"YOU, baby!

Nobody but YOU!"

As the 60's song goes---it's you, baby.

Don't you feel special when someone wants to make YOU happy? Maybe it's Father's Day or Mother's Day or YOUR birthday - all centered around YOU, baby! You're happy, you're interested, right?

Do you think your customers and prospects feel any differently?

From their perspective they want to know how you are going to make THEM happy or keep THEM satisfied.

In fact, research has shown that 2/3 of customers that stop buying from any company leave because they didn't feel "loved" or "special" or appreciated by that company.

You wouldn't want to lose any customers or potential customers simply because they thought you didn't care, would you? Especially when the economy is heating up and competitors are coming on strong!



One Answer is to "Get Personal"

One extremely easy, highly effective, and almost instantaneous way to make your customers and prospects feel special is by using personal pronouns like "you" and "yours" and "we" and "ours" in your marketing communications and sales efforts.

Does this sound too silly and too trite for you as a sophisticated marketer, sales person or manager?

Well, then, try it yourself.

Read the headlines from a variety of product categories below taken from last week's edition of Business Week and decide which ones make YOU feel more connected, more interested in the payoff. Which ones are more likely to pique your interest?

Communications Software and Devices

VZEMAIL. The best place to work isn't always in the office. - For Blackberry

Work needs to get done at the office. Problem is you're nowhere near the office. - For Siemens

Investment Companies

Undiscovered opportunities can bring value to your portfolio. - For Fidelity Investments

Harold manages growth portfolios. Phil manages value portfolios. They only meet at the water cooler. - For American Century Investments

Enterprise Software

HP runs SAP. - For SAP

If a storm blows in, will your invoices go out? - For Pitney Bowes

If you're like most folks the headlines that include the word "YOU" are more intriguing and more personally interesting than those that don't.



SPEAKING OF YOU...

"We" Gets to Be the Hero

By using the personal pronouns of "you" and "yours" to set up the interest, problem, or pain for the reader you (the writer, advertiser, and seller) can now come in as the hero.

For example, in the Siemens ad (Problem is you're nowhere near the office.) for global networking, the copy of the ad goes on to explain in the third person ("At Siemens…) how the reader's problems are solved by the company's solutions. Hero status is awarded to Siemens.

Taking it up a notch in the closing paragraph, Siemens shifts the copy to the first person ("we at Siemens") which does at least two things for the advertiser:

1. It warms up the conversation and makes it sound like the great Siemens company really cares about "me" the reader,
   
   and more importantly….
   
   
2. It sets Siemens apart from its competition by informing the reader of how they're different. This preemptive approach to copywriting leads the reader to believe Siemens alone delivers these benefits for mobile workers… or at the very least, is the best equipped to do so.

Personal, caring and unique hero status is awarded to Siemens!



Want to Be a Hero?

Talk to your customers about what is important to them. Tell them what the benefits are for them if they buy your product or service. And tell them in a way that makes them feel you really care about them; you know their concerns and pain and that you alone can solve their issues.

Get personal and get more sales! It's as easy as playing that old song in your head.

Call us if you need help "getting personal" with your customers. We know a lot of techniques to create - and keep - more customers for you.

Mosaic creates customers for business-to-business companies through specific project work, on-going retainer assignments or marketing coaching sessions.

Rosemary Walter
847-483-5018
Rose1Walter@MosaicMM.com

Quote of the Month

© 2004 Rosemary Walter, all rights reserved. You are free to use material from Mosaic's Monthly Marketing Tips in whole or in part, as long as you include complete attribution, including live website link. Please also notify me where the material will appear. The attribution should read:

"By Rosemary Walter of Mosaic Marketing Management, Inc. Please visit Rosemary's web site at http://www.MosaicMM.com for additional marketing articles and resources on marketing for business to business companies."