My father, Daymon Brown, just turned 79 years old last Friday. My granddaughter, Roya Jane, is about to turn three years old this summer. They have frank discussions about the importance of money and savings and yes – all at the ripe old age of one!
Here’s the story…of a man named Daymon…
You see, my father grew up with not a single penny to his name. He was the proverbial child without shoes in the winter, sleeping by fires at night with his seven other siblings, and things like haircuts, daily bathing, and electricity were only for the rich and well-to-do. He grew up a natural saver.
Here’s the other story…of a girl named Sheryl…
When I was a young child, I learned about the importance of saving. Money was a very emotional topic in our home. You learned quickly that any money you made was saved. I have vivid memories of not being able to see the top of the counter at Mercantile Bank in St. Charles, Missouri yet sliding over my hard-earned couple of dollars for chores I did around the neighborhood.
Next month, I will be forty-seven years old. My emotional ties to money are still spot on with that little girl who swept out garages and driveways, babysat every weekend of her teenage life, got a job at McDonald’s when she was sixteen, and had the money I needed to buy a car with cash when I was seventeen (I wasn’t allowed to drive at sixteen even though my friends were – another thing Dad made me do….learn how to wait for something I really wanted…).
Why am I telling you all of this?
When marketing your services, talk about the emotional impact and relationship people have with their money. This storytelling is actually ‘story selling’ and makes you someone your clients can relate to.
Related: Marketing Doesn’t Have to Be a Mountain
Be sure to tell those stories!
Nobody really wants to read your market analysis. Sorry. I know you put hard work into that stuff, but it’s obsolete within a few days of posting anyway. But these stories of hard-earned dollars? These stories of salt-of-the-earth folks who worked their asses off, like my father who now is retired and has a gorgeous five-acre estate in St. Louis all because he invested like his financial services professional told him to do and bought insurance policies to shore up the additional pockets of space in his planning…. THOSE are what people want to hear about…THOSE are the stories people identify strongly with.
Be a Person of Action
Tell your stories. Change the names and details of the clients, but write about how these individuals were able against extreme odds and circumstances to come out the other side better prepared financially for the next chapter in their lives. Tell about the families who came to you teach their kids about budgeting and savings and credit cards and frugality. This is when marketing works best!