How many times have you heard someone say, "Sell with benefits -- not features!" Or, "Use emotion to sell -- not facts." Has anyone ever explained to you what benefits and emotion really mean? Probably not.
At the risk of sounding overly simple: every decision maker is a person - that's the most common element in all of business. Everyone who buys your product is a human being - politician, hockey mom, human resources manager, homeowner, CEO, widow, Boy Scout or musician.
Instead of passing that off as merely obvious, use it to your advantage. You can appeal to any human being by presenting your product or service in terms that person relates to. What are those terms? They are the person's values. In fact, think bigger - If you can discover what your target market values, you will be able to be far more effective reaching them and inspiring them to give you a try.
Psychologically, values are the umbrella under which you find specific business benefits. Those benefits are determined by emotional motivators. But the person will only take action if the motivators belong to that person and are phrased in his or ner psychological language. How do you know what that language is? That's easy. Simply determine the person's Personality Type.
For example:
Driver Personality Type values control and tradition.
Analytical Personality Type values relevant information and being the expert.
Expressive Personality Type values freedom and out-of-the-box action.
Amiable Personality Type values relationships and appropriate behavior.
Now, knowing those things, can't you more easily see which Type will want your products or services? Then, merely use those words in your marketing. In fact, use those words in the headlines. The combination of values, emotion and benefits will directly affect your prospect by helping him like you. And once he likes you and what you are telling him, those values, emotion and benefits will help him take action on your behalf.
How could he not take action? You speak his language, understand what he wants, and you're extending it to him. It's not a sales pitch, it's a great deal. You made this his lucky day!
When you apply this thinking to your drip marketing, or website or selling proposition, you set-up multiple opportunities for you to show or prove your value to your prospect or target market. In other words, you are serving as a magnet to attract them, rather than running after them. Which makes more sense to you?
In Closing. Personality Types are very simple to understand. You don't need a degree in psychology to use this body of knowledge. In fact, you can learn all you need from our book Face Values. The bottom line is this: if you're not building your business on effective psychology, you're holding yourself back. Please, let us help you. Find us at: www.aboutpeople.com -- Michael Lovas
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
How to Promote "You" in Your Business - The Simple Psychology
How can you be more effective in promoting "you" in your business? Easy. You can do it by accomplishing these four goals:
1 Controlling the perception of who the prospect perceives you to be.
2 Building a perception of you as a provider of authentic value.
3 Building a perception of your product or service as a desired value in an extremely cluttered marketplace.
4 Show how much you are like your target market.
The idea is so simple; the more you are like your target market, the more they like you. The more you share their values, the more they like you. The more they like you, the greater the probability they will see the value in you and what you can do for them.
How can you accomplish those three goals? It's tough. You need to use database technology, relationship marketing, advertising, public relations, journalism and academics. And, you must package them all, so they perform as marketing, not sales, not data, not hype. More specifically, Wave Marketing, because that's what works best to build a relationship with your readers, prospects or clients.
What are the keys to Successful "You" Marketing?
Key Number 1. Be committed to being in the right place at the right time with the right information to inspire positive action. You can accomplish that by conducting an integrated, sequential, long-term marketing program that combines: creative tactics, thoughtful analysis of your list, projections of client values, journalistic and academic techniques. Most important, however, you need to shift your perspective to understand how other people see you through their own eyes.
Key Number 2. Make sure you are perceived as all of the following:
1 An expert who conducts research and shares important knowledge.
2 A kindred soul who is informing instead of selling.
3 A professional who is more interested in presenting truth than opinion.
4 Providing value instead of focusing on quick sales.
You accomplish those things by quoting credible magazines and news sources that your target market values, and by contacting your target over an extended period of time. You can't afford to be seen as the business world's version of a one-night-stand. Visit again, call, buy the prospect flowers, take him or her to a nice dinner (figuratively, of course). But above all, write!
Bottom line. The point that most marketers and writers miss is the shift in perception. When you understand your target market from their perspective, you can be highly successful at reaching them and influencing them to pay attention to you. Until you make that shift, you are reduced to throwing product pitches. The more frantic you get for business, the more obnoxious your pitches become. Who wants that?
