#6: Customers Never Trust a Guide Without a Plan

If people feel like working with you is going to be hard or take time or energy, they won't. They'll just stop. So you need to show them that it's easy and just clear away that fog. People will not step into a fog or a mystery. You need to give the customers a plan to show them how to move forward in doing business with you and shows that it's easy. I'm about to start the show.

Welcome to the Marketing Made simple podcast where we believe that marketing should be easy and it should work. I AM your host, Dr. J.J. peterson, and I am joined by my co host, April Sunshine Hawkins.

Hi, J.J. hi, April.

You and Brent recently just your husband.

Yes.

Just went on vacation.

Yes. To North Carolina.

Yes. And I saw pictures. The views were gorgeous. And you are somewhat of a planner when you go on vacation. Right. I mean, is that true about you?

I love to have my most important things decided before I go on the trip. Where am I gonna stay?

Yep.

Which one restaurant do I have to make sure I hit up?

Yes. Yes.

And then what hike are we gonna go on?

Yeah, you guys are big hikers. And I'm kind of the same way when it comes. Cause I like, I'm like, these are the things I want to do. I'm definitely checking them off my list.

Yep.

And. And I tend to be a planner myself. Yes. I have some friends who I've gone on vacation with who are not. And one of my. I hope they're not listening, but one of the.

Most uncomfortable, I would say.

I hesitate to say this. They may be listening. And I love them. I love them dearly. Mean it. But we went to Aruba, which is an amazing place and I was so excited to go snorkeling and see some sights and spend time on the beach. And so I had in my mind kind of a plan of things I wanted to do. The important things, the most high level focus, like this is what I want to accomplish while I'm there. They did not. So I'd get up in the morning ready to go and they would sleep in. And then like, oh, we'll do this later. And because there was no plan, we actually never got anything done. I got to go snorkeling once in a week, which snorkeling is my favorite. And I got to go once and I was actually kind of disappointed. I had a great time with them, but there were some things I wanted to accomplish that would have made the trip for me just elevated. And it didn't happen.

And then the over planning also like, to the T. Like.

No, no, no.

I can't go with the type A traveler. Like, we have to show up at the airport four hours early and we have to detail. That's not how I roll.

Yep.

And that's okay. That's okay, everybody.

For some people.

That's right.

That's right.

But those goal posts, those, like, major milestones. It sounds like you and I are kind of on the same page.

Yeah. We should take a trip.

Absolutely.

As long as we're not hiking. As long as the hike is not okay.

Don't worry. We're gonna make it happen.

I'm ready. Well, the reason we're talking about planning for trips today is because today we are going to talk about the plan element of the story brand framework. And so the story brand framework is the marketing framework that really powers this podcast and shows you exactly how to clarify your message by inviting customers into a beautiful story where they are the hero of the story and you are the guide. So there's a character who wants something, who encounters a problem, who meets a guide who gives them a plan, which is what we're talking about today.

That's right.

Calls them to action that results in either success or failure. And all the other. This whole series is covering all of those elements. But today we're talking about the plan. So at this point in the story, when you're creating messaging for your marketing and you're making your customer the hero, you're. At this point in the story, we have identified what our customer wants, and we put that very clearly. We've established the problems that are getting in the way of that. We've positioned them as the guide. And up to this point in the messaging, we have not asked them for anything. Right. We're just kind of inviting them in. But in a minute or in just the next step, we are going to ask them for money or a meeting or a phone call. We're going to ask them to commit to either time or money. And before we get to that call to action, we need to give the customers a plan to show them how to move forward in doing business with you and show you that it's easy because they all of a sudden are getting ready. They're getting ready to pay the money. But there's kind of some fog there. There's a little bit of mystery on how to do business with you. And so you need to create a clear and concise plan that actually shows people how to do business with you. What are the steps that your customers need to take to do business with you. And this does come from story. Right. If you think about any movie that you watch, how many times have you heard, here's the plan? Or, what's the plan? Right. Because no matter how crazy the thing that the heroes are trying to do, it can be like they're gonna rob the Bellagio in Ocean's Eleven, or they have to steal back something from the CIA and Mission Impossible. It's literally impossible. And they go, but here's the plan. And then the audience buys in and goes, all right, I'm gonna go on this journey with you to see if the plan can accomplish what you've said you want to accomplish. It gets rid of the mystery.

