what is meant by “easily-grasped” in this case, and why is being this type of person good? I.e. why would it be good to have a skill that anyone can easily grasp?
(I’m sure it’s mentioned in the book, but I couldn’t help but ask anyway :])
Poor choice of words on my part. Should have said something like "easily-grasped value prop". You want a very short elevator pitch for what you do, that makes it clear what value you provide.
I think of Corey Quinn, whose pitch is "I fix your AWS bill." Short, easily-grasped, specific.
this exactly. but Corey can also pitch himself in anywhere from 30seconds to 30 minutes. Marketing Yourself is about adjusting your message to your audience/situation, and it can and should be practiced because you do not leave things like this up to chance. (the public draft: https://www.swyx.io/writing/marketing-yourself/)
this is obliquely referenced in the book, but i believe the most effective pitch is if you can losslessly compress your entire value proposition into two words. https://www.swyx.io/writing/two-words/
Corey invented "Cloud Economist" for this purpose. brilliant. no one can compete in a category you invented.
I've argued that in some ways a more effective positioning statement would have been "I fix the horrifying AWS bill for SaaS companies in the Pacific Northwest" or whatnot; you want your prospective clients to see themselves in what you do.
Fortunately, "the AWS bill" is painful enough of a problem without too many other viable alternatives that this was "enough."
(I’m sure it’s mentioned in the book, but I couldn’t help but ask anyway :])