Share
Consumers are always on the lookout for the next big thing — the product that is going to be better, shinier, and faster than the one they have now. They often get it. This is because new products hit the market all the time.
It can be challenging trying to keep up with all of the new products that are being produced and trying to guess what consumers are shopping for. However, it’s essential to realize that every customer is different. They are looking for products that will make their lives easier or help them with specific pain points.
You might have precisely what they’re looking for, even if it’s not the newest or shiniest product for sale. All you have to do is figure out how to let them know about the products or services you have to offer. That’s when you might consider using feature benefit selling
What Is Feature Benefit Selling?
While these two things are related, they are not the same thing. In essence, here’s how they break down:
- Features are the physical characteristics of your products. They are the things that customers can touch, see, or smell. In essence, features describe your products.
- Benefits are the results your customers get from using your products. These explain how the product can help them with a problem that they might have in their everyday life.
For example, say you sell laptops. The product features are the device itself, the software, keyboard, screen, and other parts that your customers will use. The benefits of your laptop will vary.
You may be selling a laptop specifically to gamers, so the benefits of them buying your product over a competitor might be that you have the most up-to-date graphics card that is so advanced, it will make them feel like they are in the game.
Traditionally, companies sold their products by highlighting the features. While this approach might still work for some items, people are looking for products that will make their life easier, and benefit selling helps with this process.
Using Benefit Selling to Your Advantage
There are numerous ways you can use benefit selling to your advantage. The most important part of the process is knowing who you are trying to sell your product to. Knowing this gives you the ability to tailor your marketing messages and campaigns in ways that will grab their attention.
Maybe you need to use email marketing or social media posts to let customers know about the benefits of your product. Perhaps creating a video or engaging in telemarketing campaigns is the best option. There are pros and cons of telemarketing, as well as with the other options you have at your disposal.
When it comes to benefit selling, you want to show your customers what your product can do for them. Often, the best way to achieve this is through photos or video, but it’s certainly not the only way. Testimonials can work as well.
Focus on the Consumer
Your company no doubt spent a lot of time and effort to create the product or service that your customers want and need. Trying to point this out to them is futile. They don’t care. All they care about is how your product is going to make their life better. Thus, when developing your marketing campaigns, this is something you need to keep in mind.
One of the easiest ways to think about the process is to imagine that you are creating an infomercial. While the product and its features are shown, the main focus is on how the product makes life easier for the consumer. You need to create an emotional response in your audience, as this will drive them to buy your product.
Determine What the Benefits Are
When it comes to determining the benefits of your product, the best course of action to take is to ask the consumers. Different people will also use your product or service for various reasons. To ensure you are tailoring your message to the right audience, you need to know what they are looking for.
Going back to the earlier example of selling laptops, as mentioned, you might be targeting it toward gamers because it has a great graphics card. However, you might also find that graphic designers can use the device because the software will make it easier for them to see the finished product in bright, crisp colors.
Knowing this allows you to create different campaigns that target different consumers. You’re still selling the same product, but it benefits people in a variety of ways. Letting them know this may be just what you need to drive sales.
Figuring Out the Best Way to Sell What You Have to Offer
Benefit selling comes with a lot of advantages, but depending on your product, feature selling might be the better angle to take. It’s also possible that highlighting the features and benefits will get consumers interested in your products or services.
Knowing which approach to take can be confusing. Thus, it might be in your best interest to get help with this endeavor. At E-Marketing Associates, we have the skills and expertise to help your business succeed in a variety of different ways. Whether you are looking to connect the dots with features and benefits or you need SEO for small business, we can help, so get in touch with us today!
Alone, features and benefits mean nothing to your prospect. Yet, together, they connect the dots to create a story that resonates with their needs. It is a perfect combination that will sell every single time. Still, so many sales professionals struggle to translate the features of their offering into benefits. The result? They lose out to competitors who know how to tell customers exactly what’s in it for them. So if you’re struggling to tell your customer why they should be beating down your door with their credit card. Read on to discover what the difference between features vs benefits is. Then learn how to transform them into something relatable that sells.
Also read:
What is a Feature?
Features are statements about your product, for example, what it does, its dimensions, or specifications
What is a Benefit?
Benefits show what a product can accomplish for the prospective buyer and answer the only question they care about, “what’s in it for me?.”
Features Vs. Benefits: What’s the Difference?