People are timid, and they are going, I'm not really sure exactly how your business works.

Yep. And.

And so you have to explain it in a very simple way so that people will take action, like you're saying. And this can be for the simplest of things. The other day, I was going, okay, I've got to order some pizza. That's a pretty simple task. But every pizza place is kind of different. Their pizzas are different sizes. They might have a great salad offering that, you know, like, people don't know whenever you're walking into a new business what the plan should really be like. And so whenever I called and I asked the person on the phone, okay, I've got this many people. Help me make a plan. They were like, oh, yeah, we know exactly what you should do. You should. And then they just walked me through what would be a great order for me. And they made it so easy for me that it was easy to place my order with them.

Yeah. If it's complicated, if people feel. Feel like working with you is gonna be hard or take time or energy, they won't. They'll just stop. So you need to show them that it's easy and just clear away that fog. People will not step into a fog or a mystery. It's like, you know, we've talked about scary movies before, and you and I both watched and, like, both of the quiet places, but that's about as deep as horror as I can get. Most people would not call those horror movies, but in horror movies, so I've heard, right. Is there are. There's fog in a lot of them. Right. And when you see fog, the audience knows something scary is coming, you know, and it's the same with your business. If there is fog in your messaging in how to do business, that's scary for people. So what you need to do is you need to show them how easy it is by creating a three step plan to move forward to do business with you. So this can be very, very simple. Like schedule a call, will set up a plan for you and we'll help you succeed. 1, 2, 3. Just very simple like that. Schedule a call, we'll set up a plan, we'll help you succeed. Let's say somebody was going to hire an interior designer. Okay. What would a three step plan be for an interior designer?

They are going to come and like view my space, we're going to create a mood board and then they're going to present me with this incredible plan.

That makes me feel like 1, 2, 3, so easy. And everybody can do this. There's a lot of people who are listening. You're probably listening right now and you're going, my business is actually a little too complicated for this. I don't have a three step plan. I have a 15 step plan. Too many, too many. That's like the over planning on the trip. Like it gets just too tight and people get frustrated. There's too much to follow and you can't do it right. So don't overwhelm people with a 15 step plan. In fact, the research shows that when you have maybe five or six options for people to follow, the engagement decreases drastically, like by 75%. I'm recommending to you to create a three step plan. And here's a couple reasons why. We view our brain views a three step plan or three as complete. And our brain actually memorizes things in what I call the rule of threes. That actually comes from comedy, the rule of threes. But we memorize things in threes. So when you have an Emergency, you.

Dial 9, 1 1.

Yes. There's a reason it's three numbers. Our brain memorizes that easier when you catch on fire. We learned as a child you are.

Supposed to stop, drop and roll.

Yes. One, two, three. That's a simple plan. You're gonna start seeing this everywhere.

Yes, yes.

You'll see it everywhere. That businesses and people who want to communicate clearly give people a three step plan. Because people see that as complete, as whole, that it encapsulates everything and it also is easy to memorize. So today we're actually going to be talking with storybrand certified guides.

Yes, Raj, Lula. And of course, our storybrand certified guides are the best marketers in the world and can help your business clarify its message using the story brand framework. So we know that you might be feeling overwhelmed, you might be going I am that complicated business that has 15 steps, and I don't really know how to drill it down and get it down to three. You also might be a business who's super simple, but you're all up in your head and you can't really figure out how you're going to make that step. And you don't have to change how you do your business. You just have to figure out how you're going to communicate and make the plan simple. And that's what Raj does for you today. In this conversation, he is going to share practically how he took a complicated business and then made a very simple plan so that everybody was ready to take action. So that's what you're going to learn today, how to take the mystery and get rid of the fog and help your customers take that first step with you.

Raj, Lula, thank you so much for joining us today.

Thanks for having me.

All right, so Fruitful Design, you guys are an agency located where?

Omaha, Nebraska.

And what do you guys specifically specialize in for your client work?

Yeah, so we focus primarily on branding, messaging, and websites. So helping either startups or businesses who are having sort of an identity crisis or launching any new initiative, help them get the the look and feel and messaging that helps them launch that out into the world.

