Entrepreneurs: Benefits vs. Features-Know the Difference!

By Judy Cullins
Posted Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Entrepreneurs know their business. They know their product, their service. Many of them write creative Web sites. But, one thing they are not as adept at is promotional copy.

It's not the book, it's the hook! It's not the beautiful Web site, it's the one with benefit-driven headlines that lead your visitor straight to your sales message. What you say outside the book covers matters. What you say about your service on your site must be so much more powerful than your pleasing personality or mission statement.

Always promote with benefits over features. Benefits show the value of your products. They solve your particular audience's problem! They tell your clients and customers what they will gain--and what they will lose from your product or service. Some common benefits include: more money, less trouble, more time, less stress, desirable relationships, less drama and trauma, and more zest and energy, less fatigue.

Apply this Essential "Hot-Selling Point" Before you Write:

1. Write down a list of 5-10 benefits of each product and service. Think about your number one benefit your book or service solves. For example, your clients and customers don't want to know only how to get their book written, they want to know why should they write it? How much will their business thrive from putting that effort out? Will they get more credibility, more trust, and more lifelong income?

For her book, "Tug of Heart," one client wrote this partial list of benefits: experience deeper hues of joy, enjoy more passion, trust yourself, engage in work you love, more energy from being in a state of unblocked flow, life on terms that fit you, experience greater confidence in making choices that are right for you, more through challenging decisions with ease and confidence, and live your juiciest life yet!

From these, this client wrote the sales piece for her book's back cover and her Web site.

2. Write down specific benefits. Include how your customer will feel after buying your product. For instance, after you buy my book or product, you'll look and feel 10 years younger without a face lift. Let them see a picture of what it's like to be the happy author, who sells enough books to take that Caribbean vacation each year.

3. Include some of your personality in your promotion copy. For example, "My book is less than the price of a good dinner, with wine of course! And the skills in it will serve you every day for as many times as you choose to duplicate your success results.

Always answer your customer's question, “Why should I buy your product or service?” with strong benefits to help them solve their problems. Benefits sell.

About the Author
Judy Cullins, 20-year Book and Internet Marketing Coach works with small business people who want to make a difference in people's lives, build their credibility and clients, and make a consistent life-long income. Author of 10 eBooks including "Write your eBook Fast," "How to Market your Business on the Internet," and "Create your Web Site With Marketing Pizzazz," she offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, "The Book Coach Says..." and "Business Tip of the Month" at (http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml) and over 155 free articles. Email her at mailto:Judy@bookcoaching.com.