The well-known personal development guru, Tony Robbins is quoted as saying “Let your prospect determine your presentation”. Absolutely. If only there was a quick way to do so – most personality assessment tools require a prospect to purchase an assessment and spend 15-60 minutes complete. Not a fit for a sales scenario. Millions of people take personality assessments annually. BANK is the first of the personality science tool assessments to focus on the science of buying behavior. That’s why this tool is getting notable recognition globally.

Don’t use a script and a template – respect your buyer more than that. Let their “language style dictate how you approach communicating with your prospect. Below is a graphic with the quick breakout of what each letter in the B.A.N.K. methodology represents.

Without understand who is in front of you, it’s common to use your own preferred style as your default. However, that has a one in 25% chance of actually succeeding, since 75% of the population is different than you.

Research from the Chaly group pinpoints that only 18% of buyers who have a different personality style than the person selling get to the sale. When a seller can quickly understand a prospects “buying style” preference, those numbers change by up to 300%.

Circling back to the power of understanding OTHERS with personality science tools. While it’s helpful to further gain personal insight, it becomes transformative to understand the motivations, fears and challenges that others in your sphere face that are so different from one’s own.

For example, getting awareness of the fact that roughly 75% of the world is “wired” to see, think, be motivate and value priorities that are so different than my own, unlocked a transformative dynamic in my personal relationships and was significantly responsible for being quite successful in my corporate career.

It was insightful for me to understand why others in my personal life made no sense to me. Sibling, spouse, and others were SO different than me. Now, I understood that when someone in my life was acting like a “crazy person” to me – it didn’t mean the same thing if I were to behave in that exact same way. Now, I could effective and objectively “tune into their language” and not simply conclude it was an alien creature (LOL – keeping it real!) on the other side of the desk, dinner table, etc….

Check your own approaching to making buying decisions. Receive a complimentary online assessment (valued at $99 each) to understand your personality natural “wiring” here at this link: https://my.bankcode.com/ic

Let me know if how close it is, or isn’t to your own perception of how you approach purchase decisions. Interested to know. Reach me on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ic-growth/ or comment here and I’ll reply.

Extra material

Circling back to the power of understanding OTHERS with personality science tools. While it’s helpful to further gain personal insight, it becomes transformative to understand the motivations, fears and challenges that others in your sphere face that are so different from one’s own.

For example, getting awareness of the fact that roughly 75% of the world is “wired” to see, think, be motivate and value priorities that are so different than my own, unlocked a transformative dynamic in my personal relationships and was significantly responsible for being quite successful in my corporate career.

It was insightful for me to understand why others in my personal life made no sense to me. Sibling, spouse, and others were SO different than me. Now, I understood that when someone in my life was acting like a “crazy person” to me – it didn’t mean the same thing if I were to behave in that exact same way. Now, I could effective and objectively “tune into their language” and not simply conclude it was an alien creature (LOL – keeping it real!) on the other side of the desk, dinner table, etc….

LinkedIn has introduced several new features in the most recent 6 weeks or so.

Here is a quick summary:

✰Collaborative articles are being created by LinkedIn Editorial, with experts chosen based on the skills in their profile. Community Top Voice badges are awarded to those who contribute insightful comments to these articles.

If members find you as one of the most [💡Insightful] voted contributors to these collaborative articles you could earn a [Community Top Voice] badge.

✰Status Page provides information on any LinkedIn problems being experienced and you can see if the LinkedIn problem you’re having is being experienced by a large number of other members at https://www.linkedin-status.com/. It includes an incident history so you can see if anything has been reported in real time.

✰Who’s viewed your profile is now a Premium member-only feature, with the ability to filter results by date, company, industry, location, and Interesting viewers.

✰[Waiting Room] added to LinkedIn Lives for those who show up early (or if an event is running late), Just click Join on the Event page a few minutes before the Live begins.

✰[Sound effects] is now a settings option, which defaults to on. It will now occasionally will play a sound effect to draw your attention to something that’s happened, such as receiving a message or when you join an event.

✰Notifications section now has separate tabs for activity, posts, and tags or mentions.

