Creating a Powerful “Audio Logo”4 min read

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I remember clearly when I formulated my first really effective marketing message: 

“I work with Independent Professionals who are struggling with their marketing.”

It was simple, nothing fancy, but it communicated two things very clearly: who I work with and the reason they needed me.

How did I know it was effective? I knew it because when I used it to answer the question, “What do you do?” people actually responded to me. They wanted to know more. They gave me their cards. They accepted my follow-up calls. In short, my message had enough value that it helped to both initiate the conversation and to continue it.

This simple formula ultimately got named “The Audio Logo.” 

An audio logo really is that simple.

But that simplicity led to much greater things in my business. It led to focus, clarity, and a foundation for my marketing that was flexible and allowed me to offer a wide variety of services that would help independent professionals get past that struggle and towards increased marketing ease and success.

Unfortunately, too many people make their audio logo too complex, too long and include too much about how they do what they do. We often feel we need to “say everything” in our marketing message and that only weakens it.

For instance, I could easily add to my message:

“I work with Independent Professionals who are struggling with their marketing. I do that through individual consulting, group programs and my membership website, The More Clients Club.”

That tells more, obviously, but why does it weaken it?

It’s because of the situation in which you use an audio logo. When someone asks you what you do, they are usually a relative stranger. Their mind is busy categorizing and judging.

You don’t want to say too much or the person is likely to be confused, or worse, feel that you are pitching them. Notice that my audio logo is not about me. It’s about my clients.

And for that reason it gets little resistance.

And at the same time, an audio logo like this is likely to elicit a positive response from someone who can relate to what you’re saying. For instance, I’ve gotten these responses:

“Yes, the marketing part of business is the hard part.”

“There’s really a need for that.”

“How do you help your clients get past the struggle?”

And then the audio logo can turn into a conversation, again, with the focus on the person you’re speaking to, not on everything you offer. For instance, I’ll usually respond by making a comment and asking a question:

“Yes, it can be hard. What business are you in?”

“Definitely, marketing can be challenging. Are you in business for yourself?”

“I have a step-by-step system that makes marketing easier. What business are you in?”

Where do you go from there?

A conversation like this can go virtually anywhere. You might discover you have nothing to offer this person, or it might become clear you are talking to your ideal client.

If the interest is there, the best, most effective way to talk about your service is not through concepts, but through stories. Notice the difference between these two:

“Tell me more about what you do.”

Conceptual: Well, I teach people how to play marketing as a game where you communicate certain things in a certain order until prospects warm up to your message. The three key areas are information, familiarity, and experience.

Story: I worked with a client recently who was stuck in moving his marketing forward. I helped him get out there and book speaking engagements. In a few months, he had booked several and ultimately got many clients that way.

The conceptual overview might be accurate, but more appropriate information for a seminar or workshop. But the story showed how a real person got results from working with me. And that is always more powerful.

Here are the key steps in creating a powerful audio logo:

1. Say who it is you work with (your ideal clients).

2. Mention a problem or issue these people are dealing with or…

3. Mention a desirable outcome that they would want (… who want their marketing to be easier and faster).

By the way, sometimes a problem-oriented audio logo works better than an outcome-oriented one, and visa versa.

4. When someone responds, don’t say too much. Instead, find out more about them.

5. When someone shows real interest, tell stories instead of talking about concepts.

6. Finally, you can only develop an effective audio logo through practice. Once you think you have a good one, get out there and use it as much as possible. See what the reaction is and fine-tune it until it gets the results you want.

Take these steps and before long you’ll have a message that gets the attention and interest of your prospective clients. 

Cheers, Robert

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