You may have come across the concept of the “attractive character”. I first came across the concept when reading Russell Brunson’s excellent book DotCom Secrets. He also further elaborates on it in his second book Expert Secrets.
The attractive character is an important element of building a long-term relationship with your target audience and increasing the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns and sales copy.
This post will break down what the attractive character is, and why it is an important element that will improve your marketing campaigns and help to grow your business.
What is the attractive character?
The attractive character is the persona you are sharing with your audience. This persona is how you communicate with your prospects, audience, or list. Your attractive character helps you to attract customers, build a relationship with them, and grow your following.
Most successful businesses have an attractive character at the heart of the business in some shape or form.
Why does the attractive character work?
We all love stories. Ever since we were kids most of us have enjoyed listening to a good story. Even as adults we are attracted to films, or the latest series on Netflix because we love to immerse ourselves in stories.
The best salespeople and marketers have long understood the power of storytelling and how to use stories to communicate with their target audience.
Storytelling is one of the most powerful ways in which to share your message, attract customers, and persuade them to buy from you.
One of the most important elements of a good story is the hero or main character, also known as the protagonist. The hero provides the eyes and ears through which the audience experiences the journey of the hero and their story. Think about your favourite movies. Now ask yourself why they are your favourite movies.
Most likely it’s because you fell in love with the characters, and you felt a deep connection with them and their journey.
The attractive character is the hero of your business, product, or brand.
It’s the persona through which you communicate with your audience, and it’s the persona whose story and journey you share with them.
Subway used the concept of the attractive character well when they shared the story of Jared, an obese guy who lost a ton of weight by switching to a diet of Subway sandwiches. By centering its marketing around Jared and his success story, Subway was able to grow its business and attract so many new customers.
These customers were attracted by Jared and his story. By seeing the results Jared was able to obtain, people switched to the Subway diet in an attempt to get the same results. Jared’s story helped Subway to become the number one sandwich chain in America and helped to position their food as a healthy, fresh alternative to junk food.
That’s the power of the attractive character and what it can do for your business.
The elements that make up the attractive character
There are three components that all attractive characters should have. These components are the essential building blocks of creating a character that your audience will like and want to follow.
The 3 components are:
- Elements
- Identity
- Storyline
Elements
Every attractive character has 4 elements.
-
Backstory
All good attractive characters have a backstory that you must share. This is where they came from, what they struggled with, and what their situation was before they discovered your product or service.
In the case of Jared, his backstory is that he was over 425 pounds and struggling to lose weight. He had low self-esteem and zero confidence which affected all aspects of his life.
The backstory should demonstrate to your target audience that your attractive character has been where they are now, and has experienced the same struggles, pains, and adverse circumstances they are experiencing.
People that were overweight and struggled to stick to a healthy diet could relate to Jared and his backstory, and this made them even more attracted to him.
Your target audience has to relate to your attractive character’s backstory.
2. Attractive characters speak in parables
Parables are short stories that communicate messages or important life lessons. As I mentioned above, stories are powerful vehicles for sharing messages and imparting important life lessons.
Your attractive character should also use parables or stories and experiences from their own life to impart their wisdom, knowledge, and hard earnt lessons to your target audience.
3. Attractive characters display their character flaws
Nobody is perfect. We all have flaws and things about us that we don’t like and wish we could change. When we try to hide these flaws and present a perfect image of ourselves people will see through it.
You’ve probably seen tons of people who present an image of themselves and their lives as being totally perfect on social media. Whilst this may gain you some followers, the real win lies in actually sharing your flaws, not hiding them.
When we share our flaws and display the vulnerable side of our personalities with our audience, they will be able to relate to us so much more. They can relate to us more because they can see that we are not perfect and have flaws just like them. No one can relate to someone who is perfect, but they can relate and connect with someone who has flaws and doesn’t try to hide them. When your attractive character is able to share their flaws your audience will be more attracted to them.
4. Attractive characters use the power of polarity
Being polarising means taking a stand on something, sharing your opinion, and not being afraid to share that with the world even if it means you will alienate some people.
For every person you alienate, you will attract loads more who share your views. The people who share your views are the ones that matter, because they are your target audience. Neutral people or people who sit on the fence and try to please everyone usually don’t get too far.
