Many hours of effort, and even more money, goes into efforts to come up with the “perfect elevator pitch” or tagline. Everyone in business wants to be memorable. After all, that’s how prospects remember you when they need what you offer, right? What if I told you that is wrong?
What if I told you that prospects are not remembering you because of what you said during that networking event or initial meeting? What if I also told you that obsessing over a message that is memorable is close to a total waste of time – and money? And finally, what if I told you that your prospects also do not care about your Unique Value Proposition (UVP)?
Hello, are you still there? Well, those of you who are smart are. I know that because I’ve watched as you search for the absolute best messaging to promote your business, and when your revenue does not improve as you had expected it to, you search for an answer as to why.
Most of the time you concluded that your messaging needed to be sharpened – again. And you were right. You were just not sharpening your message in a way that will make any difference. Your focal point was off a bit. Since it’s widely accepted that doing the same thing over and over but expecting a different outcome is foolish, I think it’s time for most business leaders and marketing directors to refocus their efforts. And that focus needs to be based in – ahem – science.
Science? Data science, right? No. Behavioral Science. Because buying is a behavior. So what do we know about buying behavior?
Purchase Decisions Are Based On Addressing A Specific Need
I know, you just yelled at your screen. “Tell us something we don’t already know.” Hear me out. We all know the above statement is true on the surface, but what underlies any need? Emotion! Even the basic needs of food, shelter, and clothing are driven by emotion (hunger, safety, and modesty are all emotions).
So this statement needs to be rewritten – and reframed – as “Purchase decisions are based on addressing a specific emotion!”
Why People Buy
Simon Sinek famously said “People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.” That’s true, but do they really care about your reason for doing something? No, they don’t! They care about how well your reason for doing something matches their need for using it.
Let me use an example here. Let’s say you sell cars – expensive cars. You sell them because you want people to experience the luxury they deserve (your “Why statement”). I can buy a less expensive car, but I find myself in your dealership. Why? Because I want that luxury. Do I need that luxury? No. I want it. That’s desire; an emotion. If my reason for shopping for a car includes finding one that is luxurious, I will shop at your dealership because it’s what I feel I need, not why you decided to sell that brand.
So, Whose Why Is It Anyway?
If buying drivers are based on the purchaser’s emotions and needs, whose “why” truly counts? It’s not your why that matters, it’s theirs! I tell my clients to remember that “Their ‘why’ leads to their buy.”
A prospect’s decision to buy from you is not linked to your UVP or your elevator pitch. These statements may help them understand what (emotional) needs your offerings will satisfy, but beyond that, they become irrelevant. And the only way to make them relevant at all is to focus on the “Why” of your prospect and customer.
It’s not your elevator pitch. It’s not the “uniqueness” of your company. And it’s not the catchiness of your tagline. It’s how well your offering fits the need(s) of the buyer. That means you need to focus more on product development before you worry about messaging. Spend less upfront time and effort on creating “memorable” statements, and more time on packaging your company for the market. As Maya Angelou said “At the end of the day people won’t remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel.”
How can Foresight Performance help you become truly memorable? Let’s Talk!
