In today’s marketplace you’ve got to do more than offer excellent service and product. That’s a given. To separate your small business from all the others offering a similar service you’ve got to be unique and memorable. How do you do that?…Read more.
I’ve just finished Jennifer Campbell’s recent book Start and Run a Personal History Business published by Self-Counsel Press. If you’re thinking of making personal histories a business, you owe it to yourself to get this book. Jennifer knows her stuff. She’s been a professional personal historian since 2002 and prior to that had a 25 year career as an editor, writer, and interviewer… Read more.
Posted in Book reviews, Business, Home Office, How to, Life stories, Marketing, Memoirs, Personal historian, Promotion & Publicity, Resources, Self-employed, Tips, Writing
Tagged Business, Employment, family stories, free resources, Home Office, How to, Jennifer Campbell, memoir, Personal historian, personal histories, personal history, personal history business, self employed, small business, start and run, Tips, Writing
In today’s marketplace you’ve got to do more than offer excellent service and product. That’s a given. To separate your small business from all the others offering a similar service you’ve got to be unique and memorable. How do you do that?
Begin by checking out your competition. Look at their websites, blogs, and any printed marketing material. Ask yourself, “What can I do that they’re not doing?”
Taking my own advice, I started doing a little research on a few personal history websites. Here’s what I learned.
Generally personal historians do a good job of extolling the virtues of recording life stories. But there are omissions. This means there’s a real opportunity for you to fill the gaps and set your personal history business apart. Here are 8 ways to be unique:
1. Provide a money back guarantee. This provides real comfort for potential clients. It also says that you’re confident about the quality of your work. I’ve had a 100% satisfaction guaranteed label on my home page for three years now and it’s never been a problem.
2. Contribute to your community. Demonstrate your values by listing your volunteer activities. Consider donating a percentage of your profits to a charity that has an obvious connection to life stories such as the Alzheimer’s Association and Reading is Fundamental.
3. Have a toll free number. Prominently display your toll free number on your home page and other marketing materials. The easier it is for potential clients to talk to you, the better the chance of securing that client.
4. Offer free resources. Put together a series of lists and mini-publications like 15 Great Memoirs Written by Women , The 50 Best Life Story Questions, and Come to Your Senses and Unlock Childhood Memories. [Please feel free to use these or other articles from my blog. All I ask is that you duly credit them.]
5. List prices. There’s no getting away from it, price matters. It’s usually the first thing people want to know. Anything that hints at avoidance can lead to suspicion. I know that personal history fees vary widely depending on the scope of a project. But minimally you can indicate a range. For example: Prices range from $300 for a one-hour video interview to $10,000 for a documentary film biography.
6. Go green. Consumers increasingly expect businesses to limit their environmental impact. Being green can set you apart. How do you reduce your carbon footprint? In your office do you use recycled paper, compact fluorescent bulbs or LED lights? Do you drive a fuel efficient car? Is your printing done by an environmentally responsible company?
Consider buying carbon offsets. In Canada one of the top ranked companies is Less. In the United States check out TerraPass . Make sure that your clients know your commitment to the environment is more than talk.
7. Be an expert.Write articles that offer tips and advice. These can be on your own blog or for sites such as EZineArticles.com and About.com. In time you’ll be seen as an expert!
8. Code of Ethics. If you’re a member of the Association of Personal Historians, (If you’re not, you should be 
) you know that you’re expected to adhere to the APH Code of Ethics. It’s simple to add this as a page to your website. Like the money back guarantee it creates a degree of comfort for your clients.
Conclusion
If I were a potential client in search a personal historian, who would I hire?
Over and above the obvious need to hire a personal historian with a high degree of expertise, the nod would go to the person who was not only outstanding but went that extra mile and met the above attributes.
How are you going to make your business stand out this year? Drop me a line. Love to hear from you.
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Have you listened to your outgoing voicemail message lately? Does it sound professional? Like someone you’d want to do business with? If not, you could be losing potential clients. Here’s what you need to do:
1. Avoid old answering machines with poor quality audio.
What kind of business impression do you create if your prospective caller can hardly make out your voicemail message because of static and a barely audible voice? If I were hiring you to do a video or audio recording, I’d have second thoughts!
Be smart. Use a telephone company answering service or a good quality digital answering machine.
2. Make it clear as to the person the caller has reached.
You might say something like, “Thank you for calling. You’ve reached the voicemail of Kathy Smith, owner of Lifestory Productions.”
Don’t leave an announcement like, “Hi, I’m not in. Please leave a message after the tone.” Callers have no idea if they’ve reached the correct number or if their message will actually reach the right person.
3. Leave instructions.
Many voicemail messages end with something like “Please leave your name and number after the beep.” It’s a start. But if all you get is “Hi, this is Bob call me at 200-4000,” you have a problem. Who is Bob and what does he want? Does this call require immediate attention?
A better outgoing message provides the caller with some guidance. Here’s a sample: ” Please leave your name, the reason for your call, a number where you can be reached, and the best time for me to call you.”
4. Be concise.
Callers don’t want to listen to a lengthy monologue before they can leave a message. Your voicemail announcement shouldn’t be more than 20 seconds long.
5. Avoid being cute and clever.
Even if you have the wit of a Mark Twain, cleverness can wear thin if a caller is hearing your message for the third time. Keep it simple and business-like.
6. Script and rehearse you message.
We’ve all heard voicemail messages that covered the spectrum from flat and bored to breathless and rushed.
The tone of your voice is as important as the words being spoken. I once worked with an actress on some narration for a documentary of mine. At one point she said, “I can do that line with a smile in my voice. It’ll work better.” She was right. She actually spoke the line while smiling. It sounded friendly and welcoming.
Begin by writing down what you want to say. Read it aloud. Edit your message until it sounds right. Now try it on a friend or family member and get a critique. Before recording your message do several rehearsals so that you can deliver your lines flawlessly and with a smile in your voice.
7. Record your message in a quiet environment.
Nothing reeks more of amateurishness than a voicemail message with a background cacophony of dogs barking, kids screaming, and TVs blaring. Find a quiet room to record, preferably one with lots of sound absorbing material like a bedroom.
And finally…
Here’s a sample of an outgoing message that you can adapt to suit your needs.
Hello. You’ve reached the voicemail of Kathy Smith, owner of Lifestory Productions. Please leave your name, telephone number, the reason for your call, and the best time for me to reach you. Thanks for calling.
Photo by Christomopher
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