Finding Your Client's Business Problem Leads to Better Copy by Neroli Lacey
WHATS THEIR PROBLEM?
How do you begin a dialogue with a prospect, be it in person, on
your website or in print?
You talk about your clients business problem.
What IS your clients business problem?
Answering this question is the hardest part of marketing.
What we all do instead, is focus on our solution, i.e.
what we do.
We sell network management software.
We are a business-oriented law firm.
We trade commodities.
Worse still, we continue talking about ourselves: how many
employees we have, how many years we have been in business,
where our head office is.
Lets think again. Are you worried about the vulnerability
of your IT systems today? Do you dread losing your information
assets? Aha, our network management software has worked wonders
for clients just like you.
Are you thinking of expanding your business? Do you know how
to find an experienced team that knows your industry backwards
and can deliver. Are you looking for a team that has done this
kind of transaction for many years. A team with the best
experience and knowledge of your industry in the country? We
dont just deliver wordy legal contracts, we deliver
cost-effective business solutions.
Do your clients want specialty products delivered in exactly the
way your clients want to receive them, sometimes in custom format?
We dont just trade commodities, we deliver service and quality
every time, in just the way you want it.
Every good piece of marketing collateral starts by setting out
the business problem. Because reading this, your client will say,
finally, someone who understands what I am struggling with.
This is your hook. The hook requires empathy. Later you will
apply logic. i.e. why your service is the ideal fit for his
problem.
How often do you put yourself in your clients shoes and
wonder what she struggles with? Ive seen how hard this is with
every client I have ever worked with (save one, he just needed
a writer to set out his thoughts on paper.)
I have also seen how transformative it is to do this exercise.
When you really understand what your clients problem is, you
also understand the nuances of your solution. Doing this work
becomes an exercise in strategy. It helps you answer what you
are about in the marketplace.
It positions you. Positioning, means defining exactly who
your ideal client is, what they really want and what you are
really really good at. Position yourself correctly and you
knock your competitors out of the game.
How important is it to begin your dialogue with your clients
business problem. It is crucial. Good writing (and good talking)
is good thinking.
Do you have a robust marketing plan to execute against? How clear
and persuasive is your website, brochure copy or direct mail?
Call Neroli Lacey NOW to win more business TODAY.
CALL ++ 612. 215. 3826 NOW
or email: neroli@beyondcommunications.com
About the Author
Ive been helping executives transform their businesses and their lives with outstanding marketing materials since 1995. I have worked with clients in Boston, San Francisco, Dallas, Austin, Minneapolis, London, Paris, Amsterdam, Dublin and Delhi. I used to be one of the top journalists in Britain writing for The Times, The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, and more.
Please visit my website: beyondcommunications.com