Do You Know How To Stand Out Like A Purple Cow?

Thanks to guest blogger, Steve Kloyda – The Prospecting Expert

How well do you communicate your sales message? Is your message clear, concise and consistent? When was the last time someone walked up to you at a social gathering, introduced themselves and asked you, “What do you do?”

What did you say? How did you communicate your message? Were you at a loss for words? Well, most sales people are and, if they aren’t, their message sounds like everyone elses.

Let me give you an example of what I mean. I was speaking in front of a group of financial advisors and insurance agents. I walked up to 5 people in the audience and introduced myself and asked them what they did. This is what I heard:

“I’m an insurance agent.”
“I sell insurance.”
“I’m a financial advisor or a financial consultant.”

As you can see, all the answers were pretty much the same.

If you sound like everyone else, you have commoditized yourself.

Seth Godin, in his book Purple Cow, talks about being remarkable. There are a lot of brown cows out there. It’s really easy to become purple.

I would like to show you how easy it is to become purple and sound different. How we communicate our message is done with words – how we say those words and what we say with those words.

Picture this. You are an artist that creates pictures in the mind of the listener. The words are your paint. The how, are your brushes or the application of the paint to the canvas. And, the what, is your final picture. This picture has to be clear, concise and consistent or you will confuse people. Remember that confused people will not take action. That’s the first part.

The second part is actually creating your unique message. You and I are motivated by pain and pleasure. We will do whatever we can to avoid pain and increase pleasure in our lives. Let me give you an example. On a recent business trip, after spending many hours in airports, by the time I got to my hotel I had a splitting headache. I went to the store in the hotel in search of some Advil. Are you ready for this? $1.75 for 2 Advil! Did I pay it? Of course I did. Why? I wanted to eliminate the pain in my head.

3 Steps to Creating your Unique, Purple Message:

You are probably thinking, “what does Steve’s headache and Advil have to do with creating a message that is purple?” Let me show you in 3 easy-to-follow steps:

First, let’s start with pain. Identify one thing that your product or service will eliminate, reduce or avoid for your prospect or customer.
Now do the same thing for pleasure. Identify one thing that your product or service will increase, expand or maximize.
Now, put it together and say it.

OR, use this fill-in-the-blank template for creating your purple message:

“We have created some unique strategies/ideas/approach that will (insert the pain eliminator) and (insert the pleasure enhancer).”

Here is an example of what I use in my own business:
“We have created a unique approach to prospecting that will help reduce call reluctance and maximize the number of sales opportunities.”

Go ahead. Create several “unique messages” for you and your business. Then, apply them in a variety of networking situations such as, voicemail, email, face-to-face or even social media.

Don’t be a brown cow. It’s easy to be purple!

What’s your “purple message?” Please share it here. I’d love to hear from you. Thanks!

About Guest Blogger, Steve Kloyda: As Founder of The Prospecting Expert, Steve helps his clients in the sales industry attract more prospects, retain more clients, and drive more sales. He’s also been recognized as a Small Business Success Story by Social Media Examiner, the world’s largest online social media magazine.