Marketing Your Product as Problem Solver.
You and you alone can solve the problem that you’ve are creating in the minds of your soon-to-be customers. You are the problem solver. You make life better. You are on their side. You are only here to help them (at $19.99 per unit, but wait…).
The following is excerpted from the outstanding marketing how-to book Marketing Fear for Fun and Profit.
Here’s the Amazon link:
Step 1: Tell Them They Have a Problem
Ultimately your message must persuade the user to take specific action and you can only accomplish this by making sure they know they have a problem.
To motivate anyone to do anything you have to convince them that what they need is missing and that you can provide it (or your money back – not really).
You are in the problem-solving business and you have to convince the populace to say, “I’ve got to get me some of that.”
Tell Them What to Think
- Convince people that the problem you solve is the worst horror on earth.
- Convince buyers that this problem will affect them personally and not just their neighbors. “Not my problem” or “Not me” are arguments you have to hurdle.
- Convince people that the doom is imminent.
- Convince people that the steps you suggest will save them.
- Convince them with an immediate closing statement such as “call now.”
- Convince people that you can help them live a better life.
Counter Their Arguments Upfront
Everyone is a skeptic so nip that in the bud before they can every get their concerns percolating.
The arguments to overcome:
- It’s too expensive.
- Tried that before – didn’t work
- Doesn’t apply to me.
- Don’t need it.
Your Answers:
- Our product is more effective previous, similar products and here’s how.
- Our solution is easier to use.
- You owe it to yourself to try our improved version.
- The price is nothing compared to how much better your life will be.
- You are directly affected in these ways.
- You will die if you don’t buy!
Very Successful Problem Solving Campaigns — Subaru: They Lived
Subaru has a history of great safety ratings dating back many years but no one really cared unless you lived in Colorado and celebrated April 20 like a national holiday.
Listing their safety features, ratings and history in a brochure wasn’t going to do anything – you had to see, feel and want the safety they were offering.
So they created a fear-based ad campaign that showed that, if you didn’t drive their car your entire family will be killed in a car accident. This is what their cars were all about and if you don’t drive one you’re dead and your family is dead.
Pretty clear message wouldn’t you say?
Their marketing images and messaging are real, gripping and hit home with anyone who has ever been part of a family and leaves viewers with an etched image of Subaru safety in their mind.
What makes this campaign great is the fact that it reveals your true fears about car wrecks. Accidents can kill you and your family. Want to live? Drive a Subaru. I’m sold.
This specific fear-based marketing campaign shows that they understood their target market and took a dramatically different and specific angle to get the message to hit home.
Can you also take such a dramatic approach to sway hearts and minds to your product? Absolutely!