Stacy and I sat  down to eat with our friends John and Caroline* at this cool little restaurant in west Nashville, Tru Market. 

Caroline orders gluten and dairy free salad with no meat. And I roll my eyes and order a burger with fries. Real food. 

"Why are you ordering that weird stuff?" I ask.

She says something about TSH and leaky guts. Honestly, to me it sounded like voodoo chiropractor science.  I tend to make fun of them for the weird food they eat. None of it really made sense to me. 

We laugh, they roll their eyes at me and we have a nice evening together. 

A few weeks after that dinner Stacy goes to the doctor and is diagnosed with Hoshimotos disease. It's an autoimmune disorder where your body thinks your thyroid is a foreign invader and tries to destroy it.

Your body is literally eating itself alive. And the results are, as you'd imagine, bizarre and severe.

  • Depression
  • Low energy
  • Brain fog
  • Digestion issues

The list goes on and on.

Over the following months as we try to diagnose and fix it, we learn all about TSH, digestional health, T4, T3 and all the terminology and how it affects your body.

With a few minor tweaks that took us over a year and A LOT of pain and suffering to figure out Stacy has mostly returned to normal. It's like night and day. We're extremely grateful!

And just last week we went back out to eat with John and Caroline and shared everything that Stacy had tried and what worked for her. To which John responded: "Yes, this is the same thing Caroline has and it's why she eats like she does." 

That's the moment I fully realized that the awareness level someone has directly dictates how you talk to them.

We spent over a year of our lives, many tears and much pain, trying to figure out how to heal Stacy. And as it turns out some of our best friends had the exact same problem and even had previously shared how they had successfully treated it.

And what did I do with that information?

I made fun of them and rolled my eyes.

Not because I'm stupid or insensitive (ok, maybe a little). But because I was completely unaware of the problem and as a result all the details and nuance they were sharing went in one ear and out the other. 
 

I've not stopped thinking about awareness and how important it is since that night.

The book Breakthrough Advertising illustrates awareness in 5 stages:

  • Stage #1. Not aware of the method
  • Stage #2. Aware of the method
  • Stage #3. Desires to use the method
  • Stage #4. Knows your product can help them use the method
  • Stage #5. Wants to buy your product so they can use the method

When marketing your business, your customers' level of awareness is critical to keep in mind.

Because no one buys something they can't understand.

People buy when you speak to them on their level.

  • They buy when you're able to connect and have a meaningful conversation with them.
  • They buy when you're able to move them closer towards their goals.

If you assume potential clients are aware of what your product is, you will be disappointed in your results.

If you use too much jargon too early on, you'll leave them in the dust.

  • They'll nod their head.
  • They'll act like they know what you are talking about.
  • Then they'll roll their eyes and order their hamburger, just like I did.

They aren't stupid. They aren't being rude.

You just aren't meeting them at their awareness level.

 

So what's the key takeaway?

Anytime you write copy or have a conversation, ask yourself this question:

How aware of my product or method is the person I'm talking to? 

Then, adjust how you communicate to match their awareness level. And, when in doubt, assume their awareness is lower than it is. You can always move to a higher stage of awareness.

But if you start too high you'll lose them.
 

-Bryan  

P.S. If you need help finding and nurturing leads for your business, book a 1:! Strategy call with my team.

We'll help you understand the untapped potential that already exists in your business, and map out a simple strategy to translate that potential into new sales.

 

*Note: "John and Caroline" asked I change their names before publishing this story.