✰[Connect if you know each other] adds a quick (Connect) button on your profile if you have the (+Follow) or Creator Mode option turned on.

Group Changes

✰Group analytics now provide Owners and Managers with 90 days of analytics on group member growth and content engagement.

✰Admin badge has been added to Groups.

✰ Pre-approved group membership is also available, where users are automatically added to groups that AI analyzes as potentially useful.

Group Changes

✰Group analytics now provide Owners and Managers with 90 days of analytics on group member growth and content engagement.

✰Admin badge has been added to Groups.

✰ Pre-approved group membership is also available, where users are automatically added to groups that AI analyzes as potentially useful.

Recruiting

One is AI-powered job descriptions, where Open-AI ChatGPT creates job postings and drafts a description for review and editing.

✰Enhance your profile (BETA for Premium Accounts) is an AI-powered assistant designed to simplify writing your profile by identifying the most important skills and experiences which it summarizes. The result is a set of your career highlights and aspirations written with just a few sentences. You can use this to begin to create your About summary and Headline sections.

✰ [Fair Chance Employer] returns to help you find work if you have a criminal record, applying with these safe companies, you won’t have to worry about getting to the kill question “Do you have a criminal record?” at the end of the application.

✰An “I’m Interested” feature now available enables users to signal their interest in working for a company.

Company Page

✰Only Companies who use LinkedIn’s Recruiter products will be eligible to display the [I’m Interested] option.

✰Messaging a company page is now possible, which was not available previously.

✰[Subscribe link] & [Subscribe button] will help Newsletter Authors grow their audience by publishing these on their social, email, and web channels. Members will automatically subscribe to your newsletter when they click them.

These are the 5 key elements strong LinkedIn profiles possess and how you can use them to make your profile produce

With 880 million professionals using LinkedIn to generate business, create partnerships, and find new roles or fill their talent pipeline, it’s critical to have an appealing profile. 

After analyzing hundreds of LinkedIn profiles, here are is five elements that the strongest LinkedIn profiles have in common. 

1. THE BEST LINKEDIN PROFILES SPEAK TO A SINGLE AUDIENCE

At its core, your LinkedIn profile is marketing you, as a professional. Like any good marketing piece, your LinkedIn profile needs to be customized to speak to a specific persona about the needs and pain points that person experiences. 

If you try to please everyone, you’ll please no one. Get granular on regarding the problem your client struggles with; share how your service provides transformational results.   

If you’re a solopreneur offering a professional service, speak to the transformation you provide.  

If you’re a job seeker, what are the results you deliver for a future hiring firm? 

EXERCISE 1

Think of a specific person you’d like to read and respond or direct message you. Then, jot down quickly the 3 elements that would want to understand about you: 

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Now let’s apply this to your LinkedIn profile, using this checklist: 

◻️ Take note of anything in your LinkedIn profile that doesn’t appeal directly to this audience — and consider removing it. 

◻️ Consider how your audience expects to see you. Does your profile photo show that? Is a business suit something they expect, or will that be too stuffy?  

◻️ Identify keywords your audience will be looking for (e.g., “DiSC certified for example, or Lean Six Sigma”). Place in prominent spots throughout your profile. 

2. THE BEST LINKEDIN PROFILES CONVEY AUTHENTICITY

You’re more than just a plain–vanilla professional — you’re you! Go ahead and showcase some of your personality in your profile.

Revealing your character has the dual benefit of making you more attractive to people and organizations for which you’re a good match, and discouraging those for which you’re not. In other words, showcasing your personality can help ensure you’re spending your time on the best opportunities. The goal of marketing is to repel the people who are not a good fit, while attracting the firms or individuals who are a fit. If you try to appeal to all, you will never get traction. 

EXERCISE 2

How do you want to reader to interpret your personality when they read your LinkedIn profile (e.g., edgy, humorous, pithy, nerdy, intense)? 

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Now think about how you can apply this to your LinkedIn profile. Here are some ideas: 

◻️ Along with your photo and cover image, the headline is the first place where you have the option to define yourself. What can be a fitting way to blend in an element of your personality there? For example, “Entrepreneur | Numbers Guy that Counts & Sells | Intentional Father. Greatest Content Editor” conveys humor, competence, and confidence. 

