Is this all too familiar?
“Dear Customer, we are writing to you today to tell you how wonderful we are and why you should buy our product. Do read with avid interest the many features of our product which you simply must buy without delay. Whether or not you need these features is not important to us – we just know you should buy them right away because we think they are great.
Yours sincerely,
Anycompany PLC.”
Well, that’s quite a pitch. I don’t know about you, but I have seen hundreds of emails and other marketing approaches which look a little like this from hundreds of different companies, only interested in themselves, not in me at all. How about you, the customer?
It’s all too common for sellers to assume the features of their product or service just must be on their potential buyers “Wanted List” – it’s a given, isn’t it, that because they think it’s great, you will too?
Of course not. Marketers can easily fall into the trap of assuming their latest “Bell or whistle” will seal the deal, often forgetting to connect with the buyer’s need. Perhaps you don’t want what they are selling today, but you do want the other thing they have never told you about. The thing they haven’t gone to the trouble of finding out you might actually buy.
As a marketing operation, it’s all too easy to flood your email database recipients with useless information about products for which they have no need, and which will go straight into the spam folder. Take the time to find out what your potential customers really want, target the right prospect with the right product or service. Do the research, think about the benefits that will appeal to them, and make your approach.
Putting the emphasis on the “You”, rather than the “We”, could make all the difference.