Map your customer journey based on market awareness your
prospect moves through when making a buying decision.
The template presented below is such an effective selling formula a LOT of money-milking marketing uses this very technique.
Problem – First you present the problem your prospect’s experiencing.
You need to meet your prospect where they’re at in their customer journey, you need to answer these questions in order to nail the message:
- What is the big problem the prospect recognizes they have?
Now, this is important… Because if they DON’T recognize the problem you’re solving… no go.
Agitate – Agitate the experience of the problem and create the desire for a solution.
Here you need to address these situations to get their juices flowing:
- What’s the most exciting about the possibility of solving their problem? Specifically, what fears you’re promising to get rid of, and what desires you’re giving.
- What are the benefits of solving their problem and putting it behind them? Specifically, what’re the emotional, physical and practical benefits they’re getting once fixing their problem.
Invalidate – Invalidate all the other (competitor’s) solutions that are out there.
To have a truly effective and persuasive message, copy, selling point (whatever you wanna call it)… you need to consider all the other (competitor’s) solutions that are out there.
However, based on the buying criteria you’ve established you then invalidate all other options as being insufficient in giving the perfect solution for their specific problem.
With Invalidation, you need to also talk about:
- What makes your solution attainable, right now? Specifically, why and how is your solution/ process better than anything out there and why they should choose you now vs. later.
- What’s most exciting about the reader’s personal possibility of this solution? This is where you’ll see just how much really knowing your ideal customers is important
- “Will this work for me?” – a classic, #1 question people have when deciding whether to but or not (I’m not going to go into this because we’ve talked about this in Proof, Credibility & Believability post)
Solve – Solve by presenting your solution.
So far you’ve proven you know and deeply understand their problem, you’ve created a burning desire to make their problem go away, you’ve explained why other solutions and inferior to your…
So at this point, they’re wondering what IS your solution for their problem…
This is the time and place where you present your solution.
Now…
This is where most people screw up and start selling.
Luckily for you, you’ll now see how to do it the RIGHT way…
- First, you need to know that prospects come with baggage.
In 99.3% you’re not the first person making promises.
They’ve been disappointed and burned before, they’ve tried other products that didn’t deliver…
So as a marketer, you need to be clear WHY your solution is different and WHY it will work for them.
- If you make them feel like it’s their fault, they’ll be reluctant. So let them off the hook, it’s not their fault… they’ve been trying so hard to make their problem go away and it really isn’t their fault they’ve been exposed to empty promises and pompous marketing.
- To truly convey your message of solving the problem, you have to always relate it to the individual and his very unique needs, problems and desires.
Instead of selling this is the place to really open the
conversation and connect with your prospect.
Ask – Ask for the order.
No fancy schmancy language or trick needed here.
If you followed the formula above your prospect is seriously considering your offer.
To knock them off the fence you can lean into reasons (personal, economical… depending on your niche) to really show them why NOW is the right time to act.
y’all coming for supper or what?
Katja Mokotar
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Katja Mokotar is a professional email Copywriter. She creates email strategies for CPG eCommerce that generate new & repeat customers… and can often be scaled to $1M and beyond.