Attractive characters are not afraid to divide opinions and stand up for what they believe in. When you are able to do that, people will rally behind you.
Identity
Your attractive character needs an identity that your audience can relate to. This identity is how you share your message and communicate with them.
The identity of your attractive character will dictate how you share your message and your story. Your attractive character will usually have one of the following identities:
- Leader
- Adventurer
- Reporter
- Reluctant Hero
1. Leader
The leader is someone who leads their followers by hand to the destination they want to reach. They can lead because they have successfully made the journey themselves and know the best route to take.
Leaders know the shortcuts that will help to get their followers to their destination quicker. They also know all the obstacles on the path and how to overcome them.
If your audience wants a specific result, your attractive character can lead them to that result by sharing their experience and knowledge of the best route to get there.
2. Adventurer
The adventurer is someone who is very curious but doesn’t have all the answers yet. They set out to discover the truth and come back to share what treasures they have found along the way with their audience.
Whereas the leader leads their audience to their desired goal, the adventurer shares their journey and brings back answers to share with thier audience.
3. Reporter
The reporter is someone who hasn’t quite made their journey yet, but they desire to. The reporter shares what they learn along the way, and their audience has the benefit of watching in real-time as the reporter moves forward on their journey.
As a reporter you don’t have to be an expert in your market or niche, you just have to interview those who are. Reporters interview the experts in their market to get insights and answers that they can share with their audience. The audience gets to discover things at the same time as the reporter.
The reporter identity is a great way to start a business in a niche that you may not know a lot about. By interviewing people who do have the answers you gain credibility by way of association with the experts in your niche.
4. Reluctant Hero
This is the identity of someone who has made the journey, reached the goal, and has the answers. They are humble by nature and don’t want to be in the limelight. They don’t see themselves as a leader, but they feel a moral obligation to share what they know so that other people can benefit.
They reluctantly step out of their comfort zone for the benefit of their audience, and in doing so become heroes in the eyes of those they help.
Attractive character storylines
There are several storylines that businesses use over and over again in their marketing campaigns and communication – whether via emails, sales letters, social media, print advertising, etc.
Each one has a basic plot structure that you can follow.
They are:
- Loss and Redemption
- Before and After
- Us vs Them
- Amazing Discovery
- Third-Person Testimonial
- Secret Telling
1. Loss and redemption
This is a story of having it all, losing it all, and winning it back again.
These stories share the story of your attractive character’s hardships, struggles, and path back to the top. It enables you to share the lessons and insights they learned along the way.
2. Before and after
This is the story of how you “went from ___________ to __________”.
This is the plot Subway used when telling Jared’s weight loss story. Before and after stories are stories of transformation and are highly effective.
3. Us vs them
This storyline uses the power of polarity, which we mentioned earlier as one of the elements of your attractive character.
Use these stories to draw your target audience and fans closer, and get them to rally behind your cause. This story helps your fans to identify with your cause and strengthens their bond with the attractive character.
4. Amazing discovery
This storyline describes the amazing discovery your attractive character has made. This discovery is normally the thing that finally solves the problem they have been experiencing. The discovery should be the answer to the problem your audience is facing.
Example: “After so many failed attempts and coming so close to giving up I finally discovered the solution!…..”
This story arouses curiosity in your audience who will be eager to find out what it is you discovered that can also help them.
5. Third-person testimonial
This is where you share the stories of your customers who have been successful in obtaining their desired results using your product or service.
These stories are effective because they use the principle of social proof which is a powerful motivator.
6. Secret telling
These storylines involve telling secrets that will benefit your audience.
Example: “Finance expert reveals the never revealed before industry secrets to winning it big on the stock market.”
The allure of secret information is a great incentive that makes people curious and eager to know what you have to share.
Conclusion
So you now have the building bricks that you need to start molding your attractive character.
Your attractive character doesn’t have to be you, it can be someone who has successfully used your product (like Jared).
Think about the personalities and stories of your customers or clients and use them to start bringing your attractive character to life. When you have an attractive character you can start to communicate with your audience and build your relationship with them.
Your attractive character helps your audience to connect with you or your brand at a deeper level. You’ll be able to share your stories in a much more powerful way and establish trust which will make selling your products and services much more easier.
If you found the concept of the attractive character helpful then check out Russell Brunson’s DotCom Secrets book where he goes into more depth on this topic.
