Unlocking Client Connection with Amy Yamada

Foreign. You know, recently I was on a call with a new prospect, CEO of a life science biotech company. And, you know, you've been following me long enough. You know, I'm a bit of a biotech superstar. I love helping tech companies in the medical space impact patient outcomes. Like, that is my jam. And that's why I've been on the board of the American Society of Breast Surgeons foundation for years and had been a special advisor to the White House, chairman of the President's Cancer Panel for the last two administrations. And I love that. But this CEO, on that day, everything I. This first meeting was not what you would expect from me, right? It was. I was off target with him, and we didn't align. The reason, even though I've been crushing it in this space for a long time, like 14 years, I didn't have a deep understanding of this specific client's psychological needs, and I really couldn't. I just couldn't intimately connect with him. Also on that intro call was my business partner who's having a much easier time connecting with him. And I actually slacked my business partner, and I was like, yo, dude, do all the talking from this point on, like, this dude doesn't want to connect with me. Now think back to your last relationship that didn't develop properly. It could have been a new work relationship, a new prospect like mine, or even somebody you went on a date with. And maybe you moved too quickly or you just kind of BSed your way through it, but you didn't know what their needs paid them for. And maybe, like me, you are off track. You see, when we don't align properly at the beginning, the relationship just doesn't blossom. And the faster you get in alignment with your ideal client and what their needs are, the quicker they're going to know, love, and trust you to help you identify your ideal client and to align with them. Well, coming up after the break, the brilliant Amy Yamada will be with us. And Amy is a seasoned business coach, a speaker, and the founder of IdealClient AI, which specializes in authentic messaging and effective communication. And that's why you're not going to want to miss this amazing moment. Coming up, this podcast is brought to you by the Wire Buzz team. Now, if that name sounds familiar, it's because I've spent the past decade growing Wirebuzz into a digital marketing powerhouse designed to maximize clarity in complex sales processes so we can help accelerate revenue. And we do this in three phases. Phase one, we transform your website to function like your best salesperson and Then also incorporate persuasive on demand sales videos. Now your entire team is aligned on messaging and they're injecting massive clarity into your prospect's head. So your site looks great, but it also has engaging content that helps your team sell on demand 24. 7. The next phase phase two. We train your sales and marketing teams to sell remotely or in person to expand the impact of your sales team. And the third phase is we develop and run targeted ads to your prospects. Scale those ads to help you achieve more business results. Sign up for the Wirebuzz Company newsletter to learn more about effective and simple ways to improve your company messaging, attract more digital attention, and ultimately make more sales. The first thing that Tony Robbins asked me to do when I walk out onto his stage like 15 times a year is to align with the psychology and the needs of his audience. That is my first task when I step out there. And that's the first thing that you should be doing with each and every new client prospect. And it should be in the messaging on your website. It should be in the messaging that comes out of your mouth and even any marketing collateral that you provide. And to help you make your life even more amazing, I'd like to welcome my dear friend Amy Yamada, who is a seasoned business coach, a speaker, and the founder of IdealClient AI Amy, welcome to the Todcast.

Oh, thank you so much, Todd. I'm so thrilled to be here.

Yeah, I am too, Amy. Now, let's talk about alignment. Like, clearly from the intro, it's obvious that I'm not always on point. Sometimes I miss my magic moments to align with people. And why is it that it's vital for every business leader to have a deep understanding of their target audience and that audience's psychological needs?

Yeah, great question. I. I really believe that that is essential because to me, that's like the roots of the tree. We don't have those roots really. Just dialed in then connecting with the audience and connecting with radio clients. It's just like you said, it's not going to blossom the way that it could. And I think far too often entrepreneurs, business owners, even large businesses, focus so much on their brand and what they want to say about themselves versus putting the spotlight on the ideal clients and what they are, not only like, who they are, but what is it that they're thinking, what is it that they're saying, what is it that they're thinking but not sharing with others? And so when you have those insights, then you can really speak to their heart and who they Are as human being. So it's very powerful tool.

