The Key to a Winning Sales Message

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The Key to a Winning Sales Message

Sales messages must show, rather than tell, why customers should buy.

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For the past year, I've been rewriting sales messages sent to me by readers of my weekly

newsletter. The mistake that keeps cropping up is telling customers how they should feel,

rather than showing them why they should feel that way.Example:

"This is an exciting new product that's unique in the market!"

The intention behind this kind of phrasing is basically correct.After all, it's easier to sell a

product that's exciting and unique than one that's dull and common. However, as my

grandfather used to say:"Sayin' so don't make it so."

Simply telling the customer that your product is "exciting" or "unique" (or any other positive

adjective) only communicates that YOU feel that way and that YOU would like the customer to

feel that way. The message is all about YOU. Not the customer.

Communicating that your product actually is exciting requires showing them why it's exciting.

To do this, you must present a story or a fact that illustrates (shows) the emotional point

you're trying to make.

For example, suppose you believe your product is "exciting" because it can save customers a

whole lot of money.Simply telling the customer that your product is "exciting" has all the

emotional wallop of a dead mackerel.

By contrast, your customer might actually believe your product is exciting if you show how your