Is effective marketing important to you? If so, contact us right away. We prove a unique service where we analyze your marketing for both the effective and ineffective psychology. Then, we'll tell you what to fix, or if you want, we'll fix it for you. Find us now at www.aboutpeople.com -- Michael Lovas
1 Controlling the perception of who the prospect perceives you to be.
2 Building a perception of you as a provider of authentic value.
3 Building a perception of your product or service as a desired value in an extremely cluttered marketplace.
4 Show how much you are like your target market.
The idea is so simple; the more you are like your target market, the more they like you. The more you share their values, the more they like you. The more they like you, the greater the probability they will see the value in you and what you can do for them.
How can you accomplish those three goals? It's tough. You need to use database technology, relationship marketing, advertising, public relations, journalism and academics. And, you must package them all, so they perform as marketing, not sales, not data, not hype. More specifically, Wave Marketing, because that's what works best to build a relationship with your readers, prospects or clients.
What are the keys to Successful "You" Marketing?
Key Number 1. Be committed to being in the right place at the right time with the right information to inspire positive action. You can accomplish that by conducting an integrated, sequential, long-term marketing program that combines: creative tactics, thoughtful analysis of your list, projections of client values, journalistic and academic techniques. Most important, however, you need to shift your perspective to understand how other people see you through their own eyes.
Key Number 2. Make sure you are perceived as all of the following:
1 An expert who conducts research and shares important knowledge.
2 A kindred soul who is informing instead of selling.
3 A professional who is more interested in presenting truth than opinion.
4 Providing value instead of focusing on quick sales.
You accomplish those things by quoting credible magazines and news sources that your target market values, and by contacting your target over an extended period of time. You can't afford to be seen as the business world's version of a one-night-stand. Visit again, call, buy the prospect flowers, take him or her to a nice dinner (figuratively, of course). But above all, write!
Bottom line. The point that most marketers and writers miss is the shift in perception. When you understand your target market from their perspective, you can be highly successful at reaching them and influencing them to pay attention to you. Until you make that shift, you are reduced to throwing product pitches. The more frantic you get for business, the more obnoxious your pitches become. Who wants that?
Is effective marketing important to you? If so, contact us right away. We prove a unique service where we analyze your marketing for both the effective and ineffective psychology. Then, we'll tell you what to fix, or if you want, we'll fix it for you. Find us now at www.aboutpeople.com -- Michael Lovas
First Impressions of Credibility - What Face to Wear
Every person you approach experiences an emotion, and logically, he or she expresses that emotion. Where? On the face.
Good news for you, most people do not know what facial expression they wear when they greet someone new. That includes you. If you want to make people feel comfortable and special, you need to give them a warm, open and sincere face. But, what does that look like?
Way too many sales people wear a frown at the moment they meet someone new. Because we wrote a book on reading people (Face Values), we understand that the frown is the sign of an Analytical personality type. But prospects are unaware of that. They think a whole host of things: indigestion, trouble at your home, business slump, federal investigation, computer crash, or worse. The expectation given by that frown is anything but inviting.
So, the question is, what face should you be wearing when you meet someone new? There are two answers. First, look into the face in front of you and wear that same face. Doing that will tell the visitor that you understand his or her state of mind. Second, start with a smile in your eyes, then adjust to wear the same face as the other person. The smile buys you a little time to make the adjustment and it gives a welcoming first impression.
Imagine the visitor's eyebrows are lowered and he's biting his lip. What would you assume from that? Probably that there's something troubling him or her. It would then be reasonable that you would say, "You look like there's something on your mind. Is there anything I can do to help?"
The psychological strategy here is to match the visitor's face. Sounds easy, but it's not. When I teach this little skill in seminars, I direct the audience to match all my own facial expressions for a few minutes. They find it almost impossible to do. Especially the more analytical people in the audience. Analytical people seem to have an inability to move many facial muscles. If you can't move your face, you can't match the visitor's face, and if you can't do that, you miss out on the most powerful tool in your relationship-building bag of tricks.
