A few years ago, I created a program that taught how to attract, convert, and retain clients using social media. I called it Soft Selling with Social Media because it focused on relationship building and how the relationship is key to the transaction. We covered everything from creating a client attracting Twitter bio to taking conversations offline… it was a breath of fresh air in the internet marketing world.

I was ready for an update but wasn’t feeling the love with the SSWSM title anymore. First of all, I discontinued social media consulting in 2010 so I didn’t want to send a mixed message. And then there was the word “Soft” which suddenly felt way too…. soft. Wimpy. Mousy. Standing back versus leaning in.

For a long time it was The Project Formerly Known as Soft Selling then one day in a conversation, (I think I was talking to Melissa Galt) the word PERSUADE popped up into my mind. Ohhhhh I liked it. Strong. Daring. Stepping in boldly.

I actually felt a little uncomfortable with the word “persuade”  at first, which was a sign to me that I was on the right path. (My phrase for this year is “If you’re not uncomfortable, you’re not growing” so this fit right in).

We batted a few words around, Blank and Persuade… Blah Blah Blah and Persuade…. Hmmmmm…. when suddenly the word ENGAGE popped up.

Engage and Persuade.

I felt like I found my baby’s perfect name; something about it gave me a huge charge. There’s a great yin-yang balance between those words: Engage being very receptive and feminine, Persuade very outward and masculine.

Something happened when I thought up that new title. Things opened up. New insights started pouring in. The world went from black and white to Technicolor. I had a crystal clear picture of what I wanted to do with this topic and how it would come about.

Yes words do make a difference!

There are tiny little things all around us that can make a huge shift in how we see ourselves, our businesses, and how we communicate our value to our market.

A title is one. A tagline could be another. The way you format something is yet another.

It can even influence who you choose to partner with on a project.

Take a look at the words you’re using in your business. Are they leaning in or stepping away from where you want to go?

Resource:

If you haven’t signed up for Engage and Persuade, here’s a link to get you started. A word changed my whole outlook on this project… and what you learn as a result of this training can be the biggest game changer your business has ever experienced. You’ll find out how to naturally build trust in a way that completely redefines “selling”.

This entry was posted on Sunday, August 5th, 2012 at 10:30 pm and is filed under Business Building, Sales. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.