Quick question – if you asked 5 people what you do, what are the chances you’d get 5 different answers?

If you get 5 different answers, that’s a problem.  Actually, if you don’t get the same answer from all 5, that’s a problem.

More specifically, it’s a brand message problem and to be clear, it’s not your customer’s problem, it’s YOUR problem. 

Because if people can’t understand what it is you do, you’ve lost them.  That’s because clarity attracts and confusion repels.

A clear brand message is the foundation of all great marketing. But when most people think marketing they think cool logos, the latest social media trends, flashy brand campaigns, paid ads, and all the shiny stuff that’s “fun”. 

But none of that matters without a clear brand message. That’s because the one common element to all great marketing is the words you use IN your marketing. 

So how do you come up with a clear brand message so more customers pay attention to what you have to say? 

Simple. The 3 P’s: Promise – Problem – Picture

THE 3 P’S OF CLEAR, COMPELLING BRAND MESSAGES

PROMISE 

The promise is what you tell your customers you’ll be able to help them achieve or get.  But it can’t just be anything.  It has to be the #1 big outcome they’re looking for.

So ask yourself, what’s the #1 big outcome your customers want, as it relates to your product or service, you promise you can give them?

Not the 3 things, the 5 things, or the 10 things your customers want. It’s the 1 big d@mn outcome they really, really, reallllly want you promise your product or service can deliver for them.  

Like it or not, we get remembered for 1 thing.  

Case in point: did you know if you only looked at the revenue generated from apparel at Nike, they’d be one of the largest apparel companies in the world?  Seriously.  Revenue from apparel alone in 2022 at Nike was $13B! Did you know that?  That’s just the clothes they sell, not the shoes.  And despite that, Nike gets remembered for one thing: sneakers.

Your goal is to get remembered for that 1 big thing your customers want.

So nail down the one big thing they’re looking for that’s top of mind for them.  When you talk about that thing they’re looking for and communicate it clearly, you cut through all the noise out and you stand out because you create a sense of desire.

PROBLEM

Once you’ve identified the 1 big outcome your customers want, you need to talk about why they can’t get it….the problem.

Our brains are hardwired to be on the lookout for things that could harm us or hurt us, i.e. problems.  So if you don’t talk about the problems your customers have, they’re tuning you out. 

And when you talk about the problem your customers are dealing with as it relates to your product or service, you can position your product as the solution that helps them get the big outcome they’re looking for. Now we’re talking!

There are two parts to the problem you’re trying to nail down

1. The external problem – the thing that’s holding them back from getting what they want.
2. The internal problem – how that external problem makes them feel.  Facts get forgotten, but feelings get remembered.  That’s what motivates customers to act.

PICTURE 

After you’ve nailed the promise and the problem, the last thing left is the picture.  

What I mean is, you have to paint a picture of what life looks like after buying from you. And there are two scenarios you need to paint:

1. The successes – what positive things will they get and experience after buying?
2. The failures – what are the negative consequences of inaction?

It can’t all just be rainbows and unicorns when talking about your product or service.  One of the greatest obstacles to moving your customers to purchase is status quo bias.  Their bias to keep doing what they’re doing, even if there’s a better solution out there because inaction is easier than action for most of us.

If your customers can’t see what life looks like and where you’re taking them, they won’t buy. 

Paint a picture of their future and they’ll follow.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:

Now that you know the 3 P’s.  Let’s do a little exercise. Take a few minutes and write down your answers to the following questions:

1. Promise:

-What’s the 1 big outcome you promise you can deliver to your customers?

2. Problem: 

-Why can’t they get that outcome?

-How does that make them feel?

3.Picture:

-What are 3 successful benefits of using your product or service?

-What are 3 failures of inaction?  What will they continue to struggle with?

To answer these questions reflect on conversations you have with your customers.  They’re telling you what they want to hear, you just need to tune in.  Keep your answers simple, clear, and jargon-free and you have the foundation for a clear brand message.

When you nail your brand message, it’s what you say on your website, presentations, emails, sales decks, in networking, taglines, one-liners, and pretty much every point of contact with your customers.