Five Ways to Test Your Sales Messaging for Greatness
Five Ways to Test Your Sales Messaging for Greatness
You’re not alone. According to a recent poll by BtoB Magazine, 70% of the marketing people gave themselves a “D” or an “F” grade on how well they prepare and provide sales support messaging and materials.
Use these five tests listed below to make sure your sales messaging is great or use them as objective evaluation criteria in a discussion with your marketing team. The tests assume that you understand how sales messaging is different from other messaging types, that you know your buyer’s primary buying questions and that the sales messaging is appropriate for your product’s life cycle and sales cycle.
#1: Great Sales Messaging Must Communicate Key Differentiation Points
Most messaging does not clearly differentiate how your solution is better than the buyer’s current solution, nor does it clearly differentiate how your solution is better than the competitor’s solution. Great sales messaging must provide concrete answers to your buyer’s questions: How will my life be better if I buy this product from just anyone? How will my life be better if I buy this product from you rather than from your competitor?
Great sales messaging uses one or more of the five differentiators that are of most interest to your buyers:
Differentiator - Message
Time: You will save time.
Money: You will save money.
Risk: You will reduce the risk of wasting time and money.
Strategic: You will gain market share, better margins, or return on assets.
Personal: You will get a bonus, promotion, or recognition.
Does your sales messaging appeal to the buyer’s primary interests?
#2: Great Sales Messaging Must Include Sharply Contrasting Adjectives
Consider the following two statements:
a. Our widget is one of the fastest on the market
b. Our widget has been tested to be the fastest you can buy
Which statement is more compelling?
Another example:
a. Silver Bullet Group is a leading provider of sales messaging solutions
b. Silver Bullet Group is the global leader in sales messaging solutions
Many neuroscience studies have concluded that the brain comprehends best when presented with clear contrasts between opposites like black and white, best and worst, fastest and slowest. That’s why great sales messaging must include sharply contrasting adjectives such as Only, Fastest, Easiest, Most, Best, etc., in order to clearly differentiate your solution from the competition’s.
Does your sales messaging use sharply contrasting adjectives?
#3: Great Sales Messaging Must Quantify the Differences
Quantification is another strategy to clearly differentiate your solution from the customer’s current solution and from competitive alternatives. For example, can you change:
• “Reduce network cost” to “reduce network cost by 15% or more”?
• “Unmatched performance” to “25% better network performance”?
Does your sales messaging quantify the differences?
#4: Great Sales Messaging Makes Claims That No Other Company Can Make
You are competing with so many messages in the marketplace that to truly stand out from your competition, your company must be the only one able to make the claims you do. If your competition is saying the same things as you, your messaging will not rise above the others and buyers will perceive it as “Me Too.” It must be very easy for your buyers to see you as different — and as the best of all competitive options and vendors. For example, you can change “great service” to “rated #1 in service with 98.7% customer satisfaction score.”
Does your sales messaging make claims that no other company can make?
#5: Great Sales Messaging Is Validated
While some companies do make claims that no other company makes, they often then fail to ensure that those claims address the buyer’s needs. They have not asked their customers, “Why did you buy from us?”. What do you like and/or dislike about our messaging? What would you change and why?
Instead, they believe that they know what their customers want and thus fail to listen to the voice of the customer. For instance, a company may tout its car as having the best acceleration (the zero-to-sixty factor) in its class when their buyers care more about gas mileage and reliability. It’s crucially important that you validate your sales messaging.
Does your sales messaging get validated by customers as relevant to their needs?
Five Ways to Test Your Sales Messaging for Greatness - To learn more about this author, visit Michael Cannon's Website.
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So you think you or your marketing team creates great sales messaging. Or, maybe you’re not happy with your current messaging, are unsure how best to improve it, or not certain how to constructively communicate with your team why you don’t feel right about the messaging.
You’re not alone. According to a recent poll by BtoB Magazine, 70% of the marketing people gave themselves a “D” or an “F” grade on how well they prepare and provide sales support messaging and materials.
Use these five tests listed below to make sure your sales messaging is great or use them as objective evaluation criteria in a discussion with your marketing team. The tests assume that you understand how sales messaging is different from other messaging types, that you know your buyer’s primary buying questions and that the sales messaging is appropriate for your product’s life cycle and sales cycle.
#1: Great Sales Messaging Must Communicate Key Differentiation Points
Most messaging does not clearly differentiate how your solution is better than the buyer’s current solution, nor does it clearly differentiate how your solution is better than the competitor’s solution. Great sales messaging must provide concrete answers to your buyer’s questions: How will my life be better if I buy this product from just anyone? How will my life be better if I buy this product from you rather than from your competitor?
Great sales messaging uses one or more of the five differentiators that are of most interest to your buyers:
Differentiator - Message
Time: You will save time.
Money: You will save money.
Risk: You will reduce the risk of wasting time and money.
Strategic: You will gain market share, better margins, or return on assets.
Personal: You will get a bonus, promotion, or recognition.
Does your sales messaging appeal to the buyer’s primary interests?
#2: Great Sales Messaging Must Include Sharply Contrasting Adjectives
Consider the following two statements:
a. Our widget is one of the fastest on the market
b. Our widget has been tested to be the fastest you can buy
Which statement is more compelling?
Another example:
a. Silver Bullet Group is a leading provider of sales messaging solutions
b. Silver Bullet Group is the global leader in sales messaging solutions
Many neuroscience studies have concluded that the brain comprehends best when presented with clear contrasts between opposites like black and white, best and worst, fastest and slowest. That’s why great sales messaging must include sharply contrasting adjectives such as Only, Fastest, Easiest, Most, Best, etc., in order to clearly differentiate your solution from the competition’s.
Does your sales messaging use sharply contrasting adjectives?
#3: Great Sales Messaging Must Quantify the Differences
Quantification is another strategy to clearly differentiate your solution from the customer’s current solution and from competitive alternatives. For example, can you change:
• “Reduce network cost” to “reduce network cost by 15% or more”?
• “Unmatched performance” to “25% better network performance”?
Does your sales messaging quantify the differences?
#4: Great Sales Messaging Makes Claims That No Other Company Can Make
You are competing with so many messages in the marketplace that to truly stand out from your competition, your company must be the only one able to make the claims you do. If your competition is saying the same things as you, your messaging will not rise above the others and buyers will perceive it as “Me Too.” It must be very easy for your buyers to see you as different — and as the best of all competitive options and vendors. For example, you can change “great service” to “rated #1 in service with 98.7% customer satisfaction score.”
Does your sales messaging make claims that no other company can make?
#5: Great Sales Messaging Is Validated
While some companies do make claims that no other company makes, they often then fail to ensure that those claims address the buyer’s needs. They have not asked their customers, “Why did you buy from us?”. What do you like and/or dislike about our messaging? What would you change and why?
Instead, they believe that they know what their customers want and thus fail to listen to the voice of the customer. For instance, a company may tout its car as having the best acceleration (the zero-to-sixty factor) in its class when their buyers care more about gas mileage and reliability. It’s crucially important that you validate your sales messaging.
Does your sales messaging get validated by customers as relevant to their needs?
Five Ways to Test Your Sales Messaging for Greatness - To learn more about this author, visit Michael Cannon's Website.
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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