Your Product is an Experience!

Imagine this:
A man scoops up a big slice of pizza with his hand, and as he pulls it closer towards his mouth fat strings of mozzarella cheese drip around the slice and cling stickily to the rest of the pie on his plate. The man takes a bite, and more hot cheese oozes out, while thick red sauce and golden brown pepperoni and round juicy mushrooms bunch up against his mouth.

Now how about this:
A woman in a trench coat walks through a foggy drizzle, then pauses underneath a street lamp. She looks down at a creased card with the words "meet me" in her hand. When she looks up again the fog seems to lift, and she sees him -- standing cold and unsure in front of the French cafй. He sees her and smiles, then at the same moment they run towards each other and embrace on the cobbled street. As they dissolve into a kiss the drizzle disappears, and shy beams of sunlight begin falling on the poignant Eiffel tower, watching over them and the cafй and all the lovers in the world.


Now, these may seem like the kind of images you usually see on tv commercials. As a matter of fact, they ARE.

But as marketers lets give them each a closer look, and find out what makes them affect not just our minds, but also places in our stomachs and our hearts.

The first image is asking you to order their pizza. The second is asking you to make flight reservations to Paris. Both are offering you tangible products & services.

But what theyre really selling you on -- and what their images vividly show -- are the EXPERIENCES they promise youll get when you purchase what they offer.

Because although emotions are at the heart of all human decisions, its EXPERIENCE that catalyzes all emotion. And knowing that can help you win most any round of this marketing game.


YOUR Product Is An Experience
-----------------------------
Our lives are made up of strings of experiences, and theyre what define ourmemories, awaken our feelings, and influence our decisions both personal & professional.

As business owners, we need to understand that when clients start asking about our products, theyre really not that interested in speed, gigabytes, or all the flashy buttons (although they might seem to at first).

At the heart of all their questions they really need just one answer: How is your product going to affect their lives?

And this question can only be answered by describing the experience.


Fairy Tales and Coffee Mugs
---------------------------
Disney initially defined itself as a maker of cartoons, then eventually went into other business ventures as well.

But now whether you think about movies, or toys, or a trip to Disneyland, you are clearly aware that Disney consistently promises you the same kind of experience:
The chance to have fun, to play, to make believe and be a child again.

And for many adults this is an experience worth saving for, or travelling hundreds of miles for -- making Disney a leader in its field, and a phenomenon in the marketing
industry.

But suppose youre not as big as Disney, and are offering something that many other entrepreneurs also have the ability to offer?

This was the situation for most coffee shop owners before Starbucks entered the scene.

Although they offered the same thing (coffee & pastries) in essentially the same way (in cups and plates), Starbucks made its mark by opening shop in the busiest cities and promising urbanites a distinct experience:

The chance to break away from the chaos of city life, sink into a quiet couch with a steaming cup of coffee, and relax the hours away without anyone bothering them or asking them to leave.


Your Turn
---------
Based on these examples, you can see how its entirely possible to turn any feature into a benefit, and then package all your benefits into an emotional experience.

The question now is, how do you work in this image / message / promise into your marketing materials?

Here are 3 ways:

1) Show.
Experience your product through the eyes/ears/nose/skin of your client, then translate those sensations into an image they can understand.

This "image" may be an actual photo, a video, or a compelling paragraph of words. Use them on your website, in your ezine, on your pop under ads -- and make sure you
truly deliver on your promise, so first-time clients become long term patrons, who in turn tell others of their experiences with you.

2) Testify.
When you use client testimonials, you actually give potential customers the most convincing evidence for buying your products: actual accounts of other peoples positive experiences with you.

Because a testimonial comes from someone outside of your company, it quickly eliminates most prospects doubts, because theyre more inclined to accept its true.

3) Demonstrate.
With the interactive capabilities of the Internet, its now easier more than ever to actually let potential clients get a first-hand taste of what youre offering before asking them to commit to a purchase decision.

This act of giving them full control of the process is a positive experience (for them) in itself, usually leading to a satisfying ending -- both for the client, and for you.


So no matter what youre offering -- whether its widgets or ebooks or software or potato chips -- people will always remember if buying & using it was enjoyable, or easy, or frustrating, or fun.

And THAT first experience is what could make them want to do it all over again and help you convince others who havent tried it to say YES.

© Tatiana Velitchkov

About the Author:

Tatiana is the publisher of: www.TheFortunesEzine.com, the FortunesEzineWeekly at www.TakeYourFortune.com, and owner of the traffic-solution slam advertising
sites www.Guaranteed-Hits.com and www.Guaranteed-Hits.net

info@guaranteed-hits.net
www.Guaranteed-Hits.com