#03 The Clarity Sessions - When Too Many People Write On Your Topic
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Have you ever felt like your market is saturated? Like there are too many people writing on your exact topic? Too many people who are speakers in your world or who have written books about what you want to write about? Well, that is the topic we cover in episode 3 of The Clarity Sessions podcast.
Flavia Andrews is the proprietor of Neat House Sweet Home. She shared with me how she feels her blogging market is already saturated and how she doesn't feel she is an expert compared to others in her industry.
Many people feel this way, and, when you do, it's likely because you don't have a roadmap. You need a roadmap. To get a roadmap you need to ask your ideal reader/avatar questions on her pain. When you understand their pain, you will then be able to produce a product that gets rid of her problem.
The three issues that seem to be the roadblocks are:
- Comparison
- Imposter Syndrome
- The Curse of The Guru
1. Comparison
Comparison is a monster. It's an idea that there are all these other people doing it better than us. It limits us in what we offer to the world because we feel stuck in comparison mode rather than creating with confidence.
2. Imposter Syndrome
Imposter Syndrome is when you tell yourself: "Who am I to be an expert? Who am I to shine this light where there's other flashlights that are brighter than mine? Why does my message even matter?"
When you're experiencing comparison or imposter syndrome, the first thing to do is get perspective. An exercise I recommend is one called the grocery store test. You don't actually have to do it in real life. I don't think anyone's ever taken me up on doing it in real life. But imagine you're in front of a local grocery store. Then, pick the most famous expert in your space/niche. Then imagine standing in front of the grocery store and as your avatar walks up to the doors you stop her and say: "Do you know (famous expert in your niche?)" Most people would probably say no. They have no idea who you're talking about. The world is a really big place. Hundreds of people would say, no, no, no, no, no. Before one person even knew who that person was. We know this person because we're in a little fishbowl. We're in our own little ponds and our own little industry, and the people who we serve don't necessarily know all the things that we know.
3. The Curse Of The Guru
The curse of the guru means you're looking at the world and you go, "Everyone knows this stuff." You assume everyone else knows what you know because you don't know any different! You don't realize that what is obvious to you is magic to other people. Most people don't know the stuff that you know. In your audience, most people don't know how to create or use a printable, so those are the people you serve. You don't serve your critics; you don't serve your colleagues. You serve the needs of your audience.
You still need your roadmap, though. So I want you to picture your ideal reader and think about where is she stuck? Why does she need a printable to organize her home?
Once you can answer the questions above, I'd like to challenge you to get closer to that reader to actually meet with her and talk with her. See her face, hear her voice, whatever you can do to put yourself in her position. Imagine that you're the coach that comes alongside her. So as she's going about her day, she says, "If only I had something I could do at night that would help me get ready for the morning." And that's where YOU can come along and say, "Oh look, here you go. I made this printable, that's going to help you."
People Google their pain. So she's going to search for things that are causing her frustration or causing her anxiety. She feels like she's failing. So that's why she would look for something like a principal or a membership site or course to get rid of the thing that's hurting her.
Time is usually the biggest challenge, so the solution you provide needs to consider the speed of implementation. Your product should help them do something faster or easier than if they were to go do that on their own. They understand the value of their time, so they're willing to spend a reasonable price to get a valuable product. As an example, if you were to say, "Hey, for only $10 a month, I will send you one little tip per day that you can listen to on your phone." That's easy, right?
Now it's your turn. Think of what can set you apart by really narrowing down what you can offer to solve the problems of your audience. Remember, there are many people in this world who are looking for YOU!
Click here to listen to the full episode.