For example, the technical specs on a mobile phone might not make sense to a customer unless they’re familiar with them. However, the benefit of having a fast phone that can store many photos, videos and music is something that any mobile phone owner can relate to. Below, we break down the features vs. benefits statements:
Also read: Sales Training for Technology Companies | Curated SaaS & IT Programs
Why is Understanding Features vs. Benefits Important?
Many salespeople have the problem that they confuse benefits and features for each other, and even worse – confuse them for advantages.
Advantages are at an intermediary level between features and benefits; they are effectively what the feature does to benefit the buyer.
Ultimately, the reason they’re so important is that by understanding the difference, you can give your prospective customers a compelling reason that resonates with them so much so that they part with their hard-earned cash. Remember, customers, buy for value, not specifications or technical jargon.
How to Transform Features into Benefits That Sell
Customers don’t buy benefits, features, or advantages – they buy emotions. That’s why to sell your product or service effectively; you need to show versus tell your audience the benefits of your product vs telling them about the features. Features function on a factual level rather than an emotional one – so they are often hard to understand. Read on below to discover how to transform features into benefits that sell.
1. Know Who You’re Talking To
To sell effectively, particularly in a B2B, corporate, or enterprise selling situation, you need to know who your audience is – and what their primary challenge or problem is. Before planning any benefits statements, think about their key concerns and desired outcomes. If you can clearly understand who your audience is and tailor your message to those people in that room, you’ll be well on your way to closing more of these sales.
2. Become a Product Expert
There’s good news and bad news. I’ll start with the bad news. Buyers have more choices available to them now than ever before. And those choices complicate the buying process.
Now the good news! Becoming a product expert will simplify and shorten the buying process. Your customers want to know how your product is tested, modified, and retested, so much so that performance data and specifications are essential to most prospects. They also often want information about maintenance and service contracts. You should be able to supply accurate price and delivery information about your products (and those of your competitors).
So how do you become a product expert? Read your brochures, pamphlets, catalogues and advertisements. Go on a plant tour to see firsthand how your products are produced. Talk to other people in your organization: salespeople, customer service people, delivery people. Talk to your customers. Who knows more about your products than your customers? Listen to them. Have you tried your products? Using your products and carefully evaluating them will improve your product knowledge and confidence.
If your products are more complex and expensive, you’re more likely to get a favourable response (especially in B2B selling) if your proposal contains return-on-investment (ROI) selling appeals. In the eyes of your customer, you are the business, so be prepared to share the history and mission of your organization and keep in touch by providing service after the sale.
3. Use “So What?” Charts
Yes, it would help if you focused on selling the benefits rather than the features – but truthfully, it goes a little deeper than that. As you develop your message, you’ll start to realise that the benefits of your features are merely describing what they do for the user – whereas you need to be crafting more profound benefits than that. The way to do this is to use “so what” charts. Take a look at some examples below:
| Product/Service | Feature | Surface Benefit | Deeper Benefit |
| Insurance Broker | Over 30 years of experience | Knowledgable and trusted. | You can relax knowing you’ll get the best possible deal suited to you that’s created by experts. |
| Software | An artificial intelligence algorithm | A user experience suited to your needs. | View your data when you need it, without being overloaded with numbers. |
| Internet provider | 12 Mbps download speed | Download your files quickly. | Spend less time waiting for your Netflix episodes to load – and spend more time enjoying them! |
| IT support | 24/7 live expert agent support | Access to expert advice anytime. | IT problems won’t affect your work. You’ll solve them in minutes by chatting online or picking up the phone. |
| Hotel | Located in a central area. | Travel around the area in minutes. | Forget having to navigate an unknown city; relax and enjoy the attractions on your doorstep. |
| Food delivery | Delivered within 30 minutes of placing order. | Get your food quickly. | No one wants to wait for food, so you won’t! By the time you’ve got your plates ready, it will have arrived. |
4. Refine The Message with Bridge Statements
Lastly, take your deeper benefits and features and start crafting bridge statements to help connect your customer’s mental dots. For example:
“We offer SLG (Service Level Guarantees) with a monthly Service Availability of 99.0% [feature], which means [bridge] you’ll have ‘always on’ connectivity in your business [benefit]”.
Final Word: Gain the Skills To Tell Prospects ‘What’s in it for them’
Gain the foundational sales skills everyone in sales needs to master with Selling Your Solution Training, whether asking the right questions to uncover problems, presenting your solution effectively, tactfully overcoming objections or presenting so efficiently that closing becomes easy.
We equip participants with the knowledge and application skills to assess customer needs better, adopt a consultative selling approach, and avoid losing deals by not proposing inadequate solutions.