Best intentions can be a marketing mistake! When we sell a product or service, it’s often because we passionately believe that it will create benefits and results for the customer. If they see it differently or if there is something about our product or service that they think might make them “look bad”, this is a sales killer.
Ride the Elephant Part 3 – When your customers are afraid of your product, you must show them they can do it!
In Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, we learned about our marketing friend who was convinced that his product was terrific and delivered great results, but he ignored customer fears and strong emotions that made it a very difficult sale. These product “flaws” and customer fears are the “elephant in the room” that his company didn’t talk about and his potential customers didn’t admit was the reason they said no. The product in question here was a video email service that delivered great results… but only if people buy it and use it! Most people wouldn’t!
You’ll Need To Ride the Elephant and Get Them Thinking They Can and Want To Ride It Too!
My best advice if you are selling video emails and video digital postcards would start here. One of the best examples I’ve seen for this is how Andy Jenkins sold his big Video Boss product with a super fun “Boss-A-Thon”. He had a couple days of “live” streaming video with clips, samples and lots of guests. Here is how he dealt with the fear that people have about looking stupid/ugly/fat/unprofessional on camera. (Go ahead and watch any holiday or wedding video and you can figure out your % of people who are interested in being filmed that are SOBER, and aren’t the bride and groom for example, who have no choice but to be on film and look like they are enjoying it immensely!)
Andy showed people how using his system could help them learn to make very, very professional high quality videos and how it was a step by step thing that they could go back to again and again. And then he showed how to start by using powerpoint or pictures and NEVER being on camera, he built confidence that just using these videos would still increase conversions and rankings, even though you get the highest results when you are on camera and make the connection.
And most of the rest of the time – and there were like 18 hrs of time – he went over those things now and then but had people in interviews talk about how much having videos helped them AND how stupid/ugly/fat/unprofessional their first videos were, how they just laugh at them now, how step by step they got skills and confidence and how his material builds value, creates community and gets rid of fear because you can start where you are comfortable and still get better results even not being on camera.
Hard hitting will not coax that small % to do what you want, but if they see value and you eliminate as much fear as you can it’s more likely you’ll succeed. Finding them and establishing know. like and trust is the quest.
How Will You Ride That Elephant?
The best way to design that is to use the NUTS & BOLTS model. This captures the very best features and benefits you have that people will want to share, and it creates a step by step plan for how your are going to use Social Media to reach your target market (that 10% – 40% of all the people who have use for your product) and get them to feel that they know, like and trust you.
Google Hangouts are a similar challenge for some people! Undeniably effective, accessible and Search Engine Magic when tagged and posted optimally – the bugaboo of not pretty enough, what if i say the wrong thing, what if I make a mistake is a similar elephant. Using supportive, collaborative and high energy, high trust DNet associates can get you riding that elephant to profits and a ridiculous amount of fun in no time!
I’m here to help! If you have a marketing challenge like this or if you can’t seem to get things going and you think you might be blind to an elephant, an hour of Marketing Consult is likely enough to get you on track or to help you evaluate if you have what it takes to ride that elephant and will it be worth it if you do? Contact me with the form below and get connected and energized! Kathryn Booth