Being too close to your business is when this happens…

The last time I had a hot seat in front of a bunch of people was more than three years ago, and Jay Abraham was there offering his insights.

I’m not sure how I made it through those twenty minutes. The good news is my business has grown tremendously from that one hot seat – having Jay Abraham giving me some fantastic ideas was priceless.

A week ago, I was on a group call with Chris Haddad for his copywriting class. I quickly decided to accept an impromptu hot seat on my sales copy for my new Soulful Marketing & Launch Accelerator program.

Holy moly, for a split second, it brought back all those old feelings of who am I to ask for help? Will the group think I’m a crappy copywriter? How will I ever grow my business when everyone on the call sees all my mistakes in my copy? Sheesh, I had to quiet that voice fast!

Yes, even though I’ve created some amazing success and worked with some fantastic people – I still can feel like I’m an imposter sometimes in front of my peers.

And it’s still hard to ask for help!

The good news is that the feelings don’t stay long. I know I need help; this was a safe and terrific group to ask for it. And I didn’t let my feelings stop me from asking.

I got some great feedback.

The important lesson is when you’re so close to your business; it’s hard to look at your messaging and copy objectively. (Interested in getting your own hot seat? Check out the P.S.)

The big idea for my Soulful Marketing & Launch Accelerator program sales letter wasn’t speaking to my dream clients. I was selling the program, not WHAT the program will do if you decide to join.Ahhhh – the one thing I always see and work with my clients on, I was blinded because I’m too close to it.

This is a good lesson – the next time you create messaging for a landing page, new web page, email, or any kind of messaging…Write down the big idea you’re trying to get across.

No matter how good you are in marketing, you’re too close to your business, and asking for help will always propel you forward. Then I wanted to give you some places to start. Such as…Knowing your big idea will help you build your messaging around it.

When you’re looking at ads on Facebook – see if you can find the big idea.

Here are some Facebook ad examples. (When you click on each graphic below, it goes to their Facebook Ads Library if you want to check out their other ads.)

The one below is from one of my clients. It’s pretty straightforward what their big idea is – If you’ve had bariatric surgery, one side effect is hair loss. And they talk about the problem and share their solution.

The next ad is from Masterclass. If you haven’t checked them out, I’d highly recommend looking at their website and ads. I’ve learned a lot from how they market their courses.

This one isn’t just about being a singer. The big idea is about being like Christina Aguilera – singing more passionately and elevating your singing.

The last ad’s big idea is about a specific weight loss – going after a specific age group of women in menopause – “how do you reverse menopause weight gain?”

One of the most significant issues is weight appearing in places you’ve never seen before – even when you’re exercising and eating the same food you always have.

Having a big idea before you attempt to create your messaging can be incredibly helpful.

Here’s a quick formula (Inspired by Ann Handley’s book – Everybody Writes ) that will help:

1. Write at the top of your page a single big idea of the point you want to make.
2. Then list some minor points below that relate to the big idea.
3. This could also be written in an outline form.

Other ideas to help you – Use a mind map, index cards, a whiteboard, or something else.

It doesn’t matter what method you use. The most important thing is to stay focused and organized so you don’t wander off your original big idea path. (And oh yeah, ask for help! 🙂

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