Now that you’ve introduced yourself (haven’t yet? Check out this mini-course we put together.), there is one more section you’ll have to put together to complete your profile and give service seekers the peace of mind they need to buy from you.
If you want people to buy from you, they need to believe in you first.
Credentials aren’t just degrees. They’re anything that can demonstrate your credibility, your authority, your expertise. These things exist on a continuum. If all you have is interest and curiosity in an area, talk about how interested you are and what that interest has led you to do.
A reminder: You are making a page that people will read when they are considering buying your services.
The outcomes that we hope for from this page is to make it a no brainer for the right person and place you firmly in the mind of everyone else as the person who does X. Someday in the future when a friend of theirs is talking about X, they might remember you and recommend you. Or someday in the future when they have a need for X, they might remember you.
So long as we achieve those outcomes, pretty much nothing is off the table.
First we’re going to brainstorm. Go for quantity not usefulness. If you accidentally write “can fit 32 marshmallows in mouth and say chubby bunny”, you’ll refine it later.
You know that part of you that tries to edit what you do…as you’re doing it? They can sshhhh for now. We’ll need them soon.
For now, brainstorm everything you possibly can under these questions:
- What are potential case studies you can use?
- Who could you ask for a testimonial?
- What are potential statistics you might be able to state?
- What examples do you have?
- What education or training have you completed?
- What work experience do you have? (yes all of it)
- What awards have you won?
- What groups are you a member of?
- What publications have you been published in?
- What brands are you associated with?
- What brands have you been associated with?
- What guarantees can you give?
- What promises can you make?
- What stories do you have?
- How can you demonstrate that you understand the person reading this?
- What have you experienced that is similar to the problems your customers are struggling with?
- What have you done that demonstrates your expertise?
Oof! That’s a lot of brainstorming!
Now it’s time to bring out that editor of yours.
Go back through the list and ask:
- Is this relevant to the service I’m providing?
- Could I make this relevant to the service I’m providing?
- Could I transfer some stories across to my About Mesection?
Edit or cross off anything that’s not relevant.
You should have a shorter list. If it’s a very short list, feel free to turn this into your credentials now.
List the most compelling things at the top and work your way down to the least compelling.
If the list is still too long, rank your list in terms of what would compel someone to trust you to carry out the service you’re providing. Remove the least compelling.
If it’s still too long, remove the things you’re least proud of.
If it’s still too long, remove the least interesting.
Going from most compelling to least compelling, describe each item in a neat, crisp, sentence. Combine bits that are similar. Use bullet points if that’s more appropriate.
You’re ready to publish this to your credentials now!
