#115 - 4 Messaging Mistakes Costing You Sales

When your messaging sells what people actually want - they buy. Period. Regardless of the economy, the industry, or what the market is doing.

But far too often, our messaging is either dancing around but not saying exactly what people want, or the pathway for the customer to walk has breaks along the way causing them to drop off.

In this episode, I’m breaking down what I see inside real client funnel audits, and the subtle messaging mistakes that quietly derail the customer journey from interested to paying client.

We cover:

• why your messaging might not match your offer (and how that creates friction) 
• how the wrong “next step” can overwhelm your audience and stop conversions 
• the difference between over-explaining vs actually connecting 
• why being too close to your own work makes these gaps hard to see 

Whether you run an online business or a brick-and-mortar company, these insights will help you create a clearer path for your customers to say yes.

If your offer is good and already converts, but its a heavy lift to create ongoing sales, this episode will show you the common reasons why and what to do about it.

WANT HELP?

I offer a few spots each month for a Messaging & Revenue Reset. This is for the coach or service provider who has an existing funnel that isn't converting the way you know it can and should. It includes a deep-dive audit of the pathway to your main offer and 3 1:1 sessions to help you find and fix the gaps. 

Send me a DM or an email with the word RESET and I'll share details. 

Mindset to Market is a Luminous Creative Production. If you'd like to learn more about our business coaching program and group coaching container, please visit us online at DeborahcSmith.com.

Mindset to Market is produced by Deborah C. Smith and designed to inspire and support big-hearted creatives in finding their own unique path, building a sustainable business, and creating financial, spiritual, mental wellness and abundance.

🎉 Work with Deborah Learn More
💕 Visit Deborah online at DeborahCSmith.com
💕 Follow on the 'Gram. @deborah_smith_coaching

Transcript

 Hey, hey guys. Welcome back. I am in the middle of auditing a client's funnel right now, which is the journey, the customer journey from cold traffic on the internet to, you know, purchasing her offer. And what I'm seeing are very common mistakes that I see all the time. So the business looks great on the service.

The brand colors are beautifully displayed. The website copy is solid, accurate, and compelling. The offer's also solid, right? People have purchased it, experienced her work, and given great feedback and testimonials. And the content out there in social media and in in her emails, it's all there. Everything is good.

So then what's the problem? The problem has to do with the various pathways that lead to all that clean and clear marketing that underneath the surface there are these small messaging disconnects that are breaking down the customer journey. And honestly, most people, myself included, would never catch these on their own.

Uh, you live inside the jungle of your business operations and your daily to-do list every single day. And so it's really hard to get that 60 foot view of an of the overall system. Unless you intentionally take a step back and look for those gaps, and even then you often need support. So that's what I'm gonna help you with in this episode.

And, and by the way, this is not just for online businesses. If you run a brick and mortar business, or most of your contracts play out in person or in real life, as the kids say, IRL, uh. This still applies because at the end of the day, you're still guiding someone from interested to saying yes, and the way you communicate that pathway matters just as much.

So today, I wanna walk you through four of the most common messaging mistakes that I see. Because if you're doing everything right, but it's still not clicking. These are probably why. Hey there. Welcome to the Mindset to Market Podcast, your go-to space for practical tools and solutions to the everyday challenges of being a creative and soulful entrepreneur living in a material world.

I'm your host Deborah Smith, a holistic business coach and marketing strategist with 17 years of experience. I help my clients bust through mindset blocks and learn daily marketing practices that balance personal wellness with financial growth and impact. I'm here to offer you support with creativity, mindset, practical how-tos, and getting into imperfect messy actions so you can experience daily breakthroughs as you grow.

If you're a purpose-driven entrepreneur building an online business, you're in the right place. Let's dive in.

Okay. Welcome back, or welcome to the podcast. So happy to have you with me. Let's get right into it. This is not about doing more, okay? Very important for me to say that because we all wanna run out and chase a shiny object, and we're not doing that. This is about seeing what you've already done in a clear and strategic way.

Okay? So do not go out and create more content. Do not just leap off onto a new strategy. Do not go chase something that. You don't already have created. That's not the problem. This is about alignment and clear communication. When you are the messaging, the words that you are saying to those ideal clients and your offer and the pathway in between those two things don't fully line up.

People hesitate and they don't move forward. They don't take the next step. So, and it can feel like you're doing everything right, but something isn't clicking. So we wanna diagnose this a little bit. So I'm gonna share with you four very common messaging mistakes. Give you some examples and explain why and how to fix these things.

So. Number one, probably the most common thing that I see is that the message doesn't match the offer. So, and this is something that we all do, so don't be mad at yourself if you're like, ah, that's me. But the first thing that I almost always see in people's messaging is a disconnect between what they're saying and what's what they're selling.

Um, so the content speaks to one problem or aspiration, but the offer solves something. More specific and clear that you're not, that you're kind of dancing around in your messaging. So essentially, I mean, you know, the offer gets a, a different result than what the messaging is leading them towards. So, and a great example of this is a health coach who's selling self love and body positivity.

