As I write this, I have the Journey song “Don’t Stop Believing” in my head. It would be rather distracting if it didn’t completely feed into the lesson I want you to get from this post today.
That lesson is, in order to compete in today’s market, you have to convince people to believe in you. You have to give them a reason to buy.
Telling your customers you’ve got the best widget in the world won’t get you very far.
You have to tell them why, and after using your widget, they will believe it is the best one in the world.
What benefits do your customers get from your product or service? What’s in it for them?
When you give this information to your audience through copy and content, your sales job gets a lot easier. You see, that audience of customers and potential customers is on your website or your social media feed because they want something from you. They want you to answer their questions and their unspoken needs without having to jump through hoops to get it.
On the web, sharing this information will increase your conversion rate.
Your customers do their research before buying from you or anyone else. Tell them why they should believe in you, why they should buy from you, through a few small copy tweaks and some strategic messaging placement.
What’s in it for them?
Your customers desire something. That something might be more money, less time wasted, less risk or a better relationship.
In fact, in the world of marketing, there are said to be 5 “top of mind” problems. I call them benefit buckets:
- Health
- Wealth
- Emotional relationship
- Physical relationship
- Identity
What does your product or service do to improve one of those five areas for your customers?
You need to dig deep on this. Be brave and ask your customers if you’re not sure. Actually, ask your customers even if you think you know what the benefits of your offering are! Getting feedback from the people who buy from you is critical to your success.
Because you are not your buyer.
You are the expert.
As soon as you become an expert at something, you cannot put yourself in your buyer’s shoes anymore. It’s just not possible.
So is your product an instant download? Then it saves the customer time. This could be in the wealth benefit bucket (time is money!) or the emotional relationship bucket (more time for the things that matter).
Does it have a money-back guarantee? Then it lowers the risk for the customer. Depending on your offering, this could fall into any of the five benefit buckets.
Does it have a free trial or come with free support? Then it saves money for the customer. Obviously this falls into the wealth benefit bucket.
Copy Tweaks and Strategic Messaging
Now that you know what the benefits to your customers are, it’s time to spread the word.
- Put that secure ordering icon in your footer to remind the customer their data is safe with you.
- Put that free shipping statement in your header to reassure your customer that they’ll save money with you.
- Put that money-back guarantee on your shopping cart page to let your customer know there’s no risk in trying your offering.
- Optimize your buttons with “instant download” or “free trial” to stir your customer’s desire.
- Put a phone number on your contact page so people know they can call for support.
You see that I’m not talking about a total website overhaul, here. I’m talking about reassuring your customers every step of the way. You might think it’s subtle – and it is – but it’s effective.
Never leave your customer hanging. Wherever they go to learn about your product or service, remind them why they should believe in you and what’s in it for them.