It's so powerful. I just got chills because I am a nerd for relationships. Like, my sister, my niece and nephew know Uncle Todd's superpower is broken relationships. And I try to pull that over into marketing, and I definitely try to apply that in sales. But I also see a lot of companies that are just kind of winging it. Like they're doing more talking than listening. And clearly, God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason. Why is it important for us to listen more and evaluate more before we start pitching?

Yeah, this is one of the most important things. I mean, I love that you spoke into relationships, because the way that I think about marketing is the same way you do. It is a relationship with your audience. I always like to think about if we're truly listening to our audience and hearing what their needs are, what their motivations are, when is it that they are making these types of buying decisions, then we can focus the spotlight on them and speak their language. And when we do that, then they feel seen and heard and understood by us as the. Whether we're the face of the brand or as the company itself. To be able to speak their language is everything, because then they know that you are thinking about them first. So it just makes it easier for everybody to build that deep connection.

Okay, this is super cool. I often think about having to be the trusted advisor. And when I say have, I'm like, getting the opportunity is really what I mean to say about that. Like, when you get the opportunity to be somebody's trusted advisor, you have to truly listen first. Right. Cause you can't advise without listening. And then you've gotta speak their language. So they feel seen, heard, understood, and sounds like what smart business leaders do before they step out is they get into understanding this, like, deep psychology of who it is and what their needs are. So they condition themselves and their company to be that trusted advisor. Am I. Am I close?

Yes, absolutely. Because once again, it's when they feel seen by you, then you can speak to their needs before we're pitching whatever it is that we're offering them. So, for example, as I've shared with you as my friend, I'm getting ready to move to a new location. My family and I are moving to a new house. We're really excited about this. I know we've got gorgeous view, but we have another gorgeous view at this other house. So I'm very grateful. And right now I have a lot of needs in terms of moving and getting a pod and all the things that come along with moving. And when I see businesses that are targeting me now because I'm doing some searches, I love seeing messaging that's around, like, do you have a move coming up? And are you needing some support in all the steps that you need to take in order to make this a less stressful move? You know, things that are definitely top of mind for me. So when. When a company or an entrepreneur or marketer knows what someone is experiencing right now and what it is that they need, what is the gap that they're needing to fill, then they can really be empathetic and compassionate and be able to solve that problem to fill that gap.

Okay, this is cool. So let me see if I understand this right. When your prospects feel seen and understood by you, they're going to open up their heart, they're going to bring down their protection, the barrier, and then you can support them. So how do we bridge that gap, Amy, for a lot of us, that even somebody who's been in an industry for a very long time, like me, and I know what the needs, pain, and frustrations are, but I can still be off track. How do we demonstrate consistently that we understand them and we have heard them, so they can open up their heart and allow us to support them?

The way that I have been able to do this and how I've taught my clients and colleagues and friends is to think about what is it that they are thinking. So initially, just think about or identify what is it that they're thinking, what is it they're saying in their own words about their fears, their frustrations, their aspirations, and then speak into the way in which they are thinking about it. So, for example, when I used to come up with story, and I do this all the time still, when I started to speak on stages, when I started to connect with audiences on a bigger level, I would not only share a story about something that I experienced, but I would share what was the vulnerable thought that I had when I was experiencing that event or that experience in my life. And if I would say something like, now I remember when, you know, I remember when I was standing in my kitchen and looking out the window and I was at a place in my business where I was deeply unhappy. And I remember thinking to myself, how am I here right now? And I have no idea what to do next, Right? So that moment is very real. I can feel the chills on my body when I say that, because I'm bringing myself back to a moment that is very relatable to the audience. So in my world, I call that statement, that vulnerable thought, a deep connection statement. And when we insert these connection statements into our stories, into our messaging, into our marketing, then the person who has had the same thought, oh, my gosh, you know me. Like, you're talking about. You're talking exactly to me. Because these are the same thoughts I'm having now. And that's what will help them, like, gravitate towards the rest of your message.

