know your why

What is WHY?

Before we can dive into talking about your WHY, and before I can explain to you what your WHY even is, we need to start at the beginning.

Let’s rewind all the way back to the day you said YES to yourself, the day you said YES to your dream of more, and the day you said YES to starting your business. Do you remember that feeling? Do you remember that excitement? Did you have butterflies in your stomach? Were you anxious?

I imagine, if you’re a mother, or in a position where you are obligated to care for other people besides yourself, taking the time to work on this business is a BIG DEAL. This is time away from your family, away from your responsibilities, and away from your personal time to rest.

But there was something there, wasn’t there? There was something inside of you wanting this business. There was something calling you to do more, and so you made the decision to say Yes to yourself. You made the decision to work hard and make this work. You made the decision to TRY.

Can I ask you a question?

Why?

Why did you say yes? Why are you doing this? Why do you want to take time away from your family to pursue this dream? Why do you want to spend your free time, when you already have so little time, to sell this product?

Why?

This my sweet friends, is what I mean by Know Your Why.

This my sweet friends, is what you tell your husband, or your sister, or your best friend, on WHY you are taking this chance. On WHY you need money for investment, or WHY you are up late at night working.

And the reason your WHY is SO FREAKING SPECIAL is because NO ONE else can have YOUR WHY (Sorry for the shouty capitals but I’m trying to make a point, LOL).

Your WHY is different than anyone else’s. It’s what sets you apart from everyone else in your industry and it’s what makes you unique.

It’s the first step of building your marketing strategy, and it will determine everything you do moving forward.

Now don’t freak out – stay with me!

Let’s begin with some examples of a WHY so you can visualize how this is going to work.

My why for starting this motivational and marketing blog is this: I’m called to support, encourage, and teach women to be the best version of themselves. I do this by sharing my gifts of writing and marketing in order to help them become who they were created to be, and ultimately fulfilling my life’s purpose.

Pretty deep, I know! But hopefully you get the point!

Now your WHY does not have to be that BIG. It can start small and usually does.

Your why can be as simple as this: I want to make money so I can take my family on a vacation. Or, I want to share my love of makeup with women, or I’m bored and need something to keep me busy.

Your WHY can also change as you dive in and get further along in your business. Mine changes all the time, but the underlining content of wanting to help women stays the same.

Whatever your WHY is, it matters.

Why does it matter? Online Marketing Expert Amy Porterfield has this to say about Knowing Your Why in her Podcast:

Amy Porterfield: #226: What to Focus On When You Are Just Starting Out

“I sell online courses. This guy over here may sell sports cars. She sells weight-loss
coaching. But if you don’t start from the inside (your why you do what you do) you
lose the inspiration that guides how you think, how you act, and how you
communicate.
This, in turn, can cause you to not only lose your way but lose valuable opportunities
with potential customers as well. You and I both know this online space is crowded
and busy. That’s why it’s even more important than ever right now to know your “why”.
When you know your “why”, on the toughest days of building your online business you
are able to pull from that, and I’m telling you if you haven’t experienced it already,
there are some tough days ahead. Every online entrepreneur that’s been at this for a
while know that.”

Knowing your WHY is going to keep your fire burning. Its going to keep you putting in the work, day after day, after day, with little to no wins. You can work for years and years with no success as you learn and grow and shift. Knowing your WHY will push you to that finish line of success.

Scroll down to get access to the Knowing Your Why Focus Worksheet. This tool will walk you through creating your very own WHY.

Knowing Your WHY is for YOU but it’s also HOW YOU SELL.

Because your WHY is unique only to you, this is your main TOOL in how you are going to MARKET your products.

Now think of this, there are probably hundreds of thousands of people who sell makeup. Not only that, they are selling makeup to one person – the person who wears makeup. How in the world are YOU going to be successful at selling makeup? You have no shot at standing out. You have no shot at being different or unique.

Wrong!

Your WHY is what will set you apart from everyone else in the industry. WHY you sell is more important than WHAT you sell.

What if you’re a Mom, and you know how crazy it can be with young children to apply makeup. You want Moms to feel good about themselves and so you want to teach them how to apply makeup in a quick and easy way so that you can help them feel beautiful.

Well, then your WHY is this: To teach Moms how to apply makeup in a quick and easy way so they can feel beautiful and confident. When you start your marketing campaign – you focus on Mom’s and teach them quick and easy techniques. This sets you a apart from every other person selling makeup. You have your WHY and it’s different than everyone else’s because its unique and speaks to your core calling to serve and help Moms with your gifts and love of makeup.

According to Simon Sinek and his theory on the WHY, he says “People don’t buy WHAT you do, they buy WHY you do it.”

Simon teaches The Golden Circle principle in his book Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action.

Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

Take a look at the picture of the his Golden Circle above.

Simon teaches we should conduct our business and marketing from the inside of the circle and then move outwards, verses the other way around. Most companies do the opposite. They tell you WHAT they sell, and they all know HOW they do it, but when do you hear WHY they do what they do? By explaining WHY you sell what you sell, you are starting from the inside of the circle and working outwards.

