How One Simple Technical Copywriting Trick Can Double Sales
A good friend of mine is the marketing VP for a company that sells products to people over 65. It’s a multi-million dollar business with hundreds of specialized products.
One such product was what they called a “Lift chair.” Its purpose is to “lift” the person out of the comfy chair and into an upright position. No more struggling to get out of the chair, only to sit back down in frustration.
The product sold well… until, that is, he changed the headline for the product.
It said, ”Lift Chair Lifts You Effortlessly to a Standing Position.”
Everyone assumed that the major benefit of a “Lift Chair” was to “lift” the person to a standing position. Makes sense, doesn’t it?
Well, before I tell you how he changed the headline to double his sales rate on the product, let me ask you this:
When was the last time you asked your customers what they like most about your products?
Why talking to your customers is so danged important
We think we know what our products do, and why people use them. It used to be that people thought cell phones were for making phone calls. So, some companies improved their product features in terms of phone calls.
Then came texting. Savvy companies made it easier for people to send text messages.
Along comes Apple to, if you’ll excuse the pun, upset the apple cart. They brought us the iPhone, which is (sometimes) used for texting and (sometimes) used to make phone calls. The iPhone completely changed the paradigm about cell phones.
Apple discovered that people loved playing games, watching videos, and doing things online – even more so than texting and talking. So, they made it easy for people to do what they most loved doing.
How “Lift Chair” Sales Doubled
Back to my original story…
My friend received a comment from a customer who said it was her “favorite sleeping chair.” Paradigm shift!
He changed the headline to read, “Our Favorite Sleeping Chair.”
That was it. One simple change doubled the sales. He discovered what real people most liked about the chair and simply put that into the headline. Voila! Instant sales increase.
The Point
The point here is simple. Discover what your customers REALLY and truly like most about your products. How do they use it in a way that’s not what you intended or thought?
Once you’ve got the information, try changing your copy to reflect what your customers are saying — in THEIR words. My bet is that your technical copy will get you far better results.
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