◻️ Your “About section” needs to speak DIRECTLY & SPECIFICALLY to your audience. Although this section is titled “about”, the best use of this spot is to be so crisp, clear and compelling on who you serve and how you create impact for your clients. That is what is called “client facing”. It should cover your expertise as well as your personality. This important write up is successful when someone reads these several paragraph and at the end of the write up, feels like they just had a brief exchange with you at an in-person networking event. It should tell your professional story as well as provide a slice of insight into how you think or show up in the real world or IRL (in real life). It should communicate your personal and professional story.  

◻️ Unlike the profile photo, which is typically a traditional headshot, you can demonstrate some visual flair in the banner or cover image. This image should carry a key part of your brand message visually. Choose a cover that supports and carries your personal brand message.  

If you’d like to  have a customized one created that does just that, you can get that at: LinkedIn Banner Image

3. THE BEST LINKEDIN PROFILES BUILT TRUST

Although it’s likely that your prospective business leads or job leads come from networking and word–of–mouth, it is vital that your LinkedIn profile shows up well in search–engine results. This is a crucial piece to create the trust needed for prospects to take the next step with you.

So, let’s maximize the numerous spots that LinkedIn offers for you to demonstrate competency and credibility which becomes foundational to trust and credibility building. There are awards, publications, patents, recognitions, endorsements and recommendations. Take advantage of them all that fit you. 

EXERCISE 3

You’re distinctive!  Figure out how to proclaim that within your profile. Your profile should not read like ANYONE ELSE on the planet. No one does you!  Excavate the elements that are specifically YOU.  

Pull together “social proof” such as listed below. Choose the ones that are most relevant for your ideal client and place those at key spots on your profile.  

Here are some places you can search for credibility builders: 

◻️ Awards you or your team has won or recognitions you’ve received. (e.g., “Featured in ABC News or ”, any “Best of…” list) 

◻️ Testimonials from people with whom you’ve worked and results provided.  

◻️ Summits or speaking engagements you’ve been featured in. 

◻️ Articles you’ve written or talks you have delivered.

4. THE BEST LINKEDIN PROFILES CREATE AFFINITY

When you meet someone at a networking event, you intuitively explore interests or commonalities. Perhaps it’s the shared experience or the same university, or sharing hobbies or such. These commonalities help us move from strangers to acquaintances.

Your LinkedIn profile needs to showcase how you have relatability.  Including that  supports the  human tendency to look for commonalities before building a relationship. 

EXERCISE 4

Create opportunities for someone to identify something they have in common with you by sharing specific experiences and passions. 

To get you started on your list, here are some ideas for affinities you could pepper throughout your profile: 

◻️ Schools and universities you’ve attended 

◻️ Volunteer experiences 

◻️ Hobbies and interests 

◻️ LinkedIn groups, influencers, and organizations you follow 

◻️ Places you’ve lived 

5. THE BEST LINKEDIN PROFILES ARE EASY TO READ

Your readers will spend a few seconds (yes, seconds!) getting a first impression about you. If they’re interested, they’ll invest a couple more minutes reading or scanning the rest of your profile. That’s not a lot of time! 

Make your profile easy to scan and ensure the most important information pops off the screen. 

Divide the “About Section” into readable chunks of text, either through   paragraph spacing, judisciosu use of emoji’s or both.  Edit ruthlessly.  If your about section starts something like this: (With more than 20 years of…), kick that opening to the curb and   look further in your write up to start off with something with more impact.  

If you don’t like to write, hire it done – IC Growth and other firms offer that service. . Don’t sckimp on your online brand. When you “google” yourself, or others do, 99% of the time, it will be your LinkedIn profile that shows up as the first result.  

Make it  look and sound great!.  

EXERCISE 5

Here are seven things you can do to make your LinkedIn profile super scannable: 

1.) Write a concise and impactful headline. 

2.) Be intentional with keywords but avoid buzzwords or jargon that doesn’t mean much. Not sure which ones are overused and worn out check out Most Overused Buzzwords  

3.) Write a clear and compelling about section. The 3 lines before the button “see more” are especially important. If you don’t spark interest with a clear message and or value proposition, no one clicks to keep reading. Be certain this section is client facing and make the story you tell in this section be hyper focused on results you deliver for your client or employer if you are in a search. Results is the language of business; ensure you are speaking that language.  

