Adwords works. Here’s a great example of how one business are using Adwords to present the alternative and win attention.
‘I’m thinking grey…’ and at that moment I was presented with around 75 shades of grey.
Now I know how people become inspired to write books.
It appears that ‘grey’ isn’t an option when it comes to decorating a room in my house. I have to be far more specific. But then, when I’m staring at rows upon rows of grey paint, I’m still none the wiser. No closer to making a decision.
I just wanted grey!
As a consumer you can become overwhelmed by choice. As a business owner you can create more problems than you solve. You ask ‘which shade of grey?’ as you present a palette of too many choices.
And it’s understandable why. You have 3 options.
1.) You offer every shade of grey. The greater the choice, the greater the likelihood of purchase. You label your business ‘specialists in grey’.
2.) You position your business as one of the many shades of grey. You take ownership of your shade. Knowing, at least, your descriptive ‘grey’ will make the cut. You’ll be in the running to win new business for the consumer of grey.
3.) You sell black and white. You give your consumer the DIY option to create for themselves.
Do I want to buy grey paint, or do I really want grey walls?
There is the 4th option.
This is the territory of the smarter business leader. They influence without concession. They head upstream and make you rethink.
I’m researching podcast editing for an upcoming podcast and throwing myself down a whole new learning path. How do you create a podcast? I understand the talking bit. You make that as memorable as possible. The other bits? this is new. This is my ‘grey’.
So I search for ‘podcast editing’ in hope of a friendly easy-to-comprehend blog post, or even better, ebook.
That’s when I learned about Scrubcast. One simple ad (yes, Adwords can and will still work for your business):
Scrubcast did something clever. They associated their product with the outcome I’m looking to achieve. They didn’t sell the paint, they sold the finished article ( the decorator, the designer, the choices I needed to make) … They owned the alternative process.
Look at that headline – ‘Taking the frustrations out of podcasting’. Straightaway they’re telling me what I already kind of knew. I’m in a territory where my time is better spent ‘doing’. I do the recording. They’ll ‘handle the rest’.
This is a great example of:
1.) Understanding your consumer.
2.) Challenging your consumers’ understanding.
3.) Pitching your service right at the pain point. The frustration.
It’s point 2 where we tread most carefully. You always want to tell your customers they’re right. To get them nodding along to your list of bullet points. But, that’s wrong. We (as consumers) are out there looking for advice and direction (and leadership).
Scrubcast could, I’m sure, offer me a service where they’ll provide space to host the podcast and guidance to help me edit the podcast. Instead, they offer me a solution. A solution that removes frustration. One that tells me ‘you focus on what you know, we’ll focus on what we know’.
Smart marketing, isn’t it?
Don’t be afraid to offer the alternative. Be bold and own the alternative. Place your Google Ads upstream of where people are currently thinking. Build your content around the frustrations your consumers feel. Take ownership of your alternative.
Your audience are looking for help and advice. Where everybody else is offering the software, you offer the solution.
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