Will prospects switch to a telecommunications provider that offers “the widest coverage” when they currently have no trouble connecting with the people they regularly call? Will prospects buy copiers with “enhanced duplex color capabilities” when 98 percent of their copying requirements are single-sided black text? Will they subscribe to an internet service that offers “lightening fast” internet connections when retrieving their e-mail is their most bandwidth-intensive activity?
Unlikely... unlikely... and unlikely!
New, Improved, Most Reliable, Longest Lasting, Industry Preferred ... the list of features and functions goes on and on. So what?
You won’t capture a prospect’s attention with features and functions, regardless of how Revolutionary, Tested or Enhanced they may be, unless, first and foremost, your product or service addresses a specific problem, concern or challenge the prospect is grappling with.
Your message, whether delivered verbally or in print, must focus on those problems, concerns and challenges.
Rather than tout “widest coverage,” ask a problem-focused question. For instance, “When using your cell phone do you get frustrated by frequently dropped calls?” Rather than promote “lightening fast internet connections,” ask, “Do you ever get annoyed that it takes longer to download your e-mail than it does to read it?”
Only if the answers to the problem/concern questions are “yes” will prospects have any interest in the features and functions of your product or service. And that interest will fade quickly if those features and functions aren’t believable.
Prospects are skeptical about feature and benefit claims. They expect that the only thing New, Improved or Enhanced about so many products and services are the words New, Improved or Enhanced prominently placed in the advertising and marketing materials.
To make the features and functions believable, tell the prospect HOW you deliver what those features and functions promise and, more importantly, how it will specifically address their issues and/or challenges that you uncovered.
Do you provide the widest cell phone coverage because you have more cell towers than any other company? Do you guarantee the fastest deliveries because any shipment with a destination over 150 miles is shipped by air and delivered the next day? Is your software never obsolete because you provide free lifetime updates? If so, make those facts part of your message.
If you want to capture your prospect’s attention, focus your message on the problems, concerns or challenges they face. If you want to keep their attention, tell them how you deliver what you promise.
