Have you
ever done something that was easy and, (you
thought), pretty basic, only to find that it
generated incredible excitement and literally
"wowed" your friends, colleagues or clients?
This is a hallmark of a signature product.
While our greatest talents and strengths are
transparent to us, others can see them clearly.
What we do easily and naturally is what they
couldn't begin to imagine doing themselves.
(Cast yourself as a nuclear researcher - can you
"get" it?)
All of us have unique sets of strengths, values
and passions. These are combined and leveraged
to create authentic personal brands - the
ultimate signature product. They are also the
building blocks of signature seminars. Knowing
your strengths enables you to "flex" your
signature muscle to attract and promote -
naturally!
Amazing outcomes have resulted from the
signature seminars I have co-created with
clients and colleagues. The most common outcome
is "rave reviews". Elusive book outlines have
also suddenly "shown up" and "written
themselves". Recently, the initial presentation
of a colleague's signature seminar was attended
by a TV personality who is now actively working
to transform the seminar into the pilot for a TV
show!
How would you describe your "signature"?
Actually, a better question is, how do others
define it?
A client recently described her experience of
working with me as, "...a highly collaborative
distillation of concepts that resulted in
palpable excitement when I realized I'd arrived
at my essence."
To get started, you'll need to work with this
sort of feedback. So raid your cache of client
feedback forms or testimonials, or take the time
to gather some. Look at them objectively.
Seek out patterns. Subject them to an
authenticity check. Do these reflections on the
essence of you, your strengths and what you've
provided to others "feel" right to you?
Next, categorize the validated feedback
chronologically, and identify development and
growth trends. As we evolve, our signatures
become ever more defined. You don't want to
create a Signature Seminar based on old
feedback, as you may have grown well past that
point.
When the research and analysis stages have been
completed, you will have created a number
of lists that clearly profile:
How clients see you:
•
Your
common themes
•
Benefits
that clients have received
•
Your
personal/professional evolution curve
What you can divine from these elements are more
profiles:
•
Your
preferred clients
•
Your best
work
•
What
attracts people to you
Now all you'll need to search the mélange of
profiles to find the common threads of your
signature seminar. It can be a challenge to do
this in isolation, and I would advise that you
seek assistance from an objective individual;
your coach, a past client or an honest friend,
(ideally, one who "fits" your preferred client
profile).
Once you've developed your signature, it's time
to test it with your current clients. Offer them
a preview of your seminar in exchange for
providing you with detailed feedback -- ensuring
that you
both get value. Be sure to ask them who they
think would enjoy future sessions.
Finally, review their feedback and adjust your
signature (as well as your marketing plans)
accordingly. Now that you have a well-honed,
validated signature, take the plunge and go
public!' |
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