Well, thank you for joining us to talk about plan today. Plan is a specific part of our brand script tool, the thing that we use to welcome people into a story. And of course, you guys at Fruitful Design WR stories all the time with your clients. And plan is a really important aspect. Tell me why you like this part of the framework.

Well, a lot of times people forget a really fundamental thing about what websites are for, and that's that websites exist so that your customers can take the first step towards solving their problem. And a lot of times we kind of get lost and think that they need to know a lot of information or we don't give them enough information. And so plan is kind of that perfect sweet spot where we give them exactly the information that they need to take their first step towards solving their problem.

Absolutely. It, it clears the fog. It helps people understand exactly what to do without, like you said, overwhelming them with too much information along the way. So tell us about a specific client that you've used this specific part of the brand script with.

I'm working with a longtime friend of mine named Scott on his business Three Nails, Roofing and Exteriors. And so we're putting his website together. And exteriors can be something that's really complicated. Because there's different types of siding and different types of roofing, shingles and windows and all those types of things. And there's measurements to be taken. And so it can feel like there's 50 or 100 steps to actually going from needing new windows or needing a new roof to getting one. But the truth is that it actually falls into fairly simple buckets. Categories of actions that need to be taken, first one being getting a free estimate, the second one being getting a customized plan for your house. And then the third one, I actually always like to end in success.

And that's something the storybrand teaches as well. So the idea of having a safe and comfortable home, because that's really what the customers want. It's. I don't usually give two thoughts to my windows, except for when they're making it too hot on a hot day or too cold on a cold day. Then I think, gosh, I wish I had new windows. And so really, I'm looking for comfort in my home or safety in my home if my roof is leaking or something's going wrong with the exterior. I had a friend who had hornets getting inside their siding. It's like they want that fixed. And so it's super easy to actually boil down. Now, are there going to be sub steps to their plan? Absolutely. There's going to be measurements, there's going to be choices about trimming and style and all those things. But that amount of information would overwhelm the customer when all they really need to know is, hey, I'm going to come out and measure your stuff, and I'm going to tell you for free how much that's going to cost you at the end. And then the second thing we're going to do is I'm going to allow you to make some choices about what style, what it's going to look like, what color, all those kinds of things. And then if we agree to do business together, then you're going to get a safe and happy home, and I'm going to take care of all the rest. And that's all that they really need to know in order to take that first step towards getting a free estimate.

And that's really what a great guide does, right? Is they provide a very clear plan and path forward that isn't going to muddy the waters. There's not going to be too many bowling balls that you're handing to the client at this point in the story. It's just, hey, these are the easy steps that you can take to solving your hornet problem or Whatever it is that you've got.

Yep. Because a lot of times we have, you know, half the information that they need. I wrote a statistic a while ago that it takes eight emails to schedule a meeting, and we try to cut that in half. And one of the ways that you can do that is by, you know, your schedule. And so instead of saying, when would you like to meet? You say, hey, I've got Tuesday at 2 or Thursday at 3 available. Would you like one of those times or would you like a different time immediately? They can. You can cut that email sequence down to three or four emails after you've already decided to meet. And it just makes it so much better for clients to have that seamless experience. And you can do the same thing in the plan section of your website. Give them the exact information that they need to get connected with you.

So, Raj, our listeners out there, if they just have a lot of steps in the work that they do with clients, like, what advice would you give them?

I would say that most of our clients come to us and say, this one's really complicated. And so I think almost everybody believes this about what they do because they live so close to it. They know how hard it is to do what they do. That said, a lot of times, a good way to approach the plan is what are the three steps it takes to get started? And so maybe it's not telling them the entire plan of how you're going to change their managed IT infrastructure. Maybe it's literally, how do you get a hold of us? Because again, you know, information that they need, such as, is this just something I can add to cart? Again, talking about my friend who's doing exteriors. Can I just add windows to my cart and you just come put them in my house? No, because they're all different sizes. Okay, that's great. But also, do I need to go get the windows? Do I need to go to Home Depot and pick out windows? Is that where you even get windows? You know, there's a lot of questions I have as a customer that you may not realize are really simple things about getting started. And the first one with him is just, hey, I'll come to your house and measure things so we know which windows to start with, and then I'll show you which options you have. So it's really about, how do you get started? Not, can you map out the entire process? For me, that's something that happens inside the sales journey after you're taken offline. Again, it's really about getting that first step towards solving their problem. That's what you really want to help them accomplish through the plan.

