Sell More By Showing Consequences
It's a well established fact that customers buy solutions to
their problems or what they perceive will add value to their
lives. The marketer must therefore go beyond the usual feature
listing for their product or service to show what will be the
final consequences to the customer.
For example, knowing that buyers would rather not suffer loss
than gain more you must show what will happen if the customer
refuses to buy your product. It's all about consequences.
Now here is the point at which most businesses fail in their
marketing efforts. Let's say that you are trying to sell a
garden tool. This tool will cut a hedge fence much faster and
easier than any other tool on the market. Along with listing all
the new features of this tool and how effective it is at cutting
hedges, the smart marketer must take this to the logical
conclusion.
I mean, what is the customer really buying? It's not the garden
tool at all. It's not well manicured fences either. If there
were no neighbors to admire that fence your customer wouldn't
care less about your garden tool innovation. Your customer is
really buying admiration from others.
Knowing this then you must promise what they are really buying.
You must make every effort to show how your new garden tool will
cause your customer to be the "envy of the neighborhood" because
of the immaculate hedge fences.
The same applies to any product that claims to make the prospect
more money. Nobody is interested in money. People want what
money can bring-power, security, influence and the things money
buy. So the marketer should show the consequences of the
increased income by showcasing the lifestyle that the money
brings. Such as vacations, luxury cars, dream home, relief from
the calls of debt collectors.
After studying several online sales letters I observed that such
websites that showed the owners enjoying the good life because
of their increased income had high conversion rates. Do you get
it? Even if you are selling a product that has nothing to do
with lifestyle you must show that your product will somehow allow
the customer to enjoy an improved lifestyle.
It's all a matter of how far you go in showing consequences.
Your sales material must pass the common "So what? test. This is
a little tool used by copywriters to determine whether something
should be mentioned or not in a sales letter. It is also used
to show consequences as well.
Let us return to our garden tool example and apply the "So what?"
test to force us into showing consequences.
Copy: "The Maxpro garden tool will cut your hedges in half the
time of the leading garden tool." [So What?] You will spend
less time cutting your hedges. [So
NewsPoet: Carmen Gimenez Smith's Day In Verse
Each month, NPR's <em>All Things Considered </em>invites a poet into the newsroom to see how the show comes together and to write an original poem about the news. This month, our NewsPoet is Carmen Gimenez Smith. Want to write your own poem about the day's news? You can put them in the comments below.
Peter Dinklage: On 'Thrones,' And On His Own Terms
The Emmy-winning actor talks with NPR's Audie Cornish about the popular fantasy drama — and about the rules of his own personal game.
what?] Now you'll have more
time admiring your hedge fences rather than cutting them. [So
what?] That's less time working in the garden and more time to
spend with your family. [So what?] Sharper hedges and a happier
family.
You can see when we apply the "So what?" rule then it forces us
to follow through to showing the real benefit that the customer
is after-a happier home life.
You cannot assume that your customer will make the connection
either. Of course everybody wants more money but not many people
can connect that money to the deepest needs of their soul.
That's your job as the marketer. There are many people with lots
of money who still live unfulfilled lives.
Now we started this article by saying that people are more
motivated by fear of loss than the desire for gain. This means
that we have to also show the consequences of not getting our
product.
Returning to our fictitious garden tool we can show how the
prospect who refuses to buy our tool will continue to cut hedges
the 'old way', spending a lot of time in the hot sun and still
not getting the sharp edges that our new tool will bring. We can
show how much more hours they'll spend per year cutting hedges
compared to using the Maxpro hedger. And this brings us to
another point of quantifying consequences.
There are few marketers today who uses this powerful tool; that
of quantifying their product benefits. Using this simple
strategy will help the prospect to visualize what your product
can do for them.
For example, we could show that a well-kept hedge may require
cutting 3 times per month or 12 X 3 = 36 times per year. If the
Maxpro hedger saved you 1 hour per cut then that's 36 hours per
year. Now if your time is worth $20 per hour to you then that's
$720 per year. Compare to the cost to the Maxpro which is only
$199, using any other hedger will be really throwing your money
away.
Notice that instead of showing the money they will save by using
the Maxpro we are now showing what they will lose if they don't
get it!
If you try to show final consequences and show not only what is
gained by having your product or service but what is lost by not
making the purchase you'll make more sales.
And more sales in your business means … [consequences go
here!]
Always show final consequences if you want to make more sales.
About the Author
Ray L. Edwards is a published author, copywriter and internet
marketing consultant. He has made tens of thousands of dollars
for his copywriting clients. Being an online marketer himself,
he understands what it takes to sell online and welcomes your
inquiry about his master copywriting service.
http://www.webcopy-writing.com
|