Why does your sales message matter?

Once you have a viable product, or already during it's development, you want to start to sell it. You create a sales message, stating the need and the solution and the key features of your product. What kind of message? Does it matter? We all know some of the millions of sales messages we see have a better look and feel than the other. But for a serious prospect, who is choosing a product for an actual need, (and let's forget pure commodities here for clarity) does it really matter if the sales message is a cool viral social media campaign or a pdf with clear bullet points and a photo? It does, and I can tell you why.

The process of serious buying and selling is about evaluating product suitability and trust in the vendor. We can evaluate suitability quite easily from most product sales messages, since the need the product is serving and the key features are usually stated there. But how do we evaluate if we can trust the vendor in actually delivering a great product? And we really would like to have a feeling of trust from the sales message, before we contact the vendor, because we don't want to waste our time or even less to give our selves into the hands of an eager sales person in vain, then having to escape awkwardly. This is why customer references are a so common in sales message content. We like to see that someone else did it first and that they are still ok or preferably even better. :) But beyond content elements, why does it matter what kind and style, on which channel and how we deliver our sales message to the person who really is considering to buy?
The reason is that the sales message is a test of your behavior for the customer. If your sales behavior is this kind, your delivery behavior will probably be something like this too, only somewhat down graded once you get the signature on the contract. The customer is predicting your future behavior on what she has now, and all that she has is your message, so every detail on it matters. She is in a hurry to go through life and find the right solution for this thing, and that's why she wants to see that you can click with her right away, before even reading the content of you message. The other way around, you want certain kind of customers, and if your message starts to bring in the wrong kind, you know it is going to waste your time, big time.

How to click with the dream customers for you? The best solution is authenticity on every level, and you knew that already. ;) Just remember that if you don't implement it passionately on every level of your message, it can become distorted by the one wrong thing. You might be able to sell through that, but it is always a challenge compared to clicking right away. Sounds hard, but you have to get everything right to click.

What I think is actually a lot more probable in real life, is that you will accidentally get it right while you're trying get it right. Because what prospects most want to see, is that you really are genuinely pursuing to get everything right for them. Some crudeness or mistakes in the message can be the actual evidence of your intentions for them, or cute or cool, or make you more human, or indicate the right price range for them. So, always keep on trying to create the best sales message in every way, and they will eventually choose to contact you.

Antti Sipilä, CEO, Oneminstory.

Video Message

Kristian Ranta of Mendor delivering one of the first Video Messages

We have a new thing called a Video Message. You can now book a 30 min session from our office studio and do your thing. We'll make sure you'll perform and look great. Send in some photos, slides or a video for visualisation; and your video is done within 48 hours.


Here's a few examples:


Aalto Android
Dealdash
Mendor


The pricing of a Video message is 790 € + vat.
Get -25% when you order 3 or more.


Don't worry about it, just do it.
- Antti. 


To book, email me, or call +358 45 6733369.

Texture of your operation

When choosing a new business service partner, what do we look to find in its marketing material? Quality, its a given. But furthermore, we try to see through the marketing material to envision what kind of people and operations could actually exist behind the material. The feeling and the texture of the operation, and its subjective relevance can and will be determined by an experienced businessperson, just by looking at the marketing material.

A single video, done right, can concisely carry a multifaceted reflection of the core of your business, including its spirit, and create emotional momentum to take action upon.
So get the video from a company who can see and respect the actual core of your business, and has the ability to bring it out for all to see in flying colors.  You know where.

Engagement or Enragement?

Engaging an audience means that the audience is listening and making a psychological investment to follow and understand your message.

How to get there?

It helps if you can offer a reasonable proposition for the audience to take action and invest at least the minimal energy and time to follow your message. This proposition is mainly done in the packaging and the choice of medium of your message.
One minute video is the best form for a business message in the digital world, because its audience knows how much time and attention they are being asked for. Compared to suggestions like: "Read more", "Like this" or "Go to our website". See, being engaged is a decision.

A well made ( it is offered by you, -dah), short ( they can see the counter) video has a positive "Easy and exiting" -expectation attached to it by default. If on the other hand, you do not deliver the expected entertainment or information in your video, you could create frustration instead.

You have to take some risk to not be boring. You should not take an extra risk by creating a video without an outside view. It is very easy to go blind or biased for the subject or the effect of a video. So please, don't order a video from the "guy that works in our company and has a video camera", when you can easily order it from the best in the one minute video business!

Antti

Why video?

Have you noticed that rock stars are becoming less interesting to the public? The new rock stars are the entrepreneurs. Steve Jobs is cooler than Gene Simmons today. Both of them have used video throughout their careers. They used video to create an experience that birthed an understanding of a new thing in their audiences. They created a feeling of a game changer that their audience wanted to add to their lives. And then they did it again.

Do you enjoy reading corporate text on a business internet page? Personally, I prefer a slap in the face. It is not sensible to make your customers and partners to do that. Would Steve or Gene do that?

Video is only a single element of a journey to success with a new thing. But it is a premiere, it shows courage like rock star would do, and it is good and reasonable service for your wannabe customers. I don't see a smart way of skipping it or half-assing it. Do you?

Antti Sipilä

CEO, Luoda Production Inc.
Oneminstory is a trademark of Luoda Production Inc.