Rule #1: Know What You're Selling!

Rule #2: Be certain to know what your customers are buying. 

I'm always amazed when I see ads and other marketing materials that break those rules. If you're going to pay to advertise, be sure that your ads are working hard for you. Remember: We buy benefits, not features. 

Here's a simple example. Every spring, the newspapers fill up with ads for new mowers and tractors. So ask yourself which of these hypothetical headlines and subheads would be more likely to make you salivate over a new mower:

Jim's Mower Shop 

We're The Largest Shop 

In The Eastern Quadrant 

Of the Tri-County Region 

or

Slash Your Mowing Time 

By 74% This Summer 

With a Really Big Mower

Here's The Mowdown 

On This Year's Fantastically Fast 

New Models

The obvious answer is that the second headline and subhead will grab your attention because they address your wants and needs. They give you a reason to get excited about a mower. 

So keep these simple concepts in mind when you create marketing materials:

• Consumers buy benefits, not features.

• What you're selling isn't always the same as what people are hoping to buy. 

Follow The Write Route To Success

Yes, technology has changed how we communicate, but technology hasn't changed the need to communicate clearly and effectively. In fact, the speed of modern life has actually made the ability to write well more important than it's ever been. 

We're all just a mouse click away from oblivion. If a website is difficult to read, that click will come quickly. If marketing materials brag about how wonderful the business is, potential customers will instantly move on. If a magazine article is boring, readers won't finish it. If an email is full of misspelled words and grammatical errors, the sender of the email will create a negative impression of himself...or of herself.

The ability to write powerfully is a huge advantage in business. 

So check back here regularly for writing tips and for quizzes that will show you just how well you can handle this magnificent language called English. 

Sil Simpson

Lancaster, PA