And, you know, caring about these sort of ideals instead of what their people actually care about and want right now, which is losing the weight, fitting into their genes again, getting off their diabetes medication. Um, you know. Uh, being able to approach mealtime without stress and anxiety because they know what is good for them so they know what to cook.

So there's problems that our clients face that are hyper-specific and real. It's something that's happening in their everyday life. And instead of just saying, you know, this specific words that actually paint the picture for them of what, of what they need, we dance around it with flowery language that misleads them.

There are manifestation coaches out there selling personal power and reprogram your limiting beliefs instead of what their people actually deeply crave, which is a relationship with, you know, a specific person or landing that dream job. So the message doesn't match the result that they want. And when you sell what people actually want, they buy, period.

Regardless of the economy, the industry, or what the market is doing. If people really want and see that you understand the problem that they have and help that can help them solve it, they will buy. So there's business coaches out there selling three tips for building an email list instead of selling the result that that email list is gonna get people, which is more connection with more people leading to more sales.

And so when you stop selling what you think people should want and you start selling what they actually care about, you're sales easily increase. So the key here is to monitor the me your messaging to make sure that you are saying. What you sell and what you offer in words and terminology that your client is actively seeking and looking for.

Instead of some type of flowery, sort of esoteric intangible feeling results, we wanna get really specific because even though your offer, it might be really valuable, you may have had, you know, it's gotten results, the messaging along the pathway, if it doesn't feel like a direct solution to the problem that your client has, it's gonna create friction, even if it's subtle.

If your audience feels that friction, they don't buy. So we've gotta look for a disconnect between the messaging and the actual results. Um, mistake number two is no clear or. Correctly sized next step. So this is kind of two parts. So the second issue that I see in people's messaging all the time is that there's no clean, obvious next step.

Like they present, you know, a piece of the solution or a piece along the pathway, but then don't clearly say. And when you're done fixing that step in the problem, here's your next step. Or the other piece of this is that the step that's next isn't the right bite size for where your audience is in that part of the journey.

So somebody finds you, they're interested in what you do, they're curious about your work, they're considering working with you, but. After encountering some of your content, they're left guessing what to do next. Like they're not being led, you know, off of social media into your ecosystem, or it's not clear for them how they can contact you and easily.

Buy from you or work with you. And so they just, they lose interest. They walk away. They scroll away, and they don't wind up taking a next step with you because they just don't, they're not being guided to it by you. Right? Or they're being asked to take a step. That feels way too big. So imagine, for example, a health coach who helps single moms create a weekly meal plan.

So her audience is. Her ideal client is already overwhelmed by life. They're short on time, they're juggling a lot. Um, but, but this health coach has a lead magnet that is a three day mini reset. And so the busy single mom is like, yeah, I need a three day reset. So they opt in, but then they're getting multiple emails that they have to read.

There's several steps with each of the days. Each day in a row, they have to take, you know, do a series of things and then check in. It's just way too much as a first. Step for them to take. Working with this health coach, what they actually need is something super quick and supportive that they can do right away.

It's a simple weekly meal template so they can create their own plan, or it's a short list of easy go-to meals that they can make in under 20 minutes, like super bite size and helps them immediately get a result. So your funnel should feel like a natural progression and your messaging should guide them step by step to.

A small bite, like a tiny bite, and then a next bigger bite. And then, you know, introduction to the, what a full meal could look like. And we're talking about automated messaging, right? So this is something that you might set and then forget about and forget to go back and audit and check it and make sure it still makes sense with where the world is at, with where your offer is at.

Maybe you've learned something about your client. By delivering your offer, and you now know that they need a different invitation. So you've gotta go check this stuff. Um, and another thing about this particular mistake is your messaging. In terms of like the progression along your funnel should never require people to take a huge leap.

Okay? So you wanna check for gaps where they're going from like a quick checklist to something way deeper water for them. We wanna guide them simply along the pathway, either through emails or experiences that feel like the natural progression. Okay. So just to be, you know, thinking about that clearly.

You're looking at this as a step-by-step pathway to your high ticket offer. Okay? Mistake number three is over explaining your work instead of just connecting with people. So a lot of people think that more information equals more sales, like the more you put out there and the more you know. You share with them about what you do and how you do it is going to equal them, understanding it better, and, and then deciding based on that.

But that's not what actually helps people make a decision. What actually converts people from considering working with you to actually making a purchase is clarity and resonance, right? Where they really can see themselves inside your work. Whether you are, you know, a really estate lawyer or a health coach, or you sell fresh juice like I used to do.

So you wanna make sure that you are. Explaining the benefits and the experience that they're gonna have in a way that it's very clear to them. So I'll give you an example. So I'll see sales pages that go into every single detail of the process, every module, every step, they're gonna take, every PDF that's inside the course.

