Sell the sizzle, not the sausage!

Okay, so it’s a real cliché and I’m sure that Alan Sugar has said this many times in the board room, but as far as advertising your products or services goes, never has a truer word been said!

‘Sizzle’ refers to the benefits. In this example, it refers to the smell and taste…. It certainly doesn’t refer the features (or contents) of a sausage, which you’d probably rather not know! Good marketing messages sell the benefits of your product or service, they don’t tell people everything that you do… People buy benefits, they don’t buy features.

A great example of this is the way that Apple Inc advertises. Considering that their products are so feature driven, it is surprising that they don’t just tell you everything that they do. Instead they show you how this can benefit your everyday life and make you feel all warm and happy inside.

When the iPod was released, it was entering an emerging market with many competitor MP3 products. So what was it that made this product capture such a significant market share? They sold the main benefit of the product: Simplicity of use (or sizzle!

The first time your customers meet you they’re not interested in knowing all about you, your business, your ethos, your mission, where you’re located or what you do. They want to know how you will make their life easier or better. These kinds of messages really do stick in people’s minds. I bet there are advertisements from years ago that you remember word perfectly because you can still remember the sizzle!

Why not get in touch and find out how we can make your products sizzle!