It’s not about you….
Let me start by sharing my bias on this topic, so you can decide to read or to move on:
Successful brands don’t lead with ‘about us.’ Not their team, not their product, not the features of their services.
Contrary to typical marketing strategy? Maybe, but hear me out: constantly banging your own drum could be stalling your business growth.
You and your team are proud of your brand, and you should be. You didn’t get this far by delivering poor quality products or services. Congratulations!
Maintaining the edge of leadership in your category is a constant process. If you’re feeling like the competition is gaining ground when you least expected, the first place to look is at how well your marketing message is landing with prospective customers.
SO, what then?
Make the marketing message about your customer.
People are proud of their work and want to tell the world; but the reality is that the world doesn’t care. What prospects do care about is how your work benefits them.
This can be a challenge for everyone, and technology companies often have a particularly difficult time making this transition.
I have a theory about this:
People who create software will be looked on
as the DaVinci’s of our era.
Software engineering seems boring to many of us non-engineers, but I think it’s an incredibly creative endeavor. Great software solves complex problems, from cancer research to home security automation to development of vaccines.
Developers aren’t cancer researchers, but they have innate curiosity about cancer research and the creative skills contribute to a solution. They also tend to be proud of their work which escapes the understanding of us mere mortals, and they’re eager to tell us all about how cool that code really is.
This isn’t a brand strategy that brings prospects closer
It’s a rare technologist that understands the nuance of value-focused messaging. Equally true that it’s a rare marketer that can translate the technology and draw qualified leads into the dialog. When those two forces collaborate – business blooms.
Making the transition from “all about me” to “all about you” takes some practice, but I guarantee it’s a winning strategy.
Consider this little exercise:
- Step back for a moment and imagine your next ideal customer – you know who they are, but they don’t know your brand at all. What is the single most important thing that prospect might want from your company?
- Take your answer and make it your leading ‘big idea’ wrapped in the benefits to their business.
- Support your leading idea with one (one!) reason to believe your team is the best there ever was.
Do it in 40 words or less, put it on a coffee mug and send it to the prospect with your compliments. Chances are -your phone will ring.
Sure, generating qualified sales leads is more complicated than this, but it is imminently achievable. It’s a rare technologist that understands the nuance of value-focused messaging. It’s a rare marketer that can translate ‘tech speak’ and use to intrigue qualified leads and move them along the journey to earning a conversation.
When those two forces collaborate – business blooms.
When the message leads with how your solution benefits the prospect, the prospect will pay attention.
Since you’re already on our website, poke around on our client stories to see how this worked for them.
Or just call me: +1-425-285-2902.
-Nic