Creating A Marketing Message With “Juice”

By Lisa Cherney

“How do you help people?” is a fundamental question that you as a business owner should be able to answer. Why? Because how you help people tells the world the benefits of the work you do. This is a key item to include in all your marketing communications. People want to know how their lives will be impacted by your product or service.

By the end of this article you will be able to answer this question and list the concrete benefits that you can share with the world. You will also learn how to take these benefits to a new level, that I call the “Juice.” This is where you discover the unique benefits that are a reflection of you and your passion.

Features vs. Benefits

As a marketing consultant, I’m often asked to evaluate brochures and other marketing materials. I do this by looking at several elements, including design (or the “look”), layout (what information or graphics are placed in what location), strategy (is it accomplishing your goals), and finally, by asking does it reflect your passion for what you do?

This last element is the foundation of Conscious Marketing and a key item necessary to attract your Ideal Client (you can learn more about “Defining Your Ideal Client” in the May/June issue of Awareness).

So, how do you make sure your passion gets channeled into your marketing? It happens through your benefits! This is NOT a listing of all your services or what products you offer. These are called features. For example, if you are talking about a massage table, you would say that a feature of the table is that it only weighs 30 lbs. Now, what is the benefit of this feature? Or, in other words, “How does that help people?” One answer is that it prevents back strain for the therapist.

Benefits get to the heart of how the product or service helps people. Yes, you want to list all the types of services you offer, AND you also want to be sure to cover why anyone would want to buy it! People always want to know how their life is going to change, or the old adage, “What’s in it for me?!”

Creating Your Benefits

A simple way to ensure you are focusing on your benefits is to make certain you are answering one of the following questions in your marketing materials (this includes websites and 30 second introductions at networking meetings):

· How does my product or service help people?

· How do I change people’s lives?

· What is the outcome or the result of my work?

· How are people different as a result of my product or service?

Pick one or two of the questions that resonate with you and take time to answer them for your business. If you have more then one product or service, you’ll want to consider each one separately. For example, the benefits of my Materials Evaluation service is that business owners will discover if their brochure is portraying the message they intend and if it will accomplish their goal. However, the benefits of my workshop may be entirely different.

Getting to the Juice

Now that you have answered the above questions and have a list of benefits, you want to make sure they stand out and really reflect your passion. If you have trouble finding just the right words to describe your benefits, please know you are not alone! The following two questions will help you get out of your head and into your heart, so you can find the words you need:

1) What is the benefit of the benefit?

2) What do I mean by this?

This is how it works. Take one of the benefits you think may need a bit more juice. Some phrases that are no longer unique are: “Be happier”, “Increase income”, and “Life changing.” Then ask one of the questions and see where it leads you.

For example, ask yourself, “What is the benefit of being happier?” You’ll discover different words and a new way to express the same thing, such as, “You’ll have more intimate relationships and be motivated to pursue your dreams.” This is a juicier way to describe making someone happier and connects more to the heart of what you bring to people. You can keep asking these questions regarding the same benefit and get even more unique responses. It’s like when a child keeps asking us “Why?” over and over and we have to get more creative with our answers.

Take time to carefully craft the language in your marketing materials. They should represent the essence of who you are and what you bring to people’s lives. Get a coach, attend a marketing workshop, or simply enroll a friend as a member of your team and ask them, “Does this effectively communicate my passion and how I help people?”

There are people in the world who need you, so take time now to create marketing materials with “juice” that enable you to enrich and touch their lives!

Lisa Cherney is a Marketing Intuitive and President & Founder of Conscious Marketing™. A dynamic speaker, Lisa has helped thousands of business owners tap into their intuition and market their businesses from the ‘Inside Out’. She has 15 years corporate and advertising agency experience working with clients like AT&T, Lipton and Nissan.

Conscious Marketing offers workshops, coaching, business consulting and creates marketing materials. Products include Listening a guided imagery audio program and the Conscious Marketing Audio Workshop and Workbook. Visit www.ConsciousMarketing.com for more details or call 888-771-0156.