TOC #143: Re: My 17-Day Stint As A Carnie
(September 19, 2023) The Most Underrated Copywriting Skill Every Business Owner Needs To Be Using
What do massive state fairs, 22-year-old girls, 12-hour days, solar panel sales, paper maps, and turkey legs have in common?
Absolutely nothing.
Except, of course, for 17 brief days in the Fall of 2017, when I worked as a literal carnie.
Never in a million years did I think that my first professional role out of college would be to work at The Big E, but there I was, standing at entrance B, handing out branded maps, wearing a shirt that said “ask me about solar!”
(Spend $200K on not one, not two, but THREE AND A HALF Liberal Arts degrees, become a carnie. Makes sense.)
Now, let me back up, since I know you're confused.
TBH, so am I. Still. Six years later.
Here's the story:
I'd just graduated college, and I'd decided to stay in Hartford to finish out the legislative session with the lobbying firm I'd been interning for.
Unfortunately for me, I'd decided a little too late that I actually really fucking hated attorneys, and that, despite being obsessed with becoming one since age 12, I never wanted to be one (because, after working for them since age 18, I'd concluded that their lives are MISERABLE).
And, with that realization came, well… nothing. No more LSAT practice tests. No more law school dreams. No more purpose.
So I ran off and joined the circus!
Just kidding. I went to Cape Cod and decided to deal with my ‘real life’ at the end of summer.
Then, in the middle of August, when I was toying around with the idea of actually doing something with my life, the perfect excuse to put that off for a little bit longer fell into my lap via Facebook post.
A friend from my sorority posted and asked if anyone wanted to make $20/h in cash working for her parents' company for 3 weeks.
Um, ME?! I'll take the cash. Just tell me where to be, Taylor. Green Earth Energy's future favorite employee, reporting for duty. 🤠
Naturally, I texted her and said “hire me” and she said “okay” and, before I knew it, I was standing inside a small booth at a very large EVENT — I know I called it a “fair” before but that feels like the biggest understatement of the century — with very little direction.
All I knew was that I had to pass out maps of the fairgrounds, and if anyone asked me about solar (because, of course, my shirt literally said “ask me about solar!”) that I was supposed to direct them to one of the many Green Earth Energy booths, where someone who actually knew something about solar could help them.
(Naturally, these booths were conveniently labeled on the map. Duh.)
And you know what? I was GREAT at this job.
It took me no time to get into a groove. I passed out maps like a PRO.
…until about hour 3 on the first day.
Aaaand then I thought I was going to LITERALLY DIE from boredom.
Like the true extrovert I am, staying inside a booth all day was actually, genuinely, seriously KILLING ME by the second. I could practically feel all of the joy ooze out of my body with every second that passed without human interaction.
My booth felt like solitary confinement.
So, I escaped.
How was I supposed to be map girl without truly KNOWING the fairgrounds, anyway? I have to do some EXPLORING to serve my PEOPLE, don't I?
And let me tell ya, there was a LOT of ground to cover — The Big E is made up of 175 acres. I wasn't kidding when I said it was MASSIVE.
It's a REALLY big deal. More than 1.6 million people attend the 17-day affair every Fall.
(96,000 people went just this past Saturday alone. I looked it up.)
In addition to the typical fair things, like games, rides, prizes, etc, there are also full-blown agricultural competitions, an entire giant trade show, multiple petting zoos, a literal winery, 6 giant houses replicating all 6 states of New England complete with 20+ vendors inside of each, shopping plazas, craft fairs, three separate huge stages (with legit famous people performing real concerts) and, the best part: countless food vendors.
And on my explorations, the food vendors were my focus.
Pickle pizza, hot Cheeto corn on the cob, fried cannoli, beer in a boot, lobster bacon cheese nachos, Oreo cinnamon bun, pickle donut, apple crisp pie, wine flights, deep fried meatballs on a stick, the infamous Turducken sandwich, the BBQ sundae with cornbread, baked beans, coleslaw, brisket, mashed potatoes, and tomato… it's a completely feral place.
(Safe to say I wasn't treating my body the best during that phase of life.)
I could only logistically escape my booth for about 20 minutes at a time, and as I keep reminding you, this place is ENORMOUS.
So, I'd have to consult my handy map, pick one place to visit, and book it over there as fast as my little feet would hustle.
