Gotta step it up a bit folks.
Your company (or maybe it’s you) likely spends a lot of time and effort adding values to products and services that you sell. Try not to underwhelm your clients or prospects with your lack of focus and skill in articulating them.
If you don’t give enough attention here it’s a missed opportunity to impress or differentiate. And worse, you can blather so boringly about some of this pretty cool stuff that the client does a mental Matt Foley (the iconic Chris Farley SNL character) and is so underwhelmed they say “Well La-Dee Frickin’ Dah! . Your customers may not yell it like Matt Foley in the 5 second video but they sure as heck are saying it in their heads and all that work and investment in these added values goes wasted.
Fortunately there is a better way.
Let’s pretend whatever it is you are selling comes with and added value of say “One hour of free maintenance per month”. You could be like most people and just say it comes with “one hour of free maintenance per month” and then and have the client conjure up the image of Mr. Foley and “La-Dee Frickin’ Dah!” or – wouldn’t it be better to put the client in the picture here?
- “All we ask is that once a month, you force your busy self to sit down with one of our experts for an hour and make sure the (insert product here) is running perfectly for you.”
Now let’s pretend your product purchased comes with an added value of a “money back guarantee”. A real snoozer because while awesome, we tend to think of it as an afterthought. You could just say there is a “money back guarantee” (like almost everyone else does) and watch the client sleepily drool a little or – wouldn’t it be better to put the client in the picture here?
- “You expect this widget to bring in new business in and it will, but if in 3 months as you turn around and head back in from another long day on the water and you don’t feel it really has –just call me and I’ll put every dollar you spend today right back into your wallet; that’s how confident we are it’ll work.”
And finally, let’s pretend your product comes with “free fluid checks, tire rotation and oil changes for 1 year”. In this case your product is likely a car (or a van one might park down by the river :)) . You could just say it comes with “free fluid checks, tire rotations and oil changes for 1 year” and watch their eyes glaze over like mine do when any Friends rerun comes on or – wouldn’t it be better to put the client in the picture here?
- “Let me worry about the car maintenance – you have more important things to do. Before you head off this summer up to Maine or NH for vacation, bring it in and we’ll check everything from rotating tires to fluids and even change the oil – all at no charge. We’ll do that same thing before that first snow fall or just before we do the yearly inspection. No worries and no cost to you from now till your first anniversary with this car. “
Think about added values that surround your primary products and services. They mean something. In fact, sometimes they are the differentiators from your competitors. Work hard to help your clients see themselves leveraging these added values! Use words and phrases that elicit images and mini – movies for them; it’ll elevate the value of all your stuff across the board. And do it in a way that if you notice, compliments them as people, consumers or as business owners. And of course, avoid at all costs the lack of attention that results in “Well La-Dee Frickin’ Dah!”
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Mark McCarthy's Blog 
