How can you get someone who doesn’t care what you have to say to hang off your every word?
Michelle Obama did that to me the other day. Normally when I see a political figure on TV I give them 30 seconds, get bored with their BS pandering, then move on with my day.
But this time, despite having zero interest in hearing her speak, I got sucked in and was riveted by the whole thing.
Think there might be some valuable lessons that could help you with a video sales letter? Or scripting your next FB or landing page video? I do 🙂
Here’s a breakdown of her speech (which is essentially a sales pitch)Â that stole the show and got reactions like this:
1. Vulnerability + Surprising Twist = Powerful Hook
Michelle hook’s the reader by combining vulnerability with a surprise twist.
She sets the stage by addressing her love for her daughters:
I also told you about our daughters. How they are the heart of our hearts, the center of our world.
Then paints a picture of an impactful moment she had watching her kids.
A journey that started soon after we arrived in Washington when they set out for their first day at their new school. I will never forget that winter morning as I watched our girls, just seven and ten years old, pile into those black SUVs with all those big men with guns. And I saw their little faces pressed up against the window, and the only thing I could think was: What have we done?
You wouldn’t expect someone to regret becoming the first lady. Yet that’s what she’s hinting towards as she reveals her own doubt and fear about what this new life could mean for her the people who matter most to her — her kids.
This vulnerability, plus the story taking a surprising turn, keeps the story intellectually interesting and emotionally engaging.
2. Life lesson on dealing with haters
After that intro she goes deeper and proves she had good reason for fear and doubt. She does this by sharing her own personal struggle raising kids as a public figure.
we try to guide and protect our girls through the challenges of this unusual life in the spotlight. How we urge them to ignore those who question their father’s citizenship or faith. How we insist that the hateful language they hear from public figures on TV does not represent the true spirit of this country. How we explain that when someone is cruel, or acts like a bully, you don’t stoop to their level. No, our motto is: When they go low, we go high.
It’s impactful because it’s easy to believe it’s true and it’s relatable (especially to parents who have had to deal with negative outside influences bombarding their kids.) Who isn’t tired of turning on the TV and seeing hateful BS everywhere? Who doesn’t have to deal with unfair attacks or unwanted drama? We all understand that feeling so it builds an emotional connection between us and Michelle.
3. One clear message (with suprisingly broad appeal)
If you’ve ever gotten into a political discussion you know how people are more than happy to shout all the reasons why their person is awesome, yours is a chump, and you’re an idiot for not agreeing with them. (See why I don’t deal with politics much?)
Instead of throwing a barrage of reasons why Hill’s a hero and Trump’s a villian, Michelle keeps a laser focus on the one issue that, to her, matters above all else. Children.
She calls this out explicitly early on in this speech:
… this election, every election, is about who will have the power to shape our children for the next four or eight years of their lives
Then drives the point home again towards the end.
the president is about one thing and one thing only. It’s about leaving something better for our kids
This clear focus let you know exactly what this was about. You weren’t left guessing or wondering where the speech was going or what you were supposed to make of all that she’s saying. She’s telling you the point of all this loud and clear.
The fascinating thing is, even though this speech was all about kids it still resonated with non-parents. I don’t have kids. They’re loud, sticky, and aside from my neice I don’t pay them any mind. But I was still sucked in by the speech because of the emotion and storytelling.
4. Less stats, more heart
Other speeches that night talked a lot about policy and gave a bunch of data. That’s obviously important and needs to be mentioned. But the speeches heavy on that stuff didn’t get as much applause. The ones with more specific and personal stories connected better than the ones that used grand generalizations.
Rather than saying “this election’s for the kids” and speaking broadly about data or why that’s important, Michelle shared specific instances — and used descriptive language — to show the viewer what this meant. Here are some examples:
Example #1: Here she shows the impact the president has on kids
Kids who tell us, I saw you on TV! I wrote a report on you for school! Kids like the little black boy who looked up at my husband, his eyes wide with hope, and he wondered, is my hair like yours?
