How Do You Know Your Message Needs To Evolve?

Spread the love

A clear message is the difference between a business that thrives and one that barely survives. Why? Because clarity is what allows your audience to know who you are and how you can help them. But messaging isn’t stagnant. It shifts and grows with us as we shift and grow (as does our business). So how do you know if your message needs to evolve?

That’s the topic of Episode 17 of The Leadership Forum. We’re discussing:

What an “evolved” message means in terms of business growth
Signs you’ve evolved past your old message and are in need of a revamp
The benefits of evolving your message to match where you are now in your entrepreneurial journey.

Skip around:

00:00 – 1:45: Welcome and Introduction!
1:45 – 5:10: What is an evolved message?
5:10 – 13:05: The signs you need for a more evolved message.
13:05 – 16:00: Benefits of an evolved message.
16;00 – 18:03: How do you evolve your message?
18:03 – 21:00: Evolved Entrepreneur Challenge

What is an evolved message? (1:45):

You’ve seen rebrands before. A company sheds its old skin and embraces the new. Maybe it’s a logo change. Maybe it’s a new tagline. Maybe it’s a total overhaul.

Regardless, this shift marks an evolution in the business. It has shifted beyond what it was. Maybe you’ve experienced this yourself?

As business owners, we’re evolving constantly. We grow and learn and make mistakes and have successes. And whether you’re the face of your brand or not, your evolution has an impact on your brand. When we don’t update our message to match our evolution, we end up with a gap between where we are and where our audience assumes we are (because your content is outdated).

If you feel like your message is off, don’t worry

The signs you need for a more evolved message (5:10):

Here are a few signs your message may be ready for a shift:

You have changed or adjusted your services, purpose, audience, etc.
You personally have changed.
The people you work with or the offers you deliver feel outdated, out of sync, or unaligned.
Your business model has changed, or your content has naturally shifted over time.
You’ve gone through personal changes and transitions that have impacted your business.

For example, in our own business we started out writing resumes and cover letters. This worked for us back in 2010 when we were still holding down our full-time jobs. But we quickly outgrew the service, and the business as a whole needed to change into something more representative of our vision for the future. We transitioned into Owl Eyes Creative, a full-service copywriting team.

There we stayed until 2015, when we rebranded and became North Star Messaging + Strategy. This rebrand is the result of serving hundreds of clients and completing countless hours of work (both in our business and on our business). We realized we did more than copywriting. We helped our clients gain clarity around their message and feel confident in showcasing it throughout their business.

Our most recent shift was to incorporate messaging-driven leadership into the conversation. Again, we realized that the clients we loved serving more than any others were showing up as leaders in their field. So again, we adjusted our message (keeping true to the core of it) to add clarity and stay in line with our evolution.

Benefits of an evolved message. (13:05):

We don’t want to encourage you to wildly change your business model every year. But small, consistent tweaks can make a big difference. When your message reflects your evolution you’re able to:

Attract the right people into your business
Increase your revenue {because your content is clear and concise and leads to paying clients}
Create on-brand, streamlined content that doesn’t take all your time and energy.

How do you evolve your message? (16:00):

If you know it’s time for an upgrade, great! If you’re not sure, think about when you last checked in with your messaging. If it’s been more than six months, it’s probably time.

The first step is to take stock of what has changed in the intervening time. Do an audit of your existing messaging, evaluate where you’ve grown, and then determine where to go.

And don’t forget to celebrate along the way!

Evolved Entrepreneur Challenge (22:30)

The Evolved Entrepreneur Challenge runs LIVE periodically, but even if it’s not a live session you can access the materials and work at your own pace. During the challenge, you’ll celebrate where you are, audit your content, and update your message for where you are right now.

Catch the Leadership Forum when it goes live! Head on over to the Thought Leaders Think Tank on Facebook and request to join.

Want access to additional trainings, a community of fellow leaders, and personalized support? Our leadership community is closed right now, but you can click here to join the waitlist.