This is great. Really helpful. I want to unpack this for people. When you're listening to Amy talk about this, when you step on stage or you enter a new client, maybe you're even writing messaging on your website or a social post to grab this person's attention and to align with them. Your first step is to think about or identify with what they're thinking about and what their fears and aspirations and frustrations are. And in doing so, you make a deeper connection when you take your stories and make them relatable. And it's funny, Amy, because the first thing that I do on social is the first thing I do when I step on stage. And often when I'm with a company that specializes in some type of a technology that helps patient outcomes, I'm always thinking to myself, like, what is humble Todd, when he went through that problem that they're struggling with or that their clients are currently struggling with, and then use that as a way to be a magnet in the relationship that attracts the audience into you. And the sooner you can do that in a way that's intimate and real and genuine, the more the relationship, they kind of come into the relationship, and I just have to have the right way of starting off the conversation. So the guard, the protection comes down. Sounds like you and I are in alignment on this.

Absolutely. Absolutely. And that's where I believe we can create that deep connection very quickly, even if it's someone you've never met before. One of the things that my friends like to make fun of me is that I'm the person that will hug my Uber driver, right? They've driven me to the airport. We've had this conversation and gotten to know them on a deeper level, whether it's five minutes or 20 minutes. And when they're pulling my suitcase out of the car, I'm like, can I give you a hug? I feel that closeness with them. I know it might sound silly, but I just think at the end of the day, we're only strangers until we say hello. And then when we share stories and connect with one another and see that this is just another human being that I'm experiencing some life with, even if it's for a few minutes, we can build that connection and have a more enjoyable experience, no matter what it is. So I just believe in caring enough about other people to look into their eyes, to connect with them, to get to know them, to know what they're thinking about, whether it's in business or in life. And it just enriches our relationships. So it's not just about us and our stories and our thoughts and our stresses and our responsibilities, but it's about them and how can I really be here for them in this moment, whether it's a short relationship like an Uber car drive to the airport, or lifelong relationship where we can really show that we care about.

Yeah, it's beautiful. And there are people in the audience, I'm sure, right now that are saying to themselves, well, you guys, this sounds a little mushy for a business conversation, but I believe in what Amy is sharing with us, and I use it every day because I make warm, heartfelt connections with clients when I'm at my best. And those are the relationships that stand the test of time. And so now we're in this new world, and AI is like, everywhere. Everybody's talking about AI. We apply it in our business business here and there. But, you know, most people are using it to write emails, but they aren't thinking about the psychology. And you went and created because you had this background of understanding the psychological needs and the pain and frustrations and helping to align. You went and created an ideal client handbook that reflects your understanding of client psychology, Helping entrepreneurs to just do what we're discussing, but to do it in a, Like, a more automated approach where they could have a piece of your brain working for them so they could start aligning. Can you talk with me about the Ideal Client Handbook? Like, I got to use it. We're going to unpack some of this in just a moment, but I think it's revolutionary, and I want people to be able to understand how to unpack Amy's experience into their own business. Tell me more about the Ideal Client Handbook.

Yeah, well, it was really inspired by AI pretty early and initially focusing on how can I have it write copy or content in my voice. Right. So I think a lot of people worked on that, and some may have even figured that out. And once we cracked the code with that, we thought, wait a minute, what about speaking the language of the ideal client? That is super important. So we started testing and Experimenting with it on my team and we realized if we can train these AI platforms, these language models like ChatGPT or Claude or whatever models you're using on who my ideal client is on the deepest level. Like if you can train it on that and then interact with say ChatGPT for example, tends to be the most popular, then you can actually have a conversation with it to even learn more about how to best become a stronger magnet for that ideal client. So what we did was we developed the Ideal Client Handbook. What that is is our own AI based software. And we wanted to make it as simple as possible for those who want to leverage AI to deeply understand their ideal client and become a magnet to them. So the way that it works is you have an ideal client account, you answer three questions. Number one, what is your purpose? So why do you do what you do? Number two, what is your desired transformation or outcome for your ideal client? And then third question is just a simple, more of a fill in the blank, describe your business. And then once you answer these three questions, you press submit. It goes into a production queue behind the scenes. It goes to our complex AI based process. And it's not just a prompt behind the scenes. It has prompts that are built upon one another with the answers. I won't get to the whole nerdy tech details on this. It took months to build out, but within 10 minutes to 15 minutes it'll email you your own in depth, deep qualitative analysis of who your ideal client is and what their psychological needs are, their unmet emotional needs, what they would say in their own words about their fears, frustrations, aspirations, what is their current state and their aspirational state so you can understand their personal professional gaps and then how you can come in and you or your company can come in and fill those gaps for them. I can go on and on. It becomes about a 20 to 30 page document and the feedback that we get is that it's frighteningly accurate and it goes really deep. So I'm all about just bringing in this humanity into AI and being able to help people to have these deeper insights for their ideal client.