Perfect.

Well, I love this part of the framework. I think we say that every time because it is so, so helpful to the clients. Like you're saying, it cuts through the noise. It helps them say, oh, that sounds easy. It sounds like I can do that. Let's go ahead and move forward because I don't feel like I'm going to be tripping over all of these steps to actually do business with you. You've told me what it's going to look like, and I'm ready to get to it. So let's get to it.

Yeah. It also helps them from feeling like they have to become experts in your product in order to use it. I would have no idea if using the 2 inch bolt or the 1 inch bolt is better. And I don't need to know. You tell me which ones I need to do based off of your custom plan for me. And. And so it keeps me from having to do a lot of heavy lifting in accessing your product or service.

Perfect.

And it really is the perfect setup to call to action, which, of course, will be what we're talking about on next week's podcast episode. So. All right, well, Raj, thank you again for your time and continue creating amazing plans for your clients and helping them win the day.

Will do. Thanks, April.

Oh, my goodness. I love that because we work with clients all the time who say my process is way too complicated. And trust me, it's not. You can create a simple plan that onboards your customers into buying your product and service. And this really is about a relationship with your customer. It's about showing them it's easy. So many of us are scared. I mean, really, you know, you may have a product that takes a couple thousand dollar investment and your buyer is sitting back and they're nervous about this investment and they're scared and they're overwhelmed. And by giving them a simple plan, you allow them to just drop their shoulders a little bit, right. And say, I can do this. That's really what the guide does for the hero with a plan is they say, the hero's overwhelmed, they're scared, they're nervous, and the guide comes in and goes, hey, you can do this. We have the tools, we have a plan. You are going to be able to win the day. And that's really all you're doing as the guide for your customer is saying, you've got this and I've got you. I can help you do this. And it's easy. So now, because we got you like April and I have you, we want to give you a three step plan on creating a plan. Yeah, we're gonna do that. And this is the time every week where we give you your actionable step, which is really just a practical step from today's conversation that you can immediately take to shape your marketing and clarify your message. We've been telling you every week to go to mystorybrand.com and use the brand script to track your mess you're going to be using. And the brand script just is a simple tool that acts as a business's roadmap through all the parts of the storybrand framework. So it allows you to write out each of the parts of the framework and have it in one place so you have your consistent story all together. So if you've already set up an account@mystorybrand.com, then go to that right now. If you have not, go to mystorybrand.com, sign up for the online brand script. It's free. Now, right in the middle of the page there is a section that says plan. And we are going to have you write down a three step plan. Now here's how to do that. First, what you want to do is identify how does somebody begin the process of working for me? That's step one. So just do they need to give you a call? Do they need to buy or do they need to check out the options? What is it that they need to do? And that's step one. Then step two, talk about your solution. What do you actually bring to the table? So we're going to make a plan for you, or we're going to deliver your mattress, or we're going to mow your yard. Let's say you're a landscaper. Step one would just be we're going to set up a meeting to look at your yard and see what you have available. Step two is we're going to design a plan that will actually make your yard look beautiful. Right. So step one is how they really get started. Step two is your solution. And then step three of the plan is really just success. What does success look like after they have used your product or service? So step three for a landscaper would just be enjoy your yard. Step one, set up a meeting. Step two, design a plan. Step three, enjoy your yard. So those are the three steps I want you to create right now. Step one, how do they get started? Step two, what's your solution? And step three, what does their life look like after they've used your product or service? We call that success. Stop right now. And even if you have 15 steps in the way that you serve them, compress that down to just number two. That's step two. We go through a 15 step process. You don't need to tell them all 15, but step two is where you can compress everything to say, this is how we do it. When you create a plan like this, what you do is you're telling your customers, I got you, I got your back. You can do this. There is an easy way forward and you are going to win the day. So take time right now to pause and create your three step plan to help your customers. Well, that's all for this week's episode of Marketing Made Simple. Thanks for listening and believing like us, that your marketing should be easy and it should work. Subscribe to Marketing Made simple wherever you're listening to podcasts. And don't forget to rate and review the show, letting us know how the parts of the story brand framework are clarifying your message and transforming your business. Can't wait to see you next week.

You cannot stop me. You cannot stop me. Go.