In the last post - way back in time on September 5th! - I wrote about my big scary email to past clients where I asked them to TELL ME HOW WE DID?!?!?!?!And I promised I'd report back with what happened.What happened?Not as much as I'd hoped, but not quite what I feared either. I got just a handful of responses back, and every single one of those went something like this:"I loved the work we did together. I got so much clarity. But I realized that [XYZ] in my business wasn't working, so I changed everything." (That's a paraphrase)I confess folks - I had an ulterior motive to sending these emails. I was *hoping* to get raw numbers back, like "your copy increased open rates by 96.8% and I had my best sales month ever!" Right? That's what I've been going for here. Real number results. That's what I've been trained to value above everything else.But writing for coaches doesn't seem to work that linearly. Those numbers are not the whole story - at all.I'm embarrassed and ashamed to talk about this because I feel like a failure to produce the numerical proof of success.I even invested in some time with a business strategist, the mega-insightful Bethania Bacigalupe, to tell me where I was going wrong.Because I was really confused.See, my software-as-a-service clients kept close track of numbers. They did A/B tests, multiple times. I had clients report back with exactly how many new customers they booked because of my work. We knew based on limited variables and consistent, conscientious tracking.My coaching clients, on the other hand, don't come to me with numbers - they come back saying "I found so much clarity!"Clarity wasn't what I was going for!

Diagnosing what the hell happened

Working with Bethania led me to several insights about what's going on in my business - why I'm not seeing the same use-case-ready results I'm used to, and what I'm really delivering that's of value.

1. My clients come to me when they're in periods of major transition

My clients come to me when they're starting a coaching business and need a brand new website, or are making big changes to their existing business and need new copy for their existing website. Or they're offering a new program. But basically, they're dreaming bigger than they previously have, and they haven't yet worked out all the kinks.That transition doesn't end when I send the final draft. I seem to bring momentum to the epiphanies that happen when making big changes.

Lauren, it’s been a fantastic journey here with you. I’m so happy I ended up doing this package. SO many shifts, so much new mvt, so much sprouting. So worth it!!I feel it is an evolving process. But seeing what we've got now makes it so much more real, and I cried too btw. My journey is now on paper ready to be shared. Holy shit. that’s big. and scary. and so so exciting.Thank you for your warm, attentive, caring, gifted and oh so brilliant heart!" - Natalia Ria

This is one of my favorite responses. Stefanie Johnson runs SwapIt, a brilliant Boston-area business where she and her stylist help women clean their closets and put together beautiful outfits using what they already own, and then they take the gently used cast-off clothes to help more women put together cute outfits - without going shopping. That's a long-winded introduction to her email...

Hey Lauren,

Wanted to write back because I love that you sent this email. Its awesome that you are really standing by your word about the It's Gotta Work Guarantee!

Honestly I'm not really using your stuff anymore because I have totally changed how SwapIt operates. We now have a storefront! So most of what I had you do for me isn't really relevant anymore. But when I did use it, I certainly made some sales! And I am going to incorporate the lookbook challenge that you wrote for me, but I haven't totally figured out how yet."

Incidentally, Stefanie and I are currently working on improving her email conversion rates - and she DOES track numbers. Maybe I'll get a case study after all.

2. There are a LOT of factors outside of my control

I don't magically make my clients successful. I wish I could!

My most successful clients are the ones who work really hard at building relationships that support their businesses. They're out there marketing themselves, writing books, hosting Facebook groups, posting on social media, going places and meeting people all.the.time.

Their success can't be attributed solely to my work because they put so much work in themselves.

Sometimes, especially with clients who are new to their new businesses, they have a lot of learning to do about how to do their own marketing. Or they're just not established enough yet to get on top of the search engine results pages. Which means they don't land all the clients right away.

To help control some of these variables, I include a sales funnel review as part of every piece of work I do, so I can make sure that ads, emails, social media posts and other marketing do-dads work together with my web copy.And, it's one of the reasons I have the "It's Gotta Work Guarantee" where I revisit copy that isn't working as well as desired AND do a sales funnel review on top of it.[Another fun quote from one of Stefanie's emails: "

Since you have an 'it's got to work guarantee', if I invest with you, I am pretty much guaranteed to make my money back!

" - Couldn't have said it better myself.]

3. Numbers aren't my primary selling point (sigh)

For years I've tried to bribe and cajole clients into giving me their before and after numbers so I can create case studies. And I've never gotten them. Not because they don't exist, but because coaching clients tend to not track them. These clients still come back and refer me, so I'm doing something right.What I abslutely deliver to every single client (I know, because they tell me, and refer me to their friends - I get almost all of my business from referrals!), are:

4. Clarity - is what I really do

This is the big insight Bethania helped me see - when every single client tells you they got a SPECIFIC OUTCOME from working with you? Yeah, that's your selling point.I kept making my selling point what I thought it should be, from years of working as a SaaS b2b & b2c copywriter. But my clients kept telling me something completely different. Clarity.Clarity. Clarity. Clarity.Perfect example - one of my wonderful clients, Rima Bonario, responded to my query email with this:

So did the copy we created work? I am not 100% sure. I know that I have gotten lots of great feedback on my website and I can say that the website copy had made a clear difference in how I see myself and how I energetically feel about my work."

Not the outcome I was going for, but she did fill her program seats, and she did get great feedback on her website, and she did get Clarity.Clarity is a huge part of the copywriting process, because to be able to explain clearly to people what they're going to get and why they should invest, I first have to know the answers myself. Which means I need to draw those answers out of my clients. Which means we work really closely to determine the value of every offering.Clarity is baked into every word. I just hadn't put it together that it's something my clients need and get from working with me.

5. I help people create businesses that FEEL GOOD and true to them!

When I dove into my client emails and testimonials sheet, I discovered one more benefit that kept appearing:

Lauren was able to craft web copy that captured my spirit and supported my new product offerings." - Marc Smith, travel writer and speaker

The copy I write feels good. It feels good to me because it's honest and positive. It feels good to clients because it sounds like them - like their very best selves. It feels good to their readers because it sounds like someone they wish they had in their lives.And it's copy that helps business owners feel good about what they do. It energizes them, empowers them, jazzes them up, reminds them why they're putting in the long hours.

What I can say unequivocally is that working with you to craft elegant copy for my website and my offer not only allowed me to see my value and the program's value more clearly, it gave me the courage and inspiration to follow through with aligned actions that created results!" - Rima Bonario

I can't quantify that benefit. I can't say "You will feel X% better about your business and life within 3 months!"I have no idea how to put a value on that.But there is value IN that.There's a lot of value.Because, for me, how I feel about doing my business is 100% connected to how well I serve my clients and 100% linked to how happy I am with my life, my work and myself.

I'm still working out what this means

I can't ignore over a decade of training to get real, numerical results. I will always want to do an A/B test. I will always want to be able to promise that baseline numbers will rise (and I will always keep working until they do).But I'm also going to work on acknowledging the value of the intangible benefits I bring to the table. We're really bad at this as a society, and I'm really bad at this as a practical Virgo, but I'm going to try.Because feeling good about your business and gaining clarity in what you offer and how it affects people - that's why we do what we do.Those are the big why's behind all of it.And I write copy that helps people get there. Huh...