This post is about the massive popular marketing *wisdom* that also happens to backfire spectacularly when applied to corporate clients.
I’m talking about the advice to frame your offer as a “painkiller” to get a client to buy.
In the online marketing space, it’s commonly said that people are more likely to take a painkiller than a vitamin, meaning you should make sure your offer is pitched as a painkiller, marketing to the pain your customer is feeling.
But when it comes to corporate clients, this strategy is rarely a good idea.
So why doesn’t this strategy work?
Because, when you push hard on the “pain” with your corporate prospect, there is a really good chance that they will shut down and tell you that actually, they have it all in hand.
That, actually, they are already doing things to sort out the issue your offer deals with. And that in any case, it’s not such a big deal for them.
So first, you need to understand how corporate decision-makers think.
They know they have a challenge.
But they also feel that it should be up to THEM to solve it. That they should have ALL the answers.
Getting them to open up and admit that they have a challenge where they DON’T have all the answers is akin to asking them to admit they are not good at their job…
(I don’t need to tell you that for obvious reasons, THAT is not a great idea if you want to work with them, right?)
3 better strategies to implement instead
Here are three things you can do instead:
– Start the conversation off by asking them in what area they would like to do better – this seeds the assumption they are already doing well, but everyone wants to improve right?
– Talk about the pain your offer solves in terms of “others in the industry struggle with X, ever have this in your company?” – because this normalizes having the challenge.
– Describe the challenge in very tangible, undeniable ways that everyone can agree to, e.g there are too many meetings, too many emails, etc. When they agree they notice these challenges, it becomes easier to link back to the bigger issue and your offer.
Get in touch
In my mentorship programs, I show you how to talk to prospects so they cannot wait to get your help and buy your offer.
Let’s talk; DM me and we’ll have a chat about what is the best fit for you.
#sales #b2b
