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I Wish I Could Write Copy as Well as Bill the Painter

Elizabeth Walker Partner, Marketing Masters, Marketing Masters Recent Posts

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May 8, 2009

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FedEx Global Brand Management Director Monica Skipper shares a cost-effective way to build a bigger brand for your small business.

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I was on the phone with a client one day last month, while Bill, the guy who is painting my new house, was working in the hall outside my office.

"Hey Liz,"he said as he was ripping off the last of the bubble-gum pink wallpaper border off the wall at the top of the stairs, "you're in business. You should come to my BNI group."

Well, I already knew about BNI, so at 6:30 on the next Wednesday morning Bill picked me up and was my host for the meeting. Turns out that pretty much everyone who works on my house is a member!

I'll talk about that some more in a later post, because you haven't seen anything till you've seen the Power Group these guys have put into action.

Anyway, back to Bill. Next meeting, it was his turn to do a longer presentation about his business. He was nervous, and he's not Mr. Slick marketer, but his presentation was riveting. Here's what he said:

Hi, I'm Bill. Well, hey, you guys already know that. Right now, I'm workin' on a big job. 600 windows, real little ones. So I've got to scrape 600 windows. Then fill all the missing or crappy grout. Then sand 600 windows. Then put base coat on 600 windows. Then paint â€˜em. How many? Right. 600. When I go home at night I'm grouchy and I hurt. My back is killin' me. But hey - I'm the one that's hurting, right?

Point is, I'm Bill Clark from Top to Bottom Painting. You need me, cause I take the pain out of painting.

We could SEE the pain in that job - and we got the point. Don't do it yourself!

Anybody who knows about selling, presenting, or marketing will tell you the same thing: if you want people to remember your message, tell a story. Put in lots of concrete details. Make it emotional. Let your audience make mental connections to their own situation.

Other painters say things like:

XYZ Painting and Decorating

Over 36 years experience. Residential, commercial, interior, exterior, painting, decorating, paperhanging. All workmanship guaranteed. Free estimates.

In fact, that's pretty much what Bill says on his site, too.

Here's the thing: ALL painters, at least the ones we would consider hiring, are experienced, do much the same tasks, keep working till the customer is satisfied (because otherwise they won't get their final payment) and will happily estimate the job for free. (Have you EVER paid for an estimate?)

In person, Bill catches our imagination, engages us emotionally, and offers us a different experience. And that's what our advertising should do too, if we want to get our fair share of scarce consumer dollars.