak from that place, that is so magnetic, and I'm being really honest with you about that, it totally is, because our inner reflection, our inner world, is a mere reflection of our outer world.

And so, if we're not congruent inside,

what's happening in the outside world in our business won't be congruent. Now, I'm [00:15:00] not saying that it's gonna all of a sudden you do this and miraculously quantum leap in 2. 5 seconds. That's not what I'm saying. We still have to take action and all of that. But if you really want to get people to see themselves in what it is you're saying, we have to stop trying to manufacture the message.

We have to stop trying to engineer it. We have to stop trying to follow a framework, or a script, or a template that quote unquote works because I, I have sold close to a million dollars in wine. literally just having conversations about travel, food, people's lives, their relationships. Like, I was never selling in the store.

I literally wasn't. People would walk in and ask them how their day was. How's the weather outside? It was like, and then I'd ask them about their life and where they're from and all of that. And that's literally how I sold wine. And that's how people told me, literally, in the wine store, you're a phenomenal seller.

And I would [00:16:00] say, why? Because I just had conversations with people. Well, that's the same with your content, right? You're just having a conversation with somebody. And maybe it's your own introspection, right? Maybe it's your own internal reflection you want to share. So it's coming back to kind of who you are and what's your natural way of expressing.

What feels really good for you? Is it writing long form? Is it recording video? Is it just having somebody ask you questions and you be able to answer? Is it not preparing at all? And it's getting really clear on where there might be some resistance to that. And then the other key piece of it is we have to stop kind of living at the surface.

Again, a lot of marketing is taught from that surface level perspective. It's grandiose promises. It's broad brush strokes. It's trying to paint everyone with the same brush, right? How to make 10K in 30 [00:17:00] days. Well, not everybody wants to make 10K in 30 days. Some people want to create impact and the money isn't actually the thing that's motivating them.

Some people want a lifestyle. So they want a few clients a month so that they can work for themselves and enjoy their space. Some want to build an empire. Some want to be totally nomads. Some want to be able to retire their husbands. There's so much nuance in the people and what really drives them and motivates them and what their values are.

And if we're not connected with our own values, if we're incongruent with our beliefs and our values, our message will be incongruent and will ultimately not attract the people we want to attract into our world and they won't see themselves in it. So saying something like, I want to help women you know, empower their lives.

It's like, well, what type of woman? Like [00:18:00] what's, what's underneath that? What is, what is at the, at the root of why that person wants empowerment? What's at the root of why that person wants money? What's at the root of why that person wants freedom? This takes time. And this is where people don't want to spend the time.

They want to make grandiose promises that then, you know, basically blend in with everybody else and don't truly connect to the heart of the person you're wanting to connect with. And so that's where you have to start asking yourself these questions. And if you're in the healing space and you're an empath in any way, You have a deep understanding of people to a point that a lot of people don't.

And a big part of me being able to communicate in a way that has people clicking on ads that say they'll never click on an ad or has people getting on calls going, I feel so seen like you, you're talking right to my soul. It's because I'm so [00:19:00] connected to mine and it wasn't always that case, but I'm so connected with my heart and soul.

And I have this This inkling of like what it is people want to hear in a lot of ways because I also listen to a lot of people. I have a ton of conversations with people. I'm always getting curious when someone tells me they don't have the budget for my program. Let's just say I get curious about that and not from a place of I need to show them they have a money block or anything like that.

But someone telling me they don't have the budget, or someone telling me it's not the right time, or someone telling me they don't have the capacity right now, I want to get curious. And the reason I want to get curious is because I want to understand, because to me someone saying I don't have the budget really is a surface level statement, right?

It doesn't really tell me much. And so what is your budget? How much am I out of the budget? Right? All of these sorts of things. And when we get curious, and we start to ask these questions and start to drill down layer after layer [00:20:00] after layer after layer, that's where the nuance lives. And that's where we can speak from nuance.

And to me, when we can speak from nuance, then that's how people see themselves in what it is we're saying. But when we say something like, I don't have the budget, right? Or, if you don't have the budget, Someone's like, well, it's not that I don't really have the budget, but I'm just not prioritizing it right now because I want to buy a car, or I want to da da da, right?

Like, if we don't get to the nuance, it's just gonna go right over someone's head, but if we don't get to the nuance, you're also just blending in with everybody else. And that, for me, is the specificity and the niche. And you might be thinking, but then, Kathryn, like, if I narrow down that much, everybody's nuanced, so there's so much variety.

How do I go about doing that? It's like, you've got to think of your content and the work you do as an ecosystem versus one point in time or one specific thing. We've got to zoom out, right? We've got to zoom out to 50 feet above the [00:21:00] ground or whatever. And we've got to look from that big picture that not one post, not one Instagram bio is going to capture the essence of what it is that you want to talk about.

Right? So it's like, you've got this broad level vision, you've got this big vision, and now we just gotta get granular with it. We gotta get nuanced with it. So you might have one post that talks very specifically about one specific thing, but then you have another one that talks about this, and another one that talks about this, right?

And that creates an ecosystem. And that ecosystem will naturally draw in people that align with your values and your beliefs and what it is that you're sharing. But when we're just trying to speak at the surface, like, I help women empower their lives, that is very surface level, and the woman that's reading that can't connect to it.

She can't connect to it because It's actually not speaking to her heart. It's not speaking to where she's currently at. [00:22:00] And so that is how you get people to see themselves in what it is that you're saying. One, you've got to speak truth and live that message, right? You've got to live that message. It's got to be so congruent with who you are.

It's got to be the frequency, which means that there's all some unlearning and unpacking here. If you're not congruent with your values and your beliefs and all of that, that tune or that frequency is going to be Impacted. Right. And there's gonna be friction there. But the other key thing is actually having conversation from a place of curiosity.

Not taking things at face value, but also not speaking at face value. Right? Not speaking at that broad level one brush stroke. It's, it's getting really curious about the variety of brushstrokes that are in your world. And that usually ties back to you and your beliefs and your values. And when you can operate from that perspective, people will naturally start to see themselves in what it is that you put out there.

And then thirdly is like, get out of the head, right? This is often something I'll say to my [00:23:00] clients. We've got to get you out of the head. We've got to get you out of the thinking brain, out of the manufacturing, out of the engineering, and we've got to connect you back to your heart. What is it that you want to say?

And how would you say it? And then let's run with it. And let's put that in a strategy that then allows the strategy and what it is you say to be a full reflection of who you are. And so that to me is how you get people to see themselves in what it is that you're saying. And the more that you understand yourself, and the more that you understand Why and what you want to say and the more that you understand the people you ultimately want to connect with The better off you are and at to be able to communicate in that way So with that, I hope that has helped you and given you some insight in order to be able to craft and communicate In a way that is heartfelt and something that your people will be able to feel Sense and be able to see themselves in it and feel understood by what it is that you're sharing.

So with [00:24:00] that, I hope you have a fab day. Cheers. Thanks for listening. We'll see you right back here next time. You can also find us on social media at creativelyowned and online at creativelyowned. com. Until next time, keep showing up as your authentic self.