Example #2: Here she describes the kids out there you may have forgotten about who need a president that 1) they can look up to and 2) cares about them.
I have seen her lifelong devotion to our nation’s children. Not just her own daughter, who she has raised to perfection, but every child who needs a champion. Kids who take the long road to school to avoid the gangs. Kids who wonder how they’ll ever afford college. Kids whose parents don’t speak a word of English but dream of a better life. Kids who look to us to determine who and what they can be.
Example #3:Â here she uses specific examples and descriptive language to call out
That’s how we’ve always moved this country forward, by all of us coming together on behalf of our children. Folks who volunteer to coach that team, to teach that Sunday school class, because they know it takes a village. Heroes of every color and creed who wear the uniform and risk their lives to keep passing down those blessings of liberty. Police officers and protesters in Dallas who all desperately want to keep our children safe. People who lined up in Orlando to donate blood because it could have been their son, their daughter in that club.
This clear focus let you know exactly what this was about. You weren’t left guessing or wondering where the speech was going or what you were supposed to make of all that she’s saying. She’s telling you the point of all this loud and clear.
The fascinating thing is, even though this speech was all about kids it still resonated with non-parents. I don’t have kids. They’re loud, sticky, and aside from my neice I don’t think of them at all during my day. But I was still sucked in by the speech because of the emotion she shared and the way she used descriptive language to tell her stories.
5. Connecting the dots to make the sale a “no-brainer”
She’s already established herself as a mom who loves her kids more than anything. She’s made herself relatable and made her case that this is about kids.
Now it’s time to transition into what she wants people to do: vote for Hillary.
That means connecting the dots and showing why Hillary is the right person to shape America’s children. Which she does by describing what she likes about her and why that’s exactly what children need in a president.
But here’s the thing. What I admire most about Hillary is that she never buckles under pressure. She never takes the easy way out. And Hillary Clinton has never quit on anything in her life. And when I think about the kind of president that I want for my girls, and all of the children, that’s what I want. I want someone with the proven strength to persevere. Someone who knows this job and takes it seriously.
What’s great about this is she’s not saying “you need to vote for Hillary”. Telling people what they need or should be doing tends to bring up resistance. Instead, she’s offering her own perspective on why she thinks lady Clinton is the best choice. Which is compelling since she’s already established herself as relatable and caring.
6. Eliminating the competition (without being a jerk about it)
Remember that “when they go low you go high” lesson she mentioned earlier. Towards the end of the speech that’s exactly what she does. Rather than slinging mud at Trump she addresses what she sees as his inadequacies. Not by being petty but in a very matter of fact way.
Someone who understands that the issues the president faces are not black and white and cannot be boiled down to 140 characters.
Look, because … because when you have the nuclear codes at your fingertips and the military in your command, you can’t make snap decisions. You can’t have a thin skin or a tendency to lash out. You need to be steady and measured and well informed.
She’s raising stakes with the mention of military and nuclear codes. This adds a touch of fear (without beating you over the head with it) and suddenly you have a logical and an emotional desire to make sure we have a leader who is informed and “never buckles under pressure”.
7. Disarming Trump (as she gets people all choked up)
Trump’s promise is to make America great again. Michelle dismantles that positioning by showing how it’s simply not needed because the country is already great.
Again, she doesn’t just say that America’s great. She paints a picture, uses descriptive language, and delivers a powerful argument for why it currently is.
That is the story of this country. The story that has brought me to the stage tonight. The story of those generations of people who felt the lash of bondage, the shame of servitude, the sting of segregation, but who kept on striving and hoping and doing what needed to be done so that today, I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves, and I watch my daughters, two beautiful and intelligent black young women, playing with their dogs on the White House lawn.
It’s easy to watch the news and get sucked into thinking everything’s awful and we’re all doomed. Michelle’s ending is a nice reminder of how far we’ve come and how things aren’t so bad. It feels good to get this perspective and have this reminder. And we tend to like and listen to people who make us feel good about ourselves.