4.) Avoid the “sea of gray” that comes from a lot of text without white space breaks. Use bullet points or sprinkle in some emojis, even if just simple arrow bullets. The reader gets distracted easily, so use visual markers to help organize the readers thoughts to keep going.  

5.) Pin the top three skills to the top that are relevant to the role you are doing now, not just those for which you have the most endorsements. 

6.) In the featured section, include high impact videos or downloads of your free or paid offers that highlight your specialized expertise.  

LinkedIn recommendations add to your personal brand and your provide additional social proof of an individual’s competency, skills, and abilities.  

While it’s tempting to natural think about the glowing recommendations you might receive, keep in mind that giving a meaningful recommendation is just as important and is a good business practice. We’ll cover both in this article.  

Giving recommendations is a good practice on LinkedIn. I’ll cover two reasons why:   

• It’s more appealing in business to lead with generosity. When you highlight others’ strengths and talents it reminds you of some great experiences you’ve had. It also strengthens your personal brand as a positive “Go Giver” type of leader and influencer.
• Humans are reciprocal. As you provide a quality recommendation, others are inclined to do the same. Don’t expect it if course, but it often happens.

While everyone will add skills and achievements on their profile, not everyone receives or gives recommendations. That itself creates a distinctive from many profiles. While a recommendation isn’t the most key element, having several relevant recommendations creates an additional level of authority to your online presence there. There is the fact that this is the only section of a profile that is given by a third party, so that creates additional credible and authentic than anything you write yourself. 

Here are five best practices to keep in mind when writing a LinkedIn recommendation:

1. Be specific: Provide concrete examples of your connection’s skills and accomplishments. Explain how that skill, knowledge or talent made a tangible impact. This creates weight and credibility to your words. 

2. Tailor your recommendation: Make sure your recommendation is specific to the clients this person serves. If there is a specific industry your connection is targeting, highlight skills and qualities most relevant to that field.

3. Focus on strengths: Shine the spotlight on where your colleague excels, and how that expertise or skill set solves problem and adds value. 

4. Keep it concise on LinkedIn: Provide adequate detail to create a brief story in the reader’s mind and provide substance, don’t overwhelm with extraneous details. While letters are great for multiple examples, on LinkedIn, keep it to a couple of paragraphs. 

5. Be authentic: Write your recommendation similar to a phone conversation. Use an anecdote or example to back up your statements. Professionalism is important, but avoid being formal, so the reader perceives it as genuine and thoughtful. 

Here are two examples you can read to gain some of your own inspiration.

“Having had the opportunity to closely work with [Name] on several projects, I can confidently say that she is one of dedicated business owners I’ve encountered.

What sets her apart from competitors is her ability to build excellent relationships with clients and colleagues alike. She has interpersonal skills that are second to none and takes the time to truly understand client needs. That is a distinguishing characteristic in this [Specific ] Industry.

She nimbly adapts in the way she leads others at the firm. I’ve seen her continue to stay abreast of trends and explore ways to improve service. I do believe that’s been a key to their success in staying well ahead of the competition.

For anyone consider working with [Name], in my opinion, you’ll thank your future self. I know it’s one of the best decisions I made for our firm’s [ problem faced] marketing needs. “

“I’ve known Jim [Insert Name] as a valuable business partner and client for 8 years. Throughout all of our interactions, I have consistently been impressed with the attention to detail and his uncanny ability to skillfully direct multiple projects. Not sure how exactly he does that, but I will say I admire how he remains calm, supportive & focused on the end goal. This impacts the entire project.

I know when he calls, any project on which we collaborate, expectations are clear, timelines are solid, and deadlines get met. Basically, projects come in on time and at or slightly under budget. There’s no drama, just some hard work with clear expectations. I think that’s why I will always say “yes” when Jim reaches out. He’s a delightful professional that I consider one of the most trusted colleagues in the [name of] industry.”