Yeah, this is cool. Like I'm nerding out on mine and what my ideal client profile is. Here's like what they say and I'll read from it. I'm committed to turning these aspirations into reality and I'm reaching out for support and guidance on this journey to achieve our shared goals. The insight here is the client acknowledges the need for external support and guidance to achieve their aspirations. Yo, that's what I help them do. And their commitment indicates a strong desire for progress, but it also suggests an awareness of potential challenges that they may require external expertise. Quote I constantly worry about not being able to innovate our sales and marketing strategies effectively, which could result in our company becoming irrelevant. And the insight here that it lays out, by the way, this is a big document. I'm just cherry picking a moment. The clients worry about staying innovative and relevant, which fills their fears of business stagnation and the potential consequences of falling behind in a rapidly evolving business landscape. And the insights and this insights are about a deep concern for the long term viability and success of their business. So as I start to read this Amy, what I'm really getting is what's going on in their head and the positioning that I can provide to make sure that they know that I'm a safe place that's going to be a trusted advisor and help them achieve their goals. I like, I love this. Already sent it to everybody on my team. I want my team to understand it because when we bake that messaging, not just in our meetings but in our marketing and when I'm out on stage now we're really in alignment with the people that want to hire us.

I'm so happy to hear this and share. The team is so powerful so that everyone's on the same page. And what I noticed also like in this process, and you can tell me if you can relate to this, is that as I read through my own ideal plan handbook, I saw my own messaging glass. And I've been in messaging for over 12 years and even before that in corporate 13. So I have a, I might have a little bit of an ego. I was like, oh my gosh, I get to stay humble and realize we all have messaging gaps. We all have areas that we can improve. Even to the point where I realized that I've always called myself a business coach. I still do because that's what resonates with me, my audience. But what I noticed is that whereas a lot of business coaches speak into the financial growth, the performance of finances and growing finances in the business, which is awesome and great and that's what I've always tied into my messaging. However, my ideal client actually comes to me not necessarily for more for a performance gap, but more of a personal gap of lacking confidence and clarity and how they articulate their message. And so even though I've spoken into that, I realized they're not coming to me or my company specifically when it comes to the coaching that I offer for connecting their business right financially. But like Amy, I'm good with that. I know that that will come. My biggest pain is that I feel like when somebody asks me what it is that I do and I, I want to verbally say to them in a live presentation, I. I pause. I don't know what to say, and I feel uncomfortable. And I want them to articulate the value of what it is that they.

Do while doing it in an authentic way that's very approachable and doesn't seem arrogant or condescending.

So understanding, like what your specific ideal client is needing and wanting, that is a reflection of your strengths and your gifts. It's like it becomes a perfect match. Just like you were saying earlier. Like, if you're dating someone, you know when it's not a match and when it is, it's because you have this, this connection and you understand another and you speak to understanding each other on a deeper level. So it's a really powerful way to, to speak to them, to, like you said, whether it's on your written form, on your website and your emails and your social media posts, or if you're speaking on a stage like you do in front of thousands or tens of thousands of people, you want to have that deep, vulnerable connection. And when you use these types of statements that are all throughout this ideal client handbook, then your ideal client will see by you. It even has an ideal customer journey. So some of it may be validating, like, okay, I have that, I have that, that, but this piece right here, this is missing. We can improve our client retention by inserting this into the customer journey. So this is when we care enough about our customer clients to really, like, bring in anything that's, that's our own gaps as the business owners that can make a big difference for the client.

