One Thing to Bring Them All and in The Business Bind Them

The Mystery of the Marketing Trilogy Part 3

“So Watson, when last we met you had deduced that something was missing. We had provided a ‘Why’ our prospect should be interested and we had told them ‘What’ was required to address said ‘Why’. Yet, something was missing. Now what would that be Watson?” The Detective prompted.

“Well, sir, how would I go about doing this ‘What’ that you described?” I asked.

“Exactly, Watson! The How! The third part of the trilogy! That is what some percentage of your prospects will pay for! Once they understand why this is important to them, and what to do, some will not possess the knowledge or skill to know how to go about doing the ‘What’; some of them will just want someone to do it for them.

“Without the first two steps though, the ‘Why’ they should care, and the ‘What’ to do to address it – and this content is so often missing from presentations, you cannot build the urgency, and you cannot build their trust and confidence in you. Many presenters are so afraid that some people will go off on their own, that they actually give virtually no content, mostly just teasers. What they don’t realize is they are driving away a large number of people, because they do not make their case convincingly.” The Detective finished with a flourish.

“But sir, what about the ones that think they already know how, and go off on their own without taking you up on your ‘How’?” I interjected.

“Well Watson, those people will generally break into one of two camps. The first we will call The Successful Doers. They will scurry off with the information you have given them, execute on it, and most likely will encounter some, or possibly a good amount of success. They will often return to you for more information, and may just encounter something you are offering that they can’t do for themselves or will see the wisdom in working with you, and feeling that you know from whence you speak, engage you to help them. The second we will call The Not Ready Yets. Their businesses or lives may not quite be ready for what you are offering. They may not be able to afford your service or product, or are still debating the value. They will most likely dabble a bit with what you have given them, and have just a  small amount, if any, success. They also have a high probability of returning for other pieces of information you are giving out, and hopefully at some point they will find a price point they can handle, or encounter just enough success to properly engage you and will move forward like The Successful Doers.”

“It seems like a distinctly win-win situation, sir.” I said enthusiastically.

“Admittedly Watson, there is a third camp: The Takers. They will always come to hear you, take what you give, and never become your customer. Luckily, they are more rare than you would expect.

“The overall effect though is quite advantageous to all parties. Your audience gets ideas to work with, and if they desire, the help they need, you gain a well deserved reputation for being knowledgeable in your field, and most likely, more than a few clients. A definite win-win.”

“An objective well suited for a professional, sir,” I responded.

“Quite so, Watson, quite so.”