Um, every nuanced little nugget of deliverable, like the number of minutes per call and the number of calls per week, and the number of. You know, deliverable things that they're gonna get week by week, all of these details, but they never clearly answer the question, is this for me? Or how will this actually help me?

And it's not just about listing benefits either. You wanna actually paint a picture that shows. Who it's right for in how it's going to get them from where they are now to where they want to be. That's the, that's the type of messaging that gets them to convert is, is telling the story of the transformation, not listing a ton of information or overwhelming them with details.

So if somebody has to work really hard to understand what you do or how it helps them, then they won't take the next step. They just move on, scroll away, feel overwhelmed by your content and move on. With this, we want to be auditing our messaging to ensure that it's connecting with people in a way that makes sense to them, so that they can really see themselves inside your work and even in your public facing content that is gonna be seen by hundreds.

To thousands, to millions of people like social media or a flyer that you put out there in a very public way or a commercial ad that you create. You wanna be talking just to those people who are a right fit for you. You wanna really clearly speak directly to the people that you know will get results from your work, even if it's gonna be seen by hundreds of other people.

So you've gotta focus on messaging that illustrates. For those ideal clients, what it will feel like and what it will look like and how it will benefit them to be working with you. And that brings us to mistake number four, which is that you're often too close to your own messaging to see where it's gotten off track.

And honestly, this might be the biggest one, right? So you're too close to your own work to see where things are breaking down and not making sense. Which, if you think about it, it makes total sense. Um, I personally have to work with a mentor to help me see where I'm resisting, where I'm holding back, where I'm thinking about something in an old way, or choosing steps based on, you know, old, outdated programming.

I can't see my own gaps. And so having a guide makes so much sense for that reflection and to get that kind of feedback. Um, but this happens because you built your business. You understand it clearly, you are the knowledge holder. Who designed the step-by-step process or, you know, drew up the contract or has been delivering this, these, you know, your offer over and over again.

In such a way, but your audience doesn't have that same context. Your audience hasn't already been through the steps. They haven't worked with you before, and so they don't already know what you know. So sometimes you're typing out messaging that's based on this, you know, your programming, which is that you already know the results.

You know what it feels like, and so you speak in a language or you type out messaging in a language that is based on a knowledge that your ideal client doesn't already have. And so we wanna audit our messaging to make sure that it makes sense, not only according to you, but according to somebody who's never, who's not yet made that breakthrough or had that result.

Um, I've had clients where one small shift in their wording, just like a few sentences here and there, has completely changed how their offer lands with their audience. So, and this isn't because the offer changes, right? It's not because of. All the sort of top of funnel surface changes, it's because they're communicating it in a way that's gonna finally click with people.

So that's, that's really hard to see on your own. So I do highly recommend working with somebody. And this is exactly what I do in my messaging and funnel audits. Um, we do not rebuild everything. We take a really, we take a microscopic lens to the work you've already done and look what's already there and try to identify where are people getting confused, where are people dropping off?

Where is the messaging not fully supporting the sale at the end? And where may you be talking about something in a way that just is not aligned with that end result, right? Because one of those pieces outta place could be causing people to fall out of your funnel. But once those pieces, pieces all click into place, your business starts to feel a lot easier.

'cause people are actually moving through, um, one step at a time. So if you are listening to this and you're thinking, hey. I want somebody to come audit my business for where there might be gaps. Um, I think this might be happening in my messaging then. Number one, you're probably right and you could certainly do and conduct this audit.

I mean, I would get started right away by looking at these four tips that I just gave you, these four messaging mistakes and start to notice where they might be happening in your messaging. Um, if you want to work with, with a coach and with a strategist, I have a few spots open every month for a messaging and revenue reset.

And this is done over the series of three or four meetings. Um, so we do this deep dive audit, but then we meet to work on piecing it back together, um, through a series of, of meetings and sessions. So this is like a really focused look at your funnel and your messaging just to identify where things are off and how to fix them.

If you want details about that, you can just DM me or email me the word reset and I will send over details about it. Um, and I only do a couple of these a month because they are a really high touch, deep dive and it, it's something that, um, I wanna make sure I'm delivering excellent results to people. So with that, I just invite you to take a look at your customer journey.

Look at what's happening from totally cold traffic out there in the world, who have no idea who you are. To sold into your offer and onboarding and see where you notice any of these gaps or these mistakes in your own marketing. Because once you see them, you can't unsee them and you'll be able to fix them.

Um, and the good news is that they're usually very fixable and a lot faster than you think. Um, we have made tweaks to marketing copy for clients who had zero traction on their offer, who went and turned around the next day, and were able to sell that very same offer. So. Make sure that you're auditing your messaging in looking for the gaps, because that is gonna lead to easier sales, and that's the point.

Um, with that, my friend, I hope you found this helpful. If you like this podcast and if this content is helpful to you, please take, um, one minute to scroll down where you're listening and rate the podcast or give it a review. That would mean the world to me. Um, and thank you in advance for doing that. And as always, until we meet again, may you be vibrant.