I was digging through some old comic books this morning and came across this classic of an ad. You probably recognize it. It’s been parodied and played upon for years and years and years. And it’s also made absolutely millions for “Charles Atlas” and his publishing company.
It’s also a great example of the “What are you really selling?” principle.
When I sit down with my consulting clients, the first question I almost always ask is “What are you selling?” And my clients usually spout something off about widgets or wombats or massages or “solutions” (God, I hate that word.) I let them talk. I let them prattle a bit. And then, when I think they’re just about out of steam, I jump in with “Ok, that’s great, but what are you really selling?”
Take a look at the Atlas ad, for instance. What he’s selling is nothing more than a book–a “complete body building class” that’s probably a hundred loosely bound pages of leg presses and squat thrusts based around the principles of “dynamic tension.”
But what is he really selling?
Pride. Power. Sex. In no ambiguous terms, this ad says “Buy this course (and no, we aren’t going to give you details on the course here, you’ll have to send us 2 bucks to learn more about it) and you’ll be ‘The hero of the beach.’”
Which is a pretty compelling promise. It’s a pretty big one to keep. But this ad–or ads very similar to it–have run for years and years and years in the back of comic books and magazines.
Honestly, I could spend another hour digging through and picking out things this ad does right (the “surgeon general” bit at the bottom right corner is a gem, as is the fact that they don’t try to sell the course in the ad, they just try to get you to send in for more info–a great example of the