In Closing. Credibility is the result of a complex process. You have to purposefully put the process into play, and you need to know how to use the specific steps and elements inside the process. But, just why is credibility important? Because the American business has taken a gut punch - a rapid and catastrophic disintegration of credibility. And, it directly affects anyone in sales.
Consumers (or investors) see the horror stories in the media. They know the country is in a sad state. And, they associate you with it. After all, you are a representative of it, right? So, while you are likely to be a paragon of competence and honesty, your target market now lumps you in with the industry's problems. That means you need to learn how to fortify and build your credibility. And, you need to initiate a Credibility Strategy like yesterday! Where to start? Start with your face!
If you like what you see here, you'll love what we can do for you in real life. Find us at: www.aboutpeople.com -- Michael Lovas
Good news for you, most people do not know what facial expression they wear when they greet someone new. That includes you. If you want to make people feel comfortable and special, you need to give them a warm, open and sincere face. But, what does that look like?
Way too many sales people wear a frown at the moment they meet someone new. Because we wrote a book on reading people (Face Values), we understand that the frown is the sign of an Analytical personality type. But prospects are unaware of that. They think a whole host of things: indigestion, trouble at your home, business slump, federal investigation, computer crash, or worse. The expectation given by that frown is anything but inviting.
So, the question is, what face should you be wearing when you meet someone new? There are two answers. First, look into the face in front of you and wear that same face. Doing that will tell the visitor that you understand his or her state of mind. Second, start with a smile in your eyes, then adjust to wear the same face as the other person. The smile buys you a little time to make the adjustment and it gives a welcoming first impression.
Imagine the visitor's eyebrows are lowered and he's biting his lip. What would you assume from that? Probably that there's something troubling him or her. It would then be reasonable that you would say, "You look like there's something on your mind. Is there anything I can do to help?"
The psychological strategy here is to match the visitor's face. Sounds easy, but it's not. When I teach this little skill in seminars, I direct the audience to match all my own facial expressions for a few minutes. They find it almost impossible to do. Especially the more analytical people in the audience. Analytical people seem to have an inability to move many facial muscles. If you can't move your face, you can't match the visitor's face, and if you can't do that, you miss out on the most powerful tool in your relationship-building bag of tricks.
In Closing. Credibility is the result of a complex process. You have to purposefully put the process into play, and you need to know how to use the specific steps and elements inside the process. But, just why is credibility important? Because the American business has taken a gut punch - a rapid and catastrophic disintegration of credibility. And, it directly affects anyone in sales.
Consumers (or investors) see the horror stories in the media. They know the country is in a sad state. And, they associate you with it. After all, you are a representative of it, right? So, while you are likely to be a paragon of competence and honesty, your target market now lumps you in with the industry's problems. That means you need to learn how to fortify and build your credibility. And, you need to initiate a Credibility Strategy like yesterday! Where to start? Start with your face!
If you like what you see here, you'll love what we can do for you in real life. Find us at: www.aboutpeople.com -- Michael Lovas
Psychological Marketing Basics - Part One
Let me make a bold and provocative statement: any marketing that is not based in psychology is doomed to fail. Here's why.
Most marketers think in terms of tactics - a sales letter, or an email, or a brochure, or a landing page. That's a major blunder because people need more than one exposure to your message in order to feel comfortable enough to make the decision to give you a try. This advice is based on the psychology known as, "Convincer Strategy."
In other words, think in terms of multiple opportunities to tell parts of your message. The idea is to not give all your information at one time. Rather, you would piece it together so the target market experiences you and your message multiple times. As long as you include at least three separate pieces, you'll reach most people's convincer strategy. And, by breaking your message into smaller bites, you are making sure that the readers don't fall into information overload, which is a state of confusion caused by too much information in too short a span of time.
The more effective approach is called "Drip Marketing." This is the process by which you make contact in a pre-meditated sequence. Let me give you an example.
When I was writing direct response marketing programs for JCPenney, we made millions of dollars using a marketing strategy called "continuity programs." In those programs, the reader is asked to place an order for one inexpensive item. For example, it might be a cubic zirconia dinner ring for three dollars.
