6 Marketing Challenges All Companies Face and How Personal Branding Solves Them
By: Nicolas Cole
Tags: Personal Branding, Branding, Advertising, Marketing, Business

6. Every Company Needs Help Transmuting Their Company Culture Into a Company Message

What is a company message?

Well, as a writer, a ghostwriter, and a copywriter, I can tell you that after working with hundreds of extremely successful companies on their messaging, I can tell you that an effective message is all about one thing: the problem you’re solving.

So many companies and brands think their company message is all about them. They think their messaging strategy needs to be about the new products they’re launching, how great their services are, how amazing their team is, how long they’ve been in business, and so on. But all of these roads, although somewhat important, are not and should not be the focal point.

In fact, most people honestly don’t care. And the only times they do care is after you’ve earned their trust.

So, how do you build trust?

You focus your entire message (and mission) around solving a problem (or lengthy list of problems).

Let me give you an example. Let’s say Company A’s message goes something like this: “We are an incredible new software tool. We were named one of the top companies to work with in 2018 by <insert major publication here>. And our team has 20-plus years of experience in this industry. Click here to request your free demo!”

That’s all fine and dandy. But now compare with Company B’s message:

“We believe the only thing between you and your next big idea is the next unproductive meeting you have to sit through. In fact, after surveying 1,000 companies and their meeting habits, we realized a huge problem: some of the best ideas in the entire company go unnoticed, solely because of the way meetings are run. We see that as a problem. And you, the creative thinker, deserve a more effective way of sharing your next ah-hah moment with the people who can help bring it to life.”

Now, be honest… in Company B’s message, did you find yourself sitting there reading it and saying to yourself, “Blah, blah, you’re selling to me,” as you did with Company A’s? No?

The reason is that Company B isn’t trying to sell you on something. They’re selling you by not selling anything at all — and that’s what hooks you in. They’re just pointing out all the things you, their target customer, are struggling with. They’re reinforcing that they understand you, that they know the issues you’re experiencing inside and out — and by showing you how well they understand you, you inherently trust them as a result.

Now, take that one step further, and imagine that message came from the founder, or the CTO, CFO, CMO, etc.

Imagine right after you showed how much you understood your customer and the pain points you were experiencing, you went into a story about how you learned those very same things: “When I was 22 years old, I was just like you. I had just graduated from college and had big ideas I wanted to share with the world. That was, until I walked into my first job, and sat through my first grueling 60-minute meeting where absolutely nothing got done. All of a sudden, I saw years of my life (and all my best ideas) go completely down the drain, all because of a lack of productivity.”

Obviously, everyone’s voice is different, so the above example might not sound like you — but that’s not the point. Every voice is different (and we work with a lot of different types of voices at Digital Press), but the intention is always the same: to show your prospective customers and clients that you understand them as people.

When you can do that, you don’t need a catchy tagline.

You don’t need dozens of press releases, or a clever marketing campaign.

Your company message becomes a mission people can rally behind — because it’s entirely focused around a problem millions of people are experiencing.

And when people feel like your mission is to solve the problem they’re experiencing, they not only trust you, but they buy from you.