Asking for and Receiving a Recommendation 

When asking for recommendations, be selective in your choices. You want powerful recommendations that will support your professional expertise and personal brand. 

Be specific when making requests on LinkedIn. The default message is generic and unimpressive, so it’s crucial to personalize it. Share exactly what you’d like and how the person can best help you. Don’t ask ten people at once – choose a few key contacts instead. When making requests, be gracious, thankful, and offer reciprocity if possible. It goes a long way in building positive relationships. 

If you fail to personalize your LinkedIn request message, it defaults to a generic and unimpressive one. Therefore, it’s essential to craft a unique message that explains exactly what you want and how the individual can help you. Start by addressing them by name and thanking them for their time. In addition, outline your request in detail and specify your skills focus area. If you don’t provide suggestions on the elements to speak to, don’t be surprised if the recommendation is vague and disappointing.  

If you fail to personalize your LinkedIn request message, it defaults to a generic and unimpressive one. Therefore, it’s essential to craft a unique message that explains exactly what you want and how the individual can help you. Start by addressing them by name and thanking them for their time. In addition, outline your request in detail and specify your skills focus area. Concluding with an expression of gratitude and reciprocation goes a long way in building professional relationships.

Here is an example to get your own creative juices started: 

Sample request for a recommendation 

“Hi Jill, I hope everything’s going well in Ohio! I’m writing to ask if you’d be willing to write a LinkedIn recommendation for me that highlights my crisis communications skills. Ideally, I’d love for you to outline the experience you had with me through the Def Con 5 initiative last year. I am now fully expanding the crisis communication service offered in my consulting firm. The impact we made with that initiative will be relevant to our potential future clients.”  

You get the point. Make sure to be gracious and thankful in this note and, at the end, encourage this person to let you know if you may ever return the favor. Reciprocity is a wonderful thing.   

Highlight your LinkedIn recommendations wisely. You can turn off or on certain recommendations and order the arrangement. Make certain the ones that are most visible are up to the task by speaking to the most relevant impact you deliver for clients. Ideally ask for LinkedIn recommendations while the “iron is hot” and details are fresh. Memories of specific contributions tend to decay over time. LinkedIn recommendations can boost your credibility with potential future clients. Don’t forget to return the favor! 

Note: If you have turned on the “creator mode” feature on your profile and another individual has hired your/your business to perform that service, you can also now request a “review”.

My word for 2023 (new thing for me, but I’m really lovin it!) is FOCUS.

Getting clear on your ideal client creates a focus for your business growth in a way that nothing can. It allows you to get granular and specific in terms of offers, where to find ideal clients, pricing and so much more. It feels counterintuitive; however, it’s one of the most important decisions to make in order to grow your business effectively.

If you don’t have clarity and create content for a distinctive audience, they won’t recognize themselves in your content and that ideal client won’t have their interest piqued.
If you try to please everyone at once, you’re going to end up pleasing no one at all.

Instead, focus on attracting ideal clients who will help you grow your business.

Imagine this for a second.
You enjoy an abundance of incredible leads calling you because you’re so good at what you do.

They’re excited to work with you, and willing to pay a premium rate because you are a specialist in your field with credibility and authority.
Sounds good, right?

It’s certainly possible, but it doesn’t really matter whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been in business for a while.

Consider this as a simple formula.
The first thing in that formula is to draw in the right kind of people who will be the best fit for working with you.

If you create content that tries to appeal to everyone, no one will be able read what your expertise is in, so they won’t know who you really are.

And no matter what you think your niche is or where you want to take it, explore ways on how you can dig deep into that niche.

For example, perhaps your job involves helping people plan their finances.

If you get specifically clear on your dream client, you will go further. What if you positioned yourself as a financial planner that helps Millennials with their retirement plans, so they can retire at an early age.

Once you’ve got that level of clarity, you’ll be able to easily create targeted content for specific people and become known as an authority in that space.

You can easily find where they hang out by looking at their social media accounts.

To effectively reach and resonate with people who fit your target audience, you must be able identify them.

Consider another service option and explore defining your ideal client avatar. Let’s say you are a virtual assistant, and you decide that you want to focus on helping realtors who sell commercial properties.

