For the small business owner or solopreneur, a succinct and targeted message is vital to communicating directly with your ideal client and moving them along the sales journey. The term “message” has many synonyms. You may know it as any of the following:
Key Value Proposition (KVP)
30-second commercial
Elevator pitch
“I help/so that” statement
Unique Selling Point (USP)
Benefit statement
These and other phrases or terms all boil down to the key points about your business that you want to convey effectively to your target client. The ideal result is that the message resonates with that prospective client, and they see your potential for helping them solve a problem or achieve a goal.
This message needs to be carefully constructed to produce that ideal result. I developed a process for creating this message so that it’s easily applicable throughout any business’s marketing activities.
The Missing Piece of Features & Benefits Messaging
Speaking to the features and benefits of your service is a longstanding foundational aspect of messaging. The features are the highlights of your service, while the benefits are the positive results for the client. The two aspects need to be expressed in a balanced manner in order to build a connection with the prospective client.
Over my years in marketing, I have found that something is missing from this formula. The features and benefits messaging often goes overboard into grand boasts and promises. The sheer volume of these exaggerations has produced skeptical consumers (you may be one of them). We just no longer believe that we’ll get a better night’s sleep with a supplement, earn millions in passive income with one simple strategy, or find ten new clients overnight after an online course. The clients of today want to know more about the process. They need more transparency into how the features of your business will specifically help them gain the benefits they desire.
To facilitate that transparency, you need to clearly identify what they need. This means that rather than working forward from your business offer to your client, you need to work backward from your client’s goal to your business.
Identify the Pain Point - Don’t Dwell on it
Working backward from the client’s goal is an important part of persona development. We need to know who the client is so we can determine their goal and break it down into tasks or responsibilities. They need to accomplish these responsibilities in order to achieve the goal. Next, we need to identify the pain point within these tasks that matches up with your service.
The reason this is part of building a persona is that your ideal client is the one with the pain point you can solve with your service. If someone can work through all the tasks perfectly on their own, they don’t need what you are offering. If their problem lies in a task that’s not part of your service, then you aren’t the right provider for them. We want to know exactly who needs you.
The messaging that resonates with your ideal client will zero in on the correct pain point. But the message can’t focus on that pain. That quickly turns into fear-based selling, which is not consistently effective (nor do I believe is it an ethical tactic). To establish the next elements of effective messaging, we determine the risks and rewards associated with the goal.
What Happens when the Goal is Fulfilled or Not
Remember that I said we’re all a bit skeptical as consumers when it comes to promises? When a business skips straight from pain point to benefits of its service, it ends up with a message that triggers that skepticism.
Now that you know the pain point, you have a golden opportunity to truly relate to and empathize with your potential client. If you can identify the risk they take in avoiding that task and the reward of completing it, you will capture their attention. Now is the time to show them the attributes of your service which address that task so they move closer to their goal and experience the reward
Let’s use the social media services we provide at Marketing to Mission as an example for constructing this type of message:
The client goal: The client wants to post consistently on social media with professional quality content in order to grow brand awareness and gain new prospects.
The client’s responsibilities: Come up with ideas, write the posts, produce graphics, schedule posts, and monitor the channel for interactions.
The pain points: They have no time to write posts, and they don’t know how to make graphics. They have plenty of ideas, and they have someone on staff who can keep an eye on their likes and comments, but they just can’t consistently produce content (because they’re busy running their business and working with clients)
The risks of not fulfilling their responsibilities: They will have an inconsistent social media presence, which reduces visibility and their ability to compete in the local market. Plus it makes them feel less polished and professional.
The rewards of fulfilling their responsibilities: They see more website traffic, receive more calls, and feel like their brand is more professional and credible.
The attributes of our social media services that solve their pain point: We consult with the client to obtain all of their social media ideas and priorities. Then we take care of the writing, graphics, and scheduling all according to their guidelines. All they have to do is review and approve the posts, and they will experience the rewards of fulfilling their goal.
The key business message we can use to attract this ideal client: You know you need to post consistently on social media, but you simply don’t have time while you’re busy running your business. You’re worried that you’ll lose marketing opportunities if you don’t maintain a regular posting schedule with professional-looking content. What if you could post consistently and maintain your visibility? With our social media management services, your business posts will look great, be on message, and be published on a consistent schedule so your business continues to stay top of mind with your audience.
This is a very simplified version of the messaging, but it follows the effective formula. Personalize this message with your business offering to turn it into a powerful asset in your marketing toolbox. Use it in discovery calls, networking meetings, digital ads, and throughout your website to connect with ideal clients.
The Simplified Key Messaging Formula
I encourage you to practice this formula to create key messaging for your business. You don’t need to settle on one single message. You might need some variations to address different attributes of your business and your offerings. Or maybe you need to try out some different styles to find the best fit for your brand or ideal client. While you don’t want to have too many, it’s helpful to have a few versions of this formula in mind when you have marketing opportunities.
The formula is simple:
You know you need to [task/responsibility] in order to achieve [goal].
But [pain point] keeps getting in the way without any change.
You're worried that [risk] will happen.
What if you could [task/responsibility] to achieve [goal] and get [reward]?
With [attribute of your service], you'll be able to [task/responsibility], achieve [goal], and get [reward]!
Once you complete the formula, wordsmith it into something that reflects your brand language. Working with a marketing or writing professional at this stage can be very helpful. But be careful not to stray too far from the parameters! Remember that you don’t want to boast, make grand promises, create fear, or focus on yourself. Bring the potential client into the process to see how your service will help them avoid risks and gain rewards.
I have this formula in a handy worksheet inside my persona workbook that you can download and fill out as you think about how to convey your key business message clearly. This workbook will also help you get to the bottom of your ideal client’s goals, pain points, risks, and rewards.
Messaging that is specifically designed for your ideal client streamlines the sales journey by attracting the people who truly need your service. If you are struggling to identify the messaging that will best connect with your target audience, it’s helpful to work with someone with a fresh perspective. My process starts with the basics by building a persona so that we can find out who your perfect client is and what kind of messaging will reach them effectively. Get in touch with me to simplify your business messaging.
Comments