Benefits and features.

Today I received a message from someone on business networking website basically asking if he could be a contact. He just said hi and then listed all the different aspects that his company covered and finished by asking for my opinion. Well I had to be honest with him and told him that I thought his presentation was rubbish. Not once did he try to suggest how I might benefit from his services and products. He has never before contacted me so how can he know anything about me. I was really annoyed by it. I see and hear a similar thing when I go to network meetings. People in their 60 seconds list their features as if the audience is either going to know what they are talking about or just go "wow yes please." Well I've got news for you. It isn't going to happen. This also goes on when someone uses achronyms and terms that only they are likely to know. It does them no good as the audience is left sitting there none the wiser. As a listener I want to know "what will it do for me?" Take some time and watch some televison ads and you'll see what I mean. Hair products for example. How many go into great detail about what they are made of? Not many. Some mention it but most of the time they go on about how sleek and shiny your hair will be. How glamourous you ladies will look if you use their product. Ronseal go on about how quick and easy it is to put on and will protect your wood. Does it mention what it is made of? No.

So how might some other businesses promote themselves? Well an accountant might say that they will ensure that your accounts will be correctly submitted, on time letting you get on with what you need to do, your business. A graphic designer could say they help you stand out from the competition and get noticed. A digital archiving service could say they save you room and help you sleep better knowing your documents are safely recorded and stored. I suppose features sell in the world of cars and technology as some people will buy the latest thing because it has the most modern downloading thingummy. But generally this doesn't work. I don't think so anyway. So when you plan your presentation think about this first, how will the customer/client benefit. Convince them of that and the sale is half done.