Once you know who you want to talk to, you can start searching for groups on LinkedIn, social media sites, and online forums to connect with them.

And the good news? Because you’ve niched down and gotten clear on your WHO, you won’t be competing against a huge number of other VA’s who are generalists. Instead, you’ll be one of the only VA’s targeting this vertical. It also makes you more memorable an easy for others to refer you to ideal prospects once they know these specifics.

You’ve positioned yourself to be highly sought after by companies in the commercial real estate industry who need help.

You’ll learn their language and the different kinds of forms they need and which software works best in specific tasks. Perhaps your niche is there because of your previous life and professional expertise. Do you have expertise in accounting for the construction industry? Position your expertise around that. Construction firms know when they hire you, they won’t have to overexplain things or have lost time because you may not be familiar with a certain industry standard. It’s easier for the construction firm owner to recognize the value you will immediately bring to them. You are someone who can save them immense time, headache and frustration. Clients are looking for that, even if they haven’t said it out loud.

When you write content that reflects that knowledge and expertise, they will find YOU.
They need someone who can save them.

Imagine how many commercial real estate agents would love to have a virtual assistant who specializes in their industry or a construction firm that can hire a fractional accountant or CFO that knows their industry, jargon and practices.
How to get clarity about who your dream clients are

So here’s how you get a clear picture about who your dream clients are. Once that’s done, it’s so much smoother to create content for them specifically.

Here is a way to start:

Imagine just one individual.

Imagine you’re sitting together having coffee.
Describe this person by giving detailed descriptions of his/her demographics (age, gender, race, etc.) and personality traits (e.g., extroverted, hobbies, how they prefer to spend free time.

List out their wants, needs, and wishes.

What does he value in life? What does he do on his days off? What is her hobby? What is her favorite color? Give them a name.

After doing so, identify your target market’s pain points!

You’re in business because you solve customer problems. You’ve got the experience and the answers for a particular set of problems.
This is why getting “close to them” helps you figure those things out and be able to speak directly to what concerns them in a way that resonates well.
Once you really, deeply understand the challenges, this type of person faces it’s very doable to create products and services they’ll want to buy.

You’ll need to get to know your ideal clients well.

Ask yourself these questions:

What problems does my ideal client face?

My ideal clients’ frustration — and how I can solve it?

What doesn’t my customer like about my competition?

What is causing my customer to waste their time, spend money that doesn’t get them results, be frustrated, stay unhealthy, keep having bad relationships, etc.?

Once you understand your target audience’s pain points, you can cater to them with the services packaged in a way that delivers beautifully. Think hand in glove analogy here.

Write a paragraph describing your ideal customer.

After doing all of these things, write a paragraph describing who she/he is.

For example, a personal trainer might write the following: “My ideal client is someone who wants to get fit but has no idea where to start.”

Maria is a forty-four-year-old married mother of two teenagers who works full time and has no time to exercise. She grabs fast food instead of cooking healthy meals. She also eats too many sweets after dinner. Maria feels unattractive and lacks energy. She wants to lose weight and feel better about herself.

The above is an example. Create your own version.

Now that you’ve done that, what else did you discover about your ideal client? I’d love to know!

If you’re still working with a broad audience what keeps you from narrowing down your focus? What prevents you from picking a specific niche?
If you’d like to discuss how to get more specific on your ideal client, put your question down in the comments section below or DM me at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ic-growth/

Ideal Client Profile (Part 1) – Demographic Data
Classic data such as age, geographic location, family, work, income.

Ideal Client Profile (Part 2) – Psychological Data
The demographic data told us who our Ideal Client is.
Psychological data, however, will tell us why they would want to purchase our products or services.

Part 2 will depend largely on your area of business.

Ideal Client Profile (Part 3) – What are they searching for What problems or needs do they have?

Can you take your business any further?

If you’re still working broad, what keeps you from narrowing down your focus? What prevents you from picking a specific niche?
If you’d like to discuss how to get more specific on your ideal client, put your question down in the comments section below and I’ll follow up.

If you know your ideal client is on LinkedIn and you’d like to download my content guide for speaking to your ideal client with content for LinkedIn, click here to receive the complimentary PDF.