Then, after a few weeks, the reader would receive a related offer, this time for another piece of the same ensemble, say a matching necklace. Because each piece obviously belonged to the same collection, the target market would instantly recall the previous pieces. In addition, the photography and the copy in all the separate mailings were all similar. So, they would build on the psychology of familiarity.
The headlines might be something like this:
Mailing one. Incredible Austrian Crystal Dinner Ring - Only $3!
Mailing two. Incredible Austrian Crystal Matching Necklace - only $8!
Mailing three. Incredible Austrian Crystal Matching Earings - only $9!
JCPenney has sold millions of pieces of inexpensive jewelry using this type of marketing. And, there were three keys to their success. The familiarity of design and language, the sequence and the initial decision to buy the very first piece. That first decision is directly linked to the sequence and the familiarity.
Today, we see a twist on this concept. Many marketers give away a free report or ebook. As soon as you make the decision to accept that free gift, you've short circuited your convincer strategy. The marketer then follows up and sends you related pieces that taunt and tantilize you into wanting to gain access to something far better than that original freebie.
Here's another way to use this psychology on the internet. You might send an email with a subject saying, "How to get the best deal on car insurance - tip number 1." Then, the next week, you would send a second email saying, "How to get the best deal on car insurance - tip number 2." You would continue that sequence until you had exhausted your major benefits. But, here is the warning; the benefits must be described from the consumer's point of view, not your company's point of view.
If your firm operates with a limited marketing budget, you need to get more than simple recall from your marketing dollars. You need to make contact with your target market in a more personal, meaningful, memorable way. You want the prospect to associate you with the solution to something that he or she is worried about. The way you do that most effectively is with drip marketing - an extended series of sequential communications.
This is powerful stuff. You don't need to be a great writer. You only need to have empathy for your target market and think logically. When conducted correctly, drip marketing is a tremendous strategic advantage that will energize your marketing and bring you higher returns. When it's not conducted correctly, it's pollution.
If you like this information, you'll absolutely love what we can do for you in real life! Find us at: www.aboutpeople.com -- Michael Lovas
Most marketers think in terms of tactics - a sales letter, or an email, or a brochure, or a landing page. That's a major blunder because people need more than one exposure to your message in order to feel comfortable enough to make the decision to give you a try. This advice is based on the psychology known as, "Convincer Strategy."
In other words, think in terms of multiple opportunities to tell parts of your message. The idea is to not give all your information at one time. Rather, you would piece it together so the target market experiences you and your message multiple times. As long as you include at least three separate pieces, you'll reach most people's convincer strategy. And, by breaking your message into smaller bites, you are making sure that the readers don't fall into information overload, which is a state of confusion caused by too much information in too short a span of time.
The more effective approach is called "Drip Marketing." This is the process by which you make contact in a pre-meditated sequence. Let me give you an example.
When I was writing direct response marketing programs for JCPenney, we made millions of dollars using a marketing strategy called "continuity programs." In those programs, the reader is asked to place an order for one inexpensive item. For example, it might be a cubic zirconia dinner ring for three dollars.
Then, after a few weeks, the reader would receive a related offer, this time for another piece of the same ensemble, say a matching necklace. Because each piece obviously belonged to the same collection, the target market would instantly recall the previous pieces. In addition, the photography and the copy in all the separate mailings were all similar. So, they would build on the psychology of familiarity.
The headlines might be something like this:
Mailing one. Incredible Austrian Crystal Dinner Ring - Only $3!
Mailing two. Incredible Austrian Crystal Matching Necklace - only $8!
Mailing three. Incredible Austrian Crystal Matching Earings - only $9!
JCPenney has sold millions of pieces of inexpensive jewelry using this type of marketing. And, there were three keys to their success. The familiarity of design and language, the sequence and the initial decision to buy the very first piece. That first decision is directly linked to the sequence and the familiarity.
Today, we see a twist on this concept. Many marketers give away a free report or ebook. As soon as you make the decision to accept that free gift, you've short circuited your convincer strategy. The marketer then follows up and sends you related pieces that taunt and tantilize you into wanting to gain access to something far better than that original freebie.
