benefits

What’s a feature, and what’s a benefit?

Are there certain things that people don’t know but should, and that drives you to distraction? For me, one of the biggest is the difference between features and benefits. While that distinction has been talked about for years, and successful communications and sales professionals invariably advocate for emphasizing benefits over features, there continues to be a … Read more

FEATURES AND BENEFITS

Recommendations to emphasize benefits rather than features when communicating are so old that I think they may date back to cavemen. Still, some marketers don’t understand the difference between features and benefits, so they miss out on an opportunity to connect more powerfully with their audiences. Simply put, a feature is some aspect of your … Read more

WHY SHOULD I CARE?

Some of you may be hearing Roger Daltrey intone that headline, but my goal isn’t to tap into your brain’s storehouse of long-forgotten lyrics. Instead, I’d like to explore an issue that has long puzzled me: why do companies think that rolling out a new website will excite their audiences and incite them to visit en masse?

I ask that because I’ve so often been asked to develop ads and other materials that essentially proclaim, “We have  a new website!” So? What’s the big deal?

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JUST BECAUSE SOMETHING’S NEGATIVE DOESN’T MAKE IT BAD

We all know that positive thinking is powerful. In fact, from an early age, we’re taught to put on a happy face no matter what happens. And, when I reference something that could be perceived as negative in copy, many clients are quick to request its replacement by something with a bigger smile.

That’s not always a good idea. Sometimes, what’s negative is far more impactful and communicative. For example, if your competition has been falsely suggesting that your product has a flaw that shortens its service life, hitting the misperception head-on is going to be infinitely more powerful than tiptoeing around it.

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ARE YOU TELLING THEM WHAT THEY ALREADY KNOW?

Are you wasting precious time in ads, direct mail, and brochures telling prospects what they already know?

Instead, tell them what matters. Talk about benefits, not features. Don’t say your product uses a three-handled veeblefetzer unless you can explain what that will do for them. “The three-handled veeblefetzer lets you core twice as many radishes in the same time.”

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FEATURING BENEFITS

Recommendations to emphasize benefits rather then features when communicating are so old that I think they may date back to cavemen. Still, some marketers don’t understand the difference, so they miss out on an opportunity to connect more powerfully with their audiences.

Simply put, a feature is some aspect of your product or service. A benefit is what makes it a good or useful thing. If a bank tells you that they have 24-hour ATM access, they’re calling attention to a feature. If an automaker mentions stability control, that’s a feature.

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