Seriously, go look at the mirror…

Why would I ever tell you that?

It’s because I got your back.

The holidays are a good time for a check in, to see who the people who truly care about your success are.

The real ones, are not afraid to tell you when something’s wrong, to call for an intervention, or to slap you in the face if you deserved it.

Copywriter guru John Carlton proposes a great framework for thinking about who your “real ones” are.

In his book “Simple success secrets no one told you about” he goes into the 7 circles you should consider.

From the first one, the “Really Big Circle: Strangers, who vary from being oblivious to you, to not caring even a tiny bit”.

To the smallest one, or the “Circle Of All: A trusted road dog who would take a bullet for you.  True friend, who has had opportunities to prove his friendship and come through shining.  He not only will tell you when you’ve got egg on your mustache… he’ll defend you when you’re not around.”

Did you ever spend any time making a list of who these people are?

I know I take it for granted and don’t really plan for any of it.

It’s a flaw I intend to work on.

How can we get better?

The two most important lessons you can take away from this framework – lessons that can help skyrocket your business going into the new year, are:

• 1. You don’t know anyone unless you spend time with them
• 2. Never trust what someone says they’ll do, only what they actually do

These are true when it comes to both your friends and colleagues, but also for your prospects.

If you want to have any chance at converting more of your audience going forward and can focus on a few key activities only:

• Spend time with them, speak to them, get to know them on a deeply personal level (yes in B2B too)

And…

• Watch what they do, observe how they behave on your site, throughout their entire journey, on your emails etc.

Then and only then, you’ll know if you can trust them to become your next best customers.

Because yes, you need their business…

…but they also need you.

And you only want the best around, don’t you?

P.S. Do you need a head start with your business in 2023 (and beyond)? You can now spend some time with me 1 on 1 and get all the advice and guidance you need with your copy, UX and conversion optimization projects.