The power of a name in drawing client interest

Have you ever gotten business from an overheard conversation? That actually happened to me recently. I’m sharing my story to show the power of a clear brand message, networking, and timing.

I was at Zanzibar’s coffee shop in Des Moines, Iowa (awesome smoothies, btw!). The woman I was with mentioned to me how much she enjoyed her recent trip to Minneapolis and thanked me for my recommendations about what to do in my current place of residence. The fellow at the table next to us said he was going to Minneapolis in a couple of weeks and asked where she had stayed. I gave him my card and offered to be his personal visitor’s bureau for the upcoming trip. Here’s where it gets interesting…

He looked at my tag line “Complexity Buster,” turned to me and said: “that’s exactly what I need!” His challenge: he was a former head of Research and Development who was struggling with how to clearly and concisely market his new business at trade shows. He asked me on the spot if he could hire me to help him write and edit a new brochure and support materials.

Good branding, marketing and public relations strategies can make a big difference for any business. None of them, however, will make any long-term difference if you can’t clearly and concisely articulate what you offer and why that matters to prospective clients or customers. If you can say it in a sentence—or less—you’re probably on to something. If you can’t, it’s time to step back. Simply put, simplicity sells.

And that’s the story behind the strangest way I ever got hired.