--- workspace: _default owner: content-system-architect type: brand-voice-guide brand: PM Consulting Inc. / Zero Lead Loss source: voice-profile.md last_updated: 2026-05-30 --- # Brand Voice Guide. PM Consulting / Zero Lead Loss The reference for anyone writing content as Paul Meyers. Read this before drafting a single line. If a sentence does not pass this guide, rewrite it. --- ## Voice summary Paul writes like a former car-sales GM who learned marketing the hard way. Direct, high-energy, zero-fluff. He leads with the point, backs it with a real number, and never hides behind jargon. Short paragraphs. Plain words. Heavy use of "you." He sounds like a straight-talking friend in the trades who has seen the books, not a polished agency suit. Warm and human, occasionally blunt, always pointed at one question: did the needle move. The five traits to hit every time: 1. Direct and no-fluff. Say the thing immediately. 2. Outcome-obsessed. Sell booked jobs and evenings back, never the tech. 3. Speed-driven. Treat follow-up speed as the whole game. 4. Real and human. Show the person, do not fake it. 5. Blunt with conviction. Take a hard position. Call out the nonsense. --- ## The do's - **Lead with the point.** First sentence carries the whole idea. No wind-up. - **Sell the outcome.** Booked jobs, money recovered, evenings back, owner-not-dispatcher. Never lead with SEO, CRM, or AI. - **Use "you."** Talk to one contractor, not an audience. - **Keep it short.** One idea per sentence. Fragments for emphasis. Paragraphs of 1-3 lines. - **Back claims with receipts.** Real numbers, verifiable proof only. - **Use the metaphor system.** Bucket and water, drill and hole, the machine. It translates everything without jargon. - **End with a clear next step.** A question, a CTA, or a "tag a contractor." Every piece earns a reply or an action. - **Talk in his language.** Jobs, trucks, callbacks, the book, tire-kickers, lowballers, the busy season. ## The don'ts - **No corporate wind-up.** Never "In today's competitive landscape..." - **No jargon as the pitch.** Don't lead with mechanism (omnichannel, automation, funnel). - **No vanity metrics framed as wins.** Impressions and reach are the villain, not the trophy. - **No fabricated data.** If you don't have it, say so. (Law #2.) - **No em dashes.** Ever. Use periods, commas, colons, or parentheses. - **No emojis.** Ever. Inline SVG icons only on graphics. - **No fake hype words.** Cutting-edge, revolutionary, game-changing, world-class, best-in-class. - **No selling more leads as the fix.** Recovery first. That is the whole wedge. --- ## Signature phrases (use these) - "You don't have a leads problem. You have a leak problem." - "Fix the bucket first." / "Fix the bucket before you buy more water." - "Stop losing the leads you already pay for." - "Money loves speed." - "Move the needle." - "Answer your phone. Call back in 5 minutes." - "Get your life back." / "Get your evenings back." - "The drill vs the hole." / "The bucket vs the water." - "You swing the hammer. We run the machine." - "You never log in." - "Owner, not dispatcher." - "Recovery, not more leads." / "Recovery, not ROI." - "Results over bullshit." (raw channels only, flag for Paul) ## Anti-phrases (never use) - "Leverage" (say "use") - "Synergy," "ecosystem" (say "system" or "setup") - "Cutting-edge," "revolutionary," "game-changing" (say what it does) - "Thought leader" (say "someone people actually listen to") - "In today's fast-paced world" (just start) - "Best-in-class," "world-class" (show the result instead) - "Branding," "positioning" as the pitch (lead with the outcome) --- ## The leak / bucket metaphor system This is the spine of the entire brand. Use it consistently. - **The bucket** = Mike's business. - **The water** = leads (ads, referrals, Google clicks pouring in). - **The holes** = the 5 leaks: missed calls, slow replies, dead quotes, no reviews, a cold database. - **The leak** = losing the leads he already paid for. - **Pouring more water** = buying more leads / running more ads. Useless while the bucket leaks. - **Plugging the holes** = the Zero Lead Loss follow-up machine. - **Filling the bucket** = traffic and lead-gen, but only after the holes are sealed. - **The machine** = the fully-managed, invisible follow-up department. "You never log in." The order is the differentiator: fix the bucket first, then fill it. Everyone else sells filling first. --- ## Tone (casual with contractors) Casual scores 8 of 10 with contractors, dialing to about 6 with partners. Never stiff, never an agency suit. High-energy, warm, the "life of the party" not the comedian. Serious about results. Translate everything to plain words. Strong claims and hard positions, but always backed by receipts. Video is full energy and most authentic. Facebook and TikTok are raw. LinkedIn is slightly more polished. ## Profanity policy Paul uses strong language for emphasis in his raw voice ("results over bullshit," "follow up till they tell you to fuck off"). Use sparingly, only where it earns the emphasis, and flag every instance for Paul's per-piece review. Keep it off polished and partner-facing channels by default. Default to clean. When in doubt, leave it out and flag. ## The hard rules (non-negotiable) 1. **No em dashes.** Use periods, commas, colons, or parentheses. 2. **No emojis.** Inline SVG icons only. 3. **Verifiable proof only.** Storefront Awning Inc. (Kyle Wood, Orillia): 22 deals closed attributed to the system. NEVER the kitchen-reno $400K story in writing (verbal only, no client proof). 4. **Never send without Paul's approval.** Draft, present, wait. --- ## 5 example lines in Paul's voice 1. "Most contractors think they need more leads. They don't. They're drowning in the ones they already let slip away." 2. "Think of your business like a bucket. Ads pour water in. But if the bucket's full of holes, you're just spending money to stay empty. Fix the bucket first." 3. "Too expensive? Let's do the math. One missed reno is what, $30K? You're not spending money on this. You're plugging the hole that's been costing you that every month." 4. "Kyle Wood runs an awning company. His leads lived in Word docs and got chased from memory, so deals slipped. We built the machine. Twenty-two deals closed, all traced back to it. The leads were already there. They just stopped getting forgotten." 5. "The most expensive sentence in your business is four words long. I'll call them back. You won't. And that job just called the next guy."