Here's another way to use this psychology on the internet. You might send an email with a subject saying, "How to get the best deal on car insurance - tip number 1." Then, the next week, you would send a second email saying, "How to get the best deal on car insurance - tip number 2." You would continue that sequence until you had exhausted your major benefits. But, here is the warning; the benefits must be described from the consumer's point of view, not your company's point of view.
If your firm operates with a limited marketing budget, you need to get more than simple recall from your marketing dollars. You need to make contact with your target market in a more personal, meaningful, memorable way. You want the prospect to associate you with the solution to something that he or she is worried about. The way you do that most effectively is with drip marketing - an extended series of sequential communications.
This is powerful stuff. You don't need to be a great writer. You only need to have empathy for your target market and think logically. When conducted correctly, drip marketing is a tremendous strategic advantage that will energize your marketing and bring you higher returns. When it's not conducted correctly, it's pollution.
If you like this information, you'll absolutely love what we can do for you in real life! Find us at: www.aboutpeople.com -- Michael Lovas
Monday, December 8, 2008
Copywriters are idiots - more
The traditional marketing and advertising world has been driven by demographicis (see previous post) for generations. But why? Because it's easy to get and it is easy to measure. Whereas, people are mess, unpredicatable and difficult to measure.
The step beyond demographics is called "psychographics." That's general descriptions of target markets. Sara Palin represented a psychographic - hockey moms. That descriptive will give you some idea of what those people are like. But, it doesn't give you enough to be really compelling.
You can't use a generic description to target an individual, and all great/effective marketing targets one individual. What kind of information should you be looking for? It's called "mental filters." Actually, the technical term is "meta programs."
You would find people who are representative of the audience you want to attract. Then, you would interview them to determine their mental filter configuration. That would give you the words, phrases and language patterns that you should use in your marketing - and selling.
That is the big secret in marketing! But because it requires a lot of study, training and experience to be able to use mental filters effectively, very few copywriter (or marketers) even know what they are. Instead, they rely on cute. Can you hear me now? -- Michael Lovas
The step beyond demographics is called "psychographics." That's general descriptions of target markets. Sara Palin represented a psychographic - hockey moms. That descriptive will give you some idea of what those people are like. But, it doesn't give you enough to be really compelling.
You can't use a generic description to target an individual, and all great/effective marketing targets one individual. What kind of information should you be looking for? It's called "mental filters." Actually, the technical term is "meta programs."
You would find people who are representative of the audience you want to attract. Then, you would interview them to determine their mental filter configuration. That would give you the words, phrases and language patterns that you should use in your marketing - and selling.
That is the big secret in marketing! But because it requires a lot of study, training and experience to be able to use mental filters effectively, very few copywriter (or marketers) even know what they are. Instead, they rely on cute. Can you hear me now? -- Michael Lovas
Copywriters are idiots!
Sorry sound so provocative, but - I was a copywriter for a huge corporation, so I know how they are trained and what they are praised for. It's not for being smart - it's for being cute. And, frankly, cute doesn't work to drive results.
For example, one of the main types of information given to copywriters is called "demograpics." That's your zip code, houshold income, age - that stuff. So, what does any of that have to do with your decision-making strategy or personal values? ZERO!
The point is, when you want to produce marketing that actually works, do not look to copywriters! Where would you look? Look for someone who knows how to use psychology in marketing. Look for someone who understands the dynamics of "imbedded commands." Look for someone who has at least taken some classes in language patters. And, avoid anyone who does not have those qualities! -- Michael Lovas
For example, one of the main types of information given to copywriters is called "demograpics." That's your zip code, houshold income, age - that stuff. So, what does any of that have to do with your decision-making strategy or personal values? ZERO!
The point is, when you want to produce marketing that actually works, do not look to copywriters! Where would you look? Look for someone who knows how to use psychology in marketing. Look for someone who understands the dynamics of "imbedded commands." Look for someone who has at least taken some classes in language patters. And, avoid anyone who does not have those qualities! -- Michael Lovas
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