Chapter 2: Crafting Your message
If you’re running an ad:
a) What’s its purpose?
b) What does it focus on?
Pick one objective
- Call this number
- Request a sample
- Visit your website
*Make it easy for people to fulfill that objective
USP: Unique Selling Proposition: Answers the question “Why would i buy from you rather than
your nearest competitor?”
1. Quality and great service are expectations, not unique value propositions
2. People only find out about these qualities AFTER they’ve bought
Apples to oranges is better than apples to apples. Be unique, then taste good later.
What you should focus on
1. Why should they buy
2. Why should they buy from me
If you confuse them, you lose them.
Explain your product and unique benefit in one sentence.
Ex. Apple: 1000 songs in your pocket
Prospects can
- Buy from you
- Buy from competitor
- Do nothing
Make your elevator pitch: 30-90 second well-rehearsed, concise summary of business and
value proposition.
Template: You know [problem] well we do do [solution].; in fact, [proof]
Ex. You know how people hate paying taxes. Well we make it really easy and painless by
automating the process, automatically getting you the biggest tax refunds possible. In fact, last
week we got someone 20% higher tax return than when they filed themselves.
Your best product is the one sales people love selling the most, because customers are happy
when they receive it, it sells itself on utility, and they know it solves the problem the customers
have
Bad marketing is product focused and self focused. Good marketing is solution focused, and
customer focused.
Some questions to ask when crafting your offer
- What are people really buying (the reason behind the buy: security, safety, save time,
etc)
- What’s the biggest benefit to lead with
- Who’s selling something similar, how have they succeeded or failed
- What emotionally charged words can capture the market’s attention
- What objections will they have how do i counter them
- What outrageous offer can we make
- Is there a story to tell
Creating the offer
Value: What's the most valuable thing you can do for them.
Language: use the jargon within your target market.
Reason Why: Why are you making an offer? What’s the catch?
Value Stacking: Pack in bonus, double your value!!! Think infomercials.
Upsells: When they are in the buying frame of mind. Tack on a high margin item to the sale, it
could be fried with a burger. It could support units with a basic package. Every company should
do this. Even Apple does this.
Payment Plan: offer clients ways to pay monthly in smaller chunks
Guarantee: reverse risk of doing business with you
Scarcity: Limit the supply, the time, or other of the offer. Make people move.
Pain Points: What are you solving for the client
Common compelling words
- Free
- You
- Save
- Results
- Health
- Love
- Proven
- Money
- New
- Easy
- Safety
- Guaranteed
- Discovery
People buy on emotion first, and justify it with logic afterwards.
Humans are motivated by fear, love, greed, guilt, and pride. Your sales copy should push one of
these emotions.
It’s okay for your marketing to filter out some of the audience. This makes it so that the
prospects you have feel the products tailored to them. And it makes sure that those who would
have objections to your product won’t be prospects.
The name of a product should be self explanatory. Otherwise, it might not attract the target
market you’re hoping to attract.
Copywriting for sales: being able to articulate why a prospect should buy from you will reward
you more richly than anything else.
Sales copy: text persuading consumers to take a certain action.
In direct response marketing: copy is designed to push the emotional buttons of the target
audience.
Emotional direct response copywriting: uses attention grabbing headlines, strong sales copy,
and a call to action. The Paper Salesman
People like to buy from people, not a faceless corporation.
So, communications from a company should be less focused on being professional, boring, and
calm. That’s a good way to get ignored. Instead be real, open, and honest.
Marketing should be used to give opinion, advice, and commentary about your company and
open a channel for communicating with customers and hearing back from them.
