Is Your Product a Solution Without a Problem?

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

I was surfing the Web the other day and stumbled on a bra dryer. I can’t post the picture here (copyright issues), but it looks like a mesh sports bra or workout top. The idea is (apparently) to strap a bra inside it and it will dry faster or not lose its shape or something.

Trouble is, it only seems to come in one size, and well, women come in lots of sizes.

Also, for you guys out there, bras can be hand-washed, hung up to dry, and forgotten about. Drying them faster is NOT a pressing problem.

I point this out not because I want this blog to regularly focus on underwear, but because the men who came up with this contraption never stopped to do any research to see if anyone wanted, needed, or cared about their product. Yes, successful products (say the iPhone) can often come from a product nobody KNEW they wanted (until they saw one). But this, this is just silly.

Before investing time, money, and effort in a new product or service, check and see if there’s any interest. Show potential vendors a prototype, do some market research. Google the problem. Check with users. Find out their reactions. Is it wow? Or is it are you kidding??!!

Photo: hoyasmeg

Four Simple Steps to Great Marketing with AIDA

Posted on March 25, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

Marketing your products and services can sometimes seem pretty hard. There are so many things to do and worry about – the quality of the product, reaching the right people, having the right message.

But, there are four simple steps that can make creating your marketing materials a whole lot easier. It’s based on using a direct marketing concept called AIDA. It sounds like an opera, but using AiDA in your marketing can make a big difference in the results you get. Here’s how it works (in four easy steps).

Step one – Attention

First, get your prospects’ attention. Your promotion won’t work unless your target audience stops and reads (or listens to) your message.
For instance, let’s say you’re selling a solar-powered furnace. Trumpet the savings that your customers enjoy by purchasing your product. For example, “Cut Your Heating Bills by 75%!”

Step two – Interest

Address their interests and outline the problem. In this case, the homeowner’s interest in saving money, and frustration with high heating bills. Then, you can tell them about your solution.

Step three – Desire

Discuss the benefits customers get by using your product. In this case, a solar-powered furnace cuts costs, eliminates reliance on foreign energy sources, and frees you from the whims of large oil companies.
“You’ll stay comfortable and warm all winter long, for only pennies a day. And, there’s a backup system in case of too many cloudy days.”

Step four – Action

Now that your prospects want to learn more about your product, tell them what to do. Ask them to call now, mail a form, etc.

Putting it all together

Imagine you’re standing in front of a room full of women and you put up a big sign that says:

Free Manhalo Blahnik shoes!

Since this is an imaginary room full of mostly women, I bet that would get their attention.

Now why?

One, you said FREE – everyone likes free stuff

Two, you said shoes to a room full of women and women love shoes.

Three, you said the free shoes were famous designer shoes – and they were FREE

Four, you told them where to go to get the shoes (go that way).

Now, you try it. Share your ideas here.

Photo: extra noise

Why Paper is Better Than E-mail

Posted on March 23, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

Chris Brogan recently pointed out a marketing tool that will make your customers smile. He bought a book and inside was a card thanking him for his purchase, telling him what other kinds of books the publisher produced, and inviting him to get updates on future titles as they are published.

As Chris pointed out, it’s a thank you, gives helpful information about the publisher, and includes a call to action.

Since it’s in your new book, you’re likely to look at it and read it. Asking for his email address might have seemed intrusive (a way to send more marketing material). However, a card (or better yet, a bookmark) is an extra gift. People delete unwanted emails without thinking twice. Paper seems more important and personal, and people tend to save it. You can only see email, but you can see, touch, and sometimes (if it’s fresh from the printer) smell paper and ink.

Old cataloger’s trick: make your catalog slightly smaller than your competitors’. People tend to keep them, and stack them. Guess which goes on top?

Photo:shaun

Teach Your Parents Well

Posted on March 6, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

My dad thanked me yesterday. He told me I’d trained him well. You see, he’s a member of the local library board. For some reason, the town (which is in a well-to-do area) doesn’t include the library in the regular tax rolls, so every time the library needs improvements, they have to get approval from the voters for a special bond issue to fund the project.

So, naturally, they need a marketing campaign of sorts to convince the town that the project has merit. Dad was at a board meeting last night and asked “What are the benefits?, Why would the town approve this?”

The reply, “Well it’s crowded, we need more space.”

Dad said, “So what?”

Another member chimed in, “Well, some of the books are old and falling apart.”

Dad again, “So what?”

His point (and mine) is that the board was framing the issue looking at themselves (instead of the voters). The voters don’t care about the old books or the overcrowding. They care about an extra room for story time for small children (and a safe place to drop them off while mom or dad runs errands). They care that the library has the books they want, or is open on Saturdays, or later into the evening on weekdays. They care about BENEFITS. They care about what’s in it for them, not what the library gets.

Keep that in mind when planning your next campaign.

Photo modesto speed

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