What Dolly Doctor can teach you about copywriting for your business
Were you an awkward teenager? Same…
Seemingly overnight, I went from being a fat kid to a skinny teenager with braces 😐 And I constantly felt like I was always a step behind the other kids when it came to figuring out how life works.
That’s why I always wonder what it would have been like to have Google back then.
Honestly, nothing prepares you for the weirdness of your teenage years – being so unsure about your changing body and the world around you, all while putting on a brave face in the school yard every damn day in the pursuit of social acceptance.
Dolly magazine, however, held all the answers. Which is why it was a lifeline when I was growing up in the country (I was equally obsessed with Lip Smackers and the purple Impulse spray).
My friends and I even did photoshoots to win the Dolly best friends competition – but they always ended up looking a lot like the shots at the end of this video…
I couldn’t have told you why a magazine was so bloody important to me, until I heard an interview with THE Dolly Doctor Melissa Kang on the Conversations podcast.
She explained that whether readers were writing in about boyfriends, periods or boobs starting to appear, they were all essentially asking the same thing: ‘Am I normal?’
That was me too – I wanted to know how to fit in. And let’s not forget the thrill of an issue with a sealed section *gasp*.
So I bought the magazine religiously for years, because it made me feel as normal as an introverted teenager can possibly feel 🤩
So what does this have to do with copywriting?
No matter how old we get, we still need reassurance that what we’re experiencing in life is completely normal (that’s usually our motivation for Googling random questions we’re too self-conscious to ask others).
When you validate a prospect’s concern in your copy, your reader will give you the time of day.
That’s because you’ve earned their trust by showing them you understand (without casting any judgement – that’s super important).
No matter what kind of service you run, there will be common problems that new clients come to you with…
Take a financial planner I did a strategy session with recently 👉 she works with executive women who earn large salaries, but approach her riddled with shame. They believe they should be ‘good with money’, simply because they earn so much.
But how can you manage your money well if no-one’s ever taught you how to invest or plan for retirement? Even so, these women have a belief that since they are accomplished in their profession, they should be smart enough to know what to do.
Admitting a perceived flaw like that to another person is a pretty vulnerable experience 🙈. So right now, I want you to imagine that you’re a woman in that position and you’ve decided to look for a financial planner to help. Who are you going to choose?
The financial planners who only talk about themselves on their website…
Or the financial planner who acknowledges that it’s normal to be overwhelmed by money, especially once you start earning an executive salary? And then explains how they help people just like you ✅
How you can play Dolly Doctor for your audience?
If you provide a service where people might feel a little embarrassed sharing their problem with you, this tactic is really helpful for making new clients feel comfortable. And when they feel comfortable, they’ll stick around for more info from you.
Not sure what the ‘am I normal’ triggers are for your clients? You can work it out by asking yourself a simple question.
Why do clients put off booking your service? They’ll usually tell you in their first call or meeting with you…
Here are examples from 3 of my clients:
For a family photographer, these reasons were feeling awkward in front of the camera, and being self-conscious about carrying baby weight.
For an aged care provider, it was the fear of losing independence that would see clients put off accepting help.
And for a home cleaning company, the belief that you should be able to ‘do it all’ is a key reason why some clients put off booking a cleaner (tapping into that concern through social media and blogging has been really powerful).
Even when people come to me, they’re really frustrated and embarrassed about their failed attempts at copywriting (I empathise with that over here).
Here’s the thing: these triggers you’re trying to normalise in your copy don’t have to be big burning buckets of shame.
They can be small too – the point is to show people that the problem they have (or the transformation they’re looking for) is a common experience. This instantly takes their anxiety about that thing down a notch, so they feel comfortable exploring how to fix the problem 😊
For an architect I work with, that was as simple as acknowledging that hiring an architect is a big deal.
What’s the best approach for you?
As much as I’d love to give you a template for this, it’s one of those things you can’t really copy paste.
Instead, here is your starting point for trying this tactic: start addressing common client triggers on your blog or social media, and see what the response is like. Then you can work out which ones you need to integrate into your key messaging across your website, service kits, etc.
TIP: You don’t need to lead with this messaging (that’s like coming on too strong on a first date). But weave it through your website with empathy, and you’ll be miles ahead of your competitors.
Woah, you made it all the way to the end of this post! I’m impressed… You either had some super awkward teenage years or you’re pretty keen to hone your messaging. If it’s messaging you’re here for, I have even more for you. My top copywriting secrets go to my email subscribers – sign up below to get my brain in your inbox when inspiration strikes (that’s usually once a fortnight; I respect your wish for healthy email boundaries).
👇That’s the form right there 👇 how handy…