No One Knows What They're Doing

My alma mater, Potomac Massage Training Institute, has a Job Fair twice a year for alumnae. They invite local companies to have a table and meet the MTs. My biz partner, Kitty Southworth, and I have had a table there the last few job fairs to promote our continuing ed offerings.

Each time we offer a drawing and often a give-away. We offer things that can be used early on in beginning a practice. It's been different every time but one thing has been common: lackluster response.

I'm going again this week but I've been thinking a lot about when and how to connect with people.

The first thing I've learned is that people have to be in the right frame of mind for what you are offering. If they're busy thinking about buying a car, comparing make and model, or looking at different financing, for example, they aren't going to respond to material about massage. Sure, they're stressed. Sure, a massage would be great. But they aren't in a massage-buying frame of mind.

I'm wondering if the participants are in the wrong frame of mind at the job fair. They are all focused on where they want to work, who they can get an interview with, is their resume in order, etc. They aren't thinking about continuing education (even though we offer classes on business, including independent contracting!). They are laser focused on getting a job.

It's difficult to understand just when someone will be in the right frame of mind to hear and respond to your message. It just is. It's a lot of guesswork. I could get down about that but then I remember that Ford and Dell and Target and every other company all have the same challenge; while they've got the money to get much more sophisticated advice, they're still guessing at some level.

It's why I think one of the first things you've got to do when building a private practice is figure out who you want your client to be. Who's not just a fit but a great fit for you.

Once you know who you're trying to attract, you can begin to try to see their world as they experience it. It improves the odds of creating marketing that will work (as opposed to a scatter-shot approach where you try to appeal to everyone).

We've all only got so much time, energy, and money. Let's not waste it. And here's hoping I make a good connection with at least a few people Friday night.