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in
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Dear
Reader,
We have been studying the customers that responded to a commercial
which is 60 and 120 seconds long. This ad is not pulling a sufficient
number of calls in order to produce a sufficient number of orders-to
produce a high enough profit. A process (in the direct response
industry) called "TWEAKING" is used by many commercial
producers in order to increase the effectiveness of the commercial, so
we can produce more calls, and thus more orders. In this case, the
client wishes to improve the commercial along with the use of the
information received from the customers profiles.
Created a Customer Telephone Survey 
We initiated a customer survey questionnaire. This questionnaire had
approximately 10 questions. The survey was conducted via the telephone.
We introduced ourselves to the customers as follows: "We are
following up to find out how the use of the product was progressing for
you" and (in a conversational manner) we asked the questions we
wanted the answers too.
It took approximately five days to reach our stated goals which was:
We wanted to see 50 consistent answers to each question we were asking.
We felt once we reached this level of consistency (per each question) we
had uncovered the answer that applied to the greatest number of people
who have the problem we are trying to solve. And these answers would
serve to guide us in formulating the new commercial.
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Real
Results-Guides You Can Rely On |
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The results were fascinating! There were three areas of
knowledge that we discovered: First, what was it about the old
commercial that caused people to respond and buy in the first
place? Second, what was the customers problem(s) that caused
them to pay attention to our commercial in the first place?
Third, what was it that motivated the prospect to pick up the
phone, or go to the website and become a customer? If we could
find answers to these questions wouldn't we be half-way- home in
terms of creating an effective and profit- producing commercial?
Remember we are speaking with actual customers people who
open their wallets and purchased the product.
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The
Hard Facts Lead to Clarification and Super Tweaking |
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We found there were 12 distinct reasons/factors in the
commercials that attracted people's attention and caused them to
respond. Out of these 12 distinct reasons there were 5
significant/dominant reasons why people responded to the
commercial.
We found that there were 16 problems that people stated which
were why they needed this product. And of those 16 problems,
there were only 5 dominant problems that really stood out.
Finally, we discovered there were 14 motivating factors why
these customers picked up the phone or went to a website, and
purchased the product. Of the 14 there were 5 dominant
motivating factors that represented almost everyone.
In conclusion there were 5 factors that really dominated each
of the three areas of concern, and these factors were
representative of the greatest number of people.
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Mismatched
and Misunderstood Equals Low Call Volume and Orders |
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When we listed the top five factors (in each
category/side-by-side/across a piece of paper) something very
frightening happens. The reasons why someone was attracted to
the commercial and responded didn't match up with the people's
perceived problems of why they needed the product and there is a
mismatch between the perceived problem and the motivating
factors of why they buy the product.
Another way to look at it is-people were inventing their own
reasons why it was worthwhile to respond to this commercial even
though the ad didn't really address the problem or encourage the
prospect to go ahead and buy the product! None of the factors
that we learned from the customers were directly addressed in
the ad, rather it was left to the prospect to draw their own
conclusions and order.
The scariest MISMATCH was between the customers attraction to
the commercial and their problem-why they needed the product in
the first place. The reasons why the customers were attracted to
the commercial were unfocused, and really was built upon certain
features of the product rather than the BENEFITS of using the
product.
This mismatch is why there was not enough people responding.
Additionally, a mismatch occurs between the problem and
motivating the customer to solve this problem. There is an
emotional appeal (in the ad) that intimated this product can
help solve the problem, and that was a powerful motivating
factor in people's decisions to buy. However, this was an
indirect appeal, and really not presented in a powerful and
focused way in the ad.
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Learn
The Vision, Create the Vision, and Share The Vision |
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So the survey that we conducted showed us that we needed to
MATCH the message of the commercial to the prospect's problem(s)
with the motivation to buy the product NOW! It seems like an
obvious solution, but when you do not truly understand the
problem, the reasons why a person would be motivated to rid
themselves of the problem-then how could you ever create a
commercial that goes to the heart of the problem/solution and
get the prospects attention to buy your product?
Not only did we understand where fault-lines were in the
commercial, but also how to cure them. We gathered the 5 most
dominant reasons (in each category) that would go into
formulating a message and hot buttons. We took those
messages/hot buttons (that our potential customer really is
concerned about and needs to hear) and formulated ads that
motivate our prospects to buy the product now and solve their
problem. This is real visioning.
Couple this clear and uncompromising knowledge with the
customer profiles that we have gathered (see the last two weeks
newsletter publications), and there is absolutely no stone left
unturned from a marketing point of view. Next week-we'll look at
how all of this information was integrated into a commercial
production and media plan.
Last
Week's Newsletter »
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