And, while on my mini travels, I learned a ridiculous amount of information about The Big E, the vendors, the fairgrounds, the history, and more.
…and, me being me, I made it my entire personality.
If I was going to be stuck in a booth for 3 weeks straight, for 12 hours a day, doing nothing but passing out maps of The Big E, I was going to be the best damn carnie on the planet.
The Big Enfluencer, if you will.
It worked out perfectly that my booth resembled an information booth — something I'm sure Green Earth Energy did on purpose, no doubt hoping people would approach it under false pretenses — so that when fairgoers from all over came up to me asking questions, I had the answers.
I knew where every single vendor was.
I knew how long the lines would be.
I knew the best time to watch the butter sculpting competition.
I knew when you could pet the pigs.
I knew when the Knife Guy would shut the fuck up so you could walk by him without him heckling you.
And, most importantly, I knew what these fairgoers needed to know before they even had to ask me.
With attendance numbers in the tens of thousands every single day, and a quarter of those people entering the fair and encountering me and my booth before anything else, I quickly gained a knack for anticipating their questions (aka reading their minds).
& to my complete SHOCK six years later, this experience as a carnie prepared me more than any of those 3.5 degrees ever could have for being a great copywriter.
The Most Underrated Copywriting Skill Every Business Owner Needs To Be Using
There is nothing that'll improve your copy faster than being anticipatory.
This is a skill I first learned as a carnie, and sharpened as a luxury concierge in a Forbes 5-star hotel, but it's one that I find most relevant as a business owner trying to appeal to an ideal client on the other side of the screen.
See, when readers visit your website — or stalk your Instagram profile, or read your emails, or look at your ads — they're actually not hoping to learn anything about you. At least not at first.
No, they're hoping to learn what you can do FOR THEM.
You've heard me say this before, and I'll say it til I'm 100 years old and blue in the face if I have to:
Readers are selfish.
(Humans in general are selfish. Just ask the asshole that cut me in line and got the last hot Cheeto corn on the cob on the last day of the Big E. But that's a convo for another day.)
Your readers want to know how you can meet their needs.
Once they've determined that you're able to do that, THEN they'll care about you, and how qualified you are, and what your personality is like, and what your offerings are, and how much you charge, all that other stuff.
But initially? All they're thinking is: “is this for me?”
That's why when you're able to PROVE that you know them inside and out, your copy's job of CONVINCING them to take action is so much easier.
…and what better way to prove that you truly understand them at their core than to make them feel like you can read their minds?
If a fairgoer is asking for a map, chances are they don't know where they're going.
If they don't know where they're going, they probably don't know the best place to start when walking around the fair.
If they don't know the best place to start, they don't know how to get to the popular attractions.
So, if I'm trying to prove to that person that I can offer them help, wouldn't it be smart for me to say “here's your map; I recommend walking down this street towards Storrowtown village, so you can make sure you see the world's smallest elephant, avoid the stench of the ag show, and make your way to the ferris wheel faster.”
Who wouldn't trust me to know my shit after that?
I showed them that I knew exactly what they were hoping to find out, without them even having to ask.
Now, chances are, they feel comfortable to ask me anything else — and they're likely certain that I'll have the best answer, because they trust me (thanks to the proof they got from our initial interaction).
God, I love The Big E.
…almost as much as I love educating about copywriting 🤪 and, hey, speaking of, I'm no mind reader, but — something's telling me you might wanna learn about a few more of these game-changing copywriting tips?!
If you join me on Thursday (9/21) at 3pm EST, I've got 4 more for you. ❤️
Every successful business owner is a good copywriter.
Or, at least, they should be, if they care about being able to sell anything to their audience.
In my FREE masterclass, BTL's Cardinal Rules of Copywriting, all about 5 ways you can improve your copy to help you sell anything to anyone at any time.
It's happening THIS WEEK — on Thursday, September 21st at 3pm EST — and I'd love to see you there, so I can help you become the best copywriter for your own business. 😇
If you're not able to join the free copywriting masterclass live, no big deal at all; I'll be sending along a replay for you, so you can watch it at your convenience.
…but, I will say, the live attendees *will* be rewarded with a lil somethin' somethin' 😏
If we haven’t had the chance to *virtually* meet yet, hi! I’m Sara Noel—website copywriter and marketing mentor for creatives, copywriters, and all-around cool people. If you like my content and you want even more BTL in your life, here are a few ways you can connect with me:
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