By Kristian A. Alomá, Threadline
“I’m your hero!”
Say that out loud. If someone is in the room with you or nearby, say it to them, too. The reaction is likely to be confusion. That’s because becoming a hero to someone is a lot like getting a nickname. You can’t claim it. It’s given to you. (Imagine Super Man running around shouting “I’m a hero!”) Super powers aside, there’s something even more important about being a hero. And it has to do with how we understand ourselves.
You don’t become the hero by saying you’re a hero, but when we look to agencies all over the world, we see a pretty common communication structure.
- We are SuperFirm (Introduction)
- You’ve got a problem. (Define the problem)
- We promise to solve your problem. (Make a promise)
- Look at all these other problems we’ve solved. (Reasons to believe)
This is a pretty standard approach to marketing and communicating with our clients. But this is at odds with how we actually approach our relationships with our clients. The statement essentially says: “I’m your hero!” Clients don’t actually want heroes. They want to be heroes.