He states, “When communicating from the inside out, however, the WHY is offered as the reason to buy and the WHATs serve as the tangible proof of that belief.”

Look at the example above about selling makeup to Moms. By narrowing down the audience to fit your core belief of WHY, you are able to set yourself apart from ALL the makeup sellers.

See, I’m working from the WHY, and then telling you with WHAT and then HOW. The WHY is always first.

Let me show you this in action…

Using your WHY in Marketing:

When you start using your WHY for a marketing campaign it looks like this…

Don’t you hate it when you buy an expensive foundation and it doesn’t work? Well I have great news! I have this wonderful new product, the foundation of your dreams and its on sale for only $10! It goes on so quick and easy you can apply it in your car while the kids wrestle in the back seat. Even better, it provides full coverage and will make those bags under your eyes disappear! Pop over to my Website and order now before its gone! All of my Mom friends are using it, and they LOVE how easy it is to use.

Do you see how I made this post about my WHY of helping Moms apply makeup in a fast and easy way to help them feel beautiful and confident? I’m discussing my WHY as the reason to by the WHAT.

You can also say it like this:

Girls, I’ve been using this night cream every night for a month, and look at the difference in my skin! The fine lines are fading fast. I’m so excited to share this with all of you! Its on sale right now for only $5. Head over to my Website to purchase but hurry the sale ends soon. I can’t wait for you to have beautiful wrinkle free skin that you will help you feel so confident!

I still brought you back to my WHY even though I was telling you WHAT I was selling. I still care about you feeling confident in your skin (even though I left out the quick and easy part).

I have to give it to one of my girlfriends Sarah Gibbs. She sells Younique Makeup (VERY successfully as an Executive Black Status) by using this same marketing approach. How does she do it? Let me show you.

Her Instagram Handle is this: @mommymakeupbysarah

**You know immediately she is selling makeup to Moms and that she values Moms just by her handle. Her WHY is right in front you.

Here are some examples of her Instagram Posts. Can you see her WHY jumping off the page?

Take a look at her wording here…

WHY – a quick 5 minute face so you can feel confident and conquer your day.

With WHAT – a few amazing key products that are easy to apply.

Let’s look at one more:

Again Sarah is telling her WHY – a 5 minute face that looks like a 25 minute face.

The WHAT – by using her amazing products that she describes and compares to similar quality.

I also want to point out her hashtags: #momlife #easymakeup #mommakeup

Even her hashtags follow her WHY.

It’s easy to see how Sarah went from newbie to Executive Black Status with Younique. She sat herself apart from the pack by focusing on her WHY and staying consistent. For more amazing examples be sure to follow Sarah at the links below. She is top notch friends, and so is her makeup!

Instagram: @mommymakeupbysarah

Facebook: @sarahgibbs.rd

Website: www.sarahslashstash.com/

Be sure to check out when Sarah and I collaborated for a FIVE MINUTE FACE TUTORIAL. It’s epic and so helpful! Click here to read more and see the video!

Let’s look at one more example:

What if your an expert in sewing and you create sewing patterns for people to buy and use. You love to sew and when people try your creations it brings you so much joy. You are passionate about inspiring them to try your sewing patterns and feeling the same joy. Your WHY is this: I want to inspire people that like to sew to create beautiful clothes using my patterns and bring them as much joy as it brings me.

Your marketing campaign will include your love for your work and how much you enjoy creating the patterns to share with them. It will include how you want them to use your pattern to create this wonderful outfit you designed.

Your marketing post will look like this:

Are you tired of the same old boring Paisley pattern? I see them everywhere! Well guess what?! I just created the new Paisley 2.0 pattern! I had so much fun trying it out, just look how beautiful it turned out. Shoot me a DM and I’ll send you the direct link to purchase it for yourself. Just wait until you are picking the fabric for this pattern, you are going to love trying this one! Be sure to send me pictures!

Do you see how you can appeal to your audience by using your unique WHY. You are telling them WHY they need to buy the WHAT.

Do you see the difference in saying your message this way, verses saying something like this:

The Paisley 2.0 pattern is a great choice for those looking to upgrade the original Paisley pattern. Test it out today!

When you are marketing from the inside of the circle out, it is so much easier to talk to your customers.

This is YOUR passion.

Sharing it is fun, and sets your soul on fire. It doesn’t feel sleazy or like your bothering people. You are fulfilling your WHY.

Please tell me your questions!

Tell me, what is your WHY? Let’s talk it out!

Do you need me to help you nail it down? Keeping scrolling for more resources and access to the Knowing Your Why Focus Worksheet.

I mentioned some great resources for Knowing Your Why above. Here are the specific links again if you want to dive in further.

Amy Porterfield is one of the leading professionals in the Online Marketing space. I would recommend listening to all of her podcasts! Click here for more information!

Shop Simon Sinek’s book here on Amazon: Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action