Knowing Your Features and Benefits can Increase Your Business Considerably

[?] Subscribe To This Site

Know Your Features and Benefits and Learn Exactly How to Use Them to Increase Your Sales and Sign Ups

Why are the features and benefits such an important part of your marketing plan? Well, if you've done your homework fully on your target market , then you'll know what their problems are. And it's the features and benefits of your product or opportunity that will solve that problem for them.

HOWEVER!!!

You can be head and shoulders above everyone else out there if you focus on the benefits to your customer or product, and not just the features.

What do I mean by that?

Well, let's say I want a new laptop. In fact I'm currently looking to upgrade to a new one and the online store gave me some choices to help me make my decision. The choices are:

Now these are all perfectly acceptable things to ask me and they are all features of the product that I want to buy.

Trouble is, I'm a computer user, I'm not a techie. I can use one very well, but I have no idea about how it works. (Think electricity...you know how to use it, but don't suppose you're that much interested in how it all works when you're trying to make a cup of tea first thing in the morning).

Back to my new laptop: I want something that is fast and powerful as my entire business runs off it, I want to be able to take it out and about with me, and I don't want to carry one of those heavy laptop bags with me. I'm a bit of gadget freak...so I'd love all the bells and whistles, but I don't understand the technology, and don't want to (or indeed need to). I just want them to make my life easier and more organised. (Oh, and preferably, I'd like it in Cerise please.)

What does that tell you? (Other than I'm a 21st century girl who likes my technology in bright colours!).

I buy on product benefits, NOT features.

I have no idea what the difference is between the Intel Core 2 Duo or its alternative. I'm sure they are both brilliant (certainly I trust the brand "Intel" mainly due to its marketing), but I don't know what they do for me.

And the same with the 2, 3 or 4 GB options. I understand that a megabyte is to do with the memory, and the more you have, the better or faster it is. But I don't understand what it means in reality when we get down to the day to day running of my business, and all the activities I use my laptop for. 2 GB might be perfectly acceptable for all I know.

What this particular online store could have done is made a list of its features AND benefits, so that I could see how each feature benefits me.

All of us, and that includes you, buy on benefits. And more than that, the emotional benefits that directly impact us as individuals. We do not buy on the product features. They can help us make the decision to buy, but only after we know why the features are important to us. So, we must always look to both the features and benefits of our products and opportunity.

What The Difference between Features and Benefits Means to You

The features explain what the product does, and all its bells and whistles, the benefits are what that means to you or your customer.

The features of your front door could be that it's wooden, it's red, has a brass door bell, has a letterbox etc.

The benefits of your front door are that it stops marauding invaders coming into your home; keeps the icy, howling winds out (and thus keeps you warm); and allows your dog and your postman to keep far enough apart every time there's a mail delivery.

Why the Features and Benefits are Important to Your Business

Your customers buy your products on how beneficial they will be to them. And your prospects will 'buy' your business opportunity for the same reasons: what the benefit is to them of joining you in your business.

Let's look at this in a bit more detail:

How many times have you been asked for further information about your products, and you say something like: "Well, it's good for this and that, it was produced by magic elves in the light of a full moon, in fact we're the world leaders in this particular magic plant, and it costs $200 a month and only has 53 calories."

Those are all features. Your customers aren't interested in features. They are interested in what it can do for them (the benefits).

Your customer's response is going to be along the lines of "Let me think about it, I'll get back to you" (and they never do) or "It's too expensive, I could never afford that" (and then they go and buy a new plasma TV screen the very next day).

So, the benefits are...well...what are the benefits? How are you supposed to know if you haven't asked your potential customer what they want? Have you asked them why they are interested? Are they asking for themselves or for someone else? Was it for something in particular? How long have they had that condition? What have they tried to sort out their problem? Why are they looking to clear up the problem...what would it mean for them?

You're not trying to give the MLM equivalent of the Spanish Inquisition, but you are trying to be a concerned, empathetic consultant for your company, who might just have a solution to that person's challenge. You will only ever know what that person's challenge is and what kind of solution they are looking for if you ask them.

You need to get to the emotionality behind their situation. And once you've got to that point, you only need to tell them about the benefits that relate directly to them!

They can find out about everything else after they've bought the product.

And price will generally not be an issue.

How about the features and benefits of your business opportunity?

Well, the same thing applies: you have no need to go in and tell them about your company's heritage, the intricacies of your comp plan, why network marketing is so wonderful and all the other exciting things (features) about working in this industry.

And you will likely already been given the list of benefits of working in network marketing (eg the work from home, the potential to make lots of money, provide for pension, pay school fees and holidays etc).

Trouble is - how are you supposed to know which of these applies to your prospect? Unless you ask them.

Again, questions give you the answers. Have a chat to them, ask questions, You're not trying to "sell them" your opportunity, but you are trying to find out whether network marketing is right for them, or indeed if they are right for network marketing. You can find out where their interests lie too: their are lots of different industries that network marketing is in (eg health, diets, utilities, make up, self development). Your company's products may not be best suited to that person, so you'd be best off advising them on a company which is right for them to look at.

Do you see how this would entirely change your "sales process"? Knowing what the features and benefits are of your product and opportunity; finding out what the likely problems are of your target market and the benefits that would appeal; and knowing how to ask the right questions of an individual so that you can help him or her make the decision over what the right product or opportunity is for them. They'll see you in a completely different light too, and are far more likely to come back to you at a later date if they don't buy/sign on the dotted line now.

Guess what? Let's get to work on the Features and Benefits for YOUR product and opportunity.

Exercise 6 - Understanding Your Features and Benefits

The easiest way of doing this is to get an A4 piece of paper. Draw a line down the middle lengthways (or portrait).

You are going to create a list of all the features and benefits of your product, your opportunity and perhaps even network marketing.

At the top of your left hand column on your piece of paper write all the features of your product/service or opportunity. Remember, these are the things 'about' your product/service/opportunity. Your company brochures and leaflets will be full of features if you want to start somewhere.

Pretend you are your customer or prospect, and take the first feature. Ask yourself "So what?" or "What's in it for me?". Write that in the benefits column on the right hand side.

Repeat for the rest of the list.

You should now have a full list of both features and benefits for your business. This should be a fairly extensive list, so do have a good think about it.

Now, look back at your target market profile and decide what their top 2 or 3 major problems are in relation to what you have to offer.

Go back to your list and pick the top 2 or 3 benefits that relate to your target market, but learn the rest of them too.

From now on, you are ever going to focus on the benefits. There's plenty of time for people to find out the features after they've bought or joined, or are at that final decision making process and are making sure everything else is OK.

So next time someone asks you for further information, you can either ask them a few questions and give them the benefit that matches their problem. You'll easily know this from the work you've done to create your 'features and benefits' list.

Give them your chosen top 2 or 3 general benefits as answers.

NB - This will work its best for you if you have fully profiled your target market , and really know precisely who they are.

PS - Just in case any of you ARE techies who feel the need to email me and put me out of my misery regarding my laptop purchase - Peter, my husband, IS a techie so my "laptop buying" brief is in safe hands! You can relax!

Return from Features and Benefits to Home Page