Super cool. You know, I. One of the things I want to just unpack with people that are listening right now is even a. An expert authentic messaging like Amy Yamada finds gaps. Even a marketing guru in quotations like me or a sales nerd like me, I find gaps. And what I love about this is I put this off for a while. I got so much going on. Like, my team keeps me far too busy, and I put it off. But it was three questions. And I answered the questions candidly and I wrote more than maybe I thought I should as I was starting to respond. And when I got back was at least 50 times the value that I put in. And now I can evaluate those gaps. And when you're an Expert at anything and you're working on other people's businesses, also known as opp. Other people's problem all the time. You end up getting a blind spot in your own areas. So what a valuable treat that is for somebody to be able to see their gaps, their blind spots and be able to revisit it with other A Fresh mind made by Amy Yamada. This is cool. Amy, how do people get access to fill out the form to answer the three questions and get their own Ideal Client Handbook?

Yeah, so we try to keep it simple. You just go to idealclienthandbook.com and then you can order your Ideal Client Handbook account. It's a one time payment. And then when you get your initial Ideal Client Handbook, you also get three credits. So if you want to do over, you can totally have a do over. It's totally fine. That was something that was requested to us in our beta testing last year and it also comes with a Quick Start guide. So one way that you can use this Ideal Client Handbook, once you have it is to download it into a plain text file, which if you don't know how to do that, that's okay. It's in the Quick Start guide. Just step by step, you download it into a plain. TXT file and then you can upload it back into Chat GPT or CLAUDE AI. And then basically it's, it's like the best input for AI to understand and then you can have, you can task it or interact with with your CLAUDE where it really understands your ideal client. So it also comes with some prompts that go along with the Ideal Client Handbook. So it's a really great way to leverage it in your business. And for those of you who are using it for copy, which I of course use mine for copy as Well, I prime AI with this and then I built out some custom DPTs. But you can prime it with, with this and then you can interact with it and have it right landing page copy or email copy or social media copy where it's also just taking in all the insights of my ideal client. So it's a very powerful input into it.

Amy, I think you gave a different URL than is on my notes here. I have idealclient AI.

Yes. Okay. That's the website, so you can get there through that as well. I think I may have missed putting the idealclienthandbook.com in your notes.

Okay. So you can do it either way idealclienthandbook.com or you can go idealclient AI. Either way, it'll Take you on the beginning of your journey to create your own ideal client handbook so you can start reaping the benefits of applying Amy's like 20 years of messaging and authentic communication and the psychological needs of that buyer and bake it in so you can then start to leverage this tool to better align with people in person or maybe even when you're writing your website or email copy or your social like Amy mentioned, I would strongly encourage you guys to take what Amy just said and take this content that you're provided, this insight that we really wouldn't have had access to previously, and then put it into Claude or ChatGPT, create some prompts out of it so every time you write it can apply that lesson learned into your messaging so you'll be that much closer on target and hit the nail on the head. For people that want more information, they go to ameyamada.com that's ameyemada.com and I would strongly encourage you to also follow Amy on Facebook and also on Instagram at Ameyamada. Taking time to come and do this and to pour into my audience on the Todcast and to help us get our messaging and alignment tighter in connection with the people that we're trying to serve who are ultimately going to become our dear friends and our family going forward. Because once we hit massive home runs for people we all know, they stay in your life forever and you get to serve them time and time again. Amy Yamada, thank you for joining us on the Todcast.

Thank you so much, Todd. I really appreciate it.

Yo, that was a powerful episode. And from what we just learned, it should be obvious how you can now implement these lessons in your life to get to the next level. Now, before you bounce, I just have three quick thoughts. First, thank you for taking me on your incredible life journey. Second, if you receive some value from me and you want to pay it forward, it would mean the world to me. If you left an honest rating and review at Apple, Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen, I'd be incredibly grateful. And lastly, if you share this episode, whether it be a screenshot or a photo from where you're listening, anything via Instagram, Stories or LinkedIn, Facebook or any of the social media sites, just tag me and the guest. I'll repost your content and I'll reply back in the comments because I love mixing it up. In fact, I'd love to share your shout outs in my feed too. Not only are these shout outs really good for you and for me, but they also help us book more amazing guests because they'll be able to see the reach that you're helping to cultivate. This is a way for you to help contribute to the show. So thank you again for listening, and I look forward to earning a regular spot inside that ear of yours. Let's grow.