How will you love my product? Let me count the ways!

Stop! If you're responsible for product marketing and you've counted past five, you might be headed for big trouble. It's called dilution. Believing that your product or service can be 'all things to all people' is a great measure of your enthusiasm and commitment. But let it stop there--before it becomes an inhibitor to your promotional strategy. Dilution can occur for several reasons. Some common reasons are being too close to the product because you helped develop it, losing perspective because of long-term marketing involvement, or trying to 'one-up' the marketing messages of your competitors.

Try this simple technique to avoid dilution. Gather your marketing team together for a brainstorming session. Ask everyone to contribute to one exhaustive list of product benefits, being careful to include even minor variations. Having completed the list, provide a copy of the list to everyone. Have each participant work independently to define two to four categories under which they can group at least 85% of the benefits. Consider throwing in a special incentive for those who can define non-traditional, but meaningful, categories.

This exercise can provide great fodder for your marketing materials. The new categories can provide the core focus for key product messages. Benefit details from each category can be used to support each key message, but be careful not to overload or dilute the message with too much information. Simplicity is goodness in your core marketing materials. If you feel compelled to provide additional information, provide a supplemental briefing that spells out details for those who have been intrigued by your basic messages. In this world of information overload, spoon-feeding always wins over the onslaught approach.

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