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The
Advisor
WHAT ARE YOU REALLY SELLING?
Here are three business truisms that explain marketing success and failure:
Customers React to Benefits The argument that every business is a service business stems from this truth that customers buy to gain the benefits, not the features. Customers do not buy things; they buy what things do for them, something that satisfies a need. They buy a larger TV to satisfy their need for greater pleasure in watching programs, a new automobile to satisfy their need for a greater sense of security when driving--or perhaps for the pleasure of owning a new car, impressing others, or any other benefit they enjoy from owning a new car. That applies equally to services. Training is a service that people buy for what it will do for them, such as raise their earning power. We go to chiropractors to relieve our back pains, and to auto repair shops to keep our cars running smoothly and safely. Even when features are an important element in making the sale, as in the case of the liquid antacid example, it is the benefit resulting from the feature that motivates the customer to buy. Another point here, and important one: It was the explanation that the feature of being in liquid form speeded relief that helped persuade the customer that the promised benefit of faster relief was true. You promise a benefit, but you need to prove that you will deliver the benefit. The Promise Let us suppose that you are selling an antacid. The fundamental benefit is relief from pain and related discomfort. Your product will bring that relief. But so will several dozen other antacids. Why should the prospect buy yours? What is it about your antacid that is better than competitive products? You claim that yours is faster than others, perhaps the fastest-acting antacid on the market. The prospect says (figuratively), "Yeah, they all say that. Promises, promises." The prospect is right, of course. What you are trying to sell is a promise, the promise that your antacid is faster than competitive ones. This is not a try-before-you-buy proposition. The customer has nothing but your promise. That's true for all products and services. You always sell promises. It's ll you can sell. Even when you are making an on-the-spot delivery of the product or service, you are promising performance and quality. The Proof The customer is inclined to believe your promise, if you have given no reason to be more than ordinarily skeptical. But there is that almost automatic skepticism because we are all well aware of how much hype exists in most sales presentations. When you advertise your antacid, you anticipate that skepticism and know you must back up your promise with some proof. You anticipate the prospect saying, mentally: "You say your antacid is faster: Prove it." "Well," you say, "mine is faster because it is a liquid. It doesn't have to dissolve, as those tablets do." That is a logical proof, and it may be enough to convince most prospects. However, yours is not the only liquid antacid, and perhaps you need something more in the way of proof. (Or call it "evidence," if you prefer. In any case, it is whatever the customer will accept as proof.) So you decide that you need to bolster your proof with some more evidence. You ask some satisfied customers for testimonials, and you offer several of those as added evidence that you can and will keep the promise you made. If that isn't enough, you can a add moneyback guarantee or other reinforcement of your promise. The Right Promise Your success in selling whatever it is you wish to sell is largely dependent on your having made the right promise--the most appealing promise, that is. There are usually several possible benefits that may be promised for any given product or service, and the key to success is finding and making the promise with the greatest appeal. Is that the speed of the antacid? Taste? Effectiveness? Other? In some cases, on promise will do well for everyone. Probably everyone will find the promised speed of relief appealing for antacid advertising. However, or many products, you need different promises (appeals) for different market segments. Different people buy the same product or same kind of product for different reasons. Some people will buy the least expensive automobile because they can't afford a more costly one, while others will buy it because they think an all automobiles cost too much to begin with and express protest this way, and still another party buys an automobile for his clerk to use for deliveries and sees no need for any but the most basic vehicle. The "right promise" is thus not the same for all cases. That promise which is right for you depends on whom you envision as your customer and what you believe is a main concern of that customer--i.e., what felt need will that customer be trying to satisfy? The same consideration applies to proof. Given that "proof" is whatever the prospect finds convincing and will accept as proof, that varies from one individual to another. A significant element in the success of your marketing lies n finding the most effective proof to back up the most appealing promise. (Herman Holtz is a veteran engineer-consultant-writer. You can reach him at via e-mail, fax 301-649-5745, and at his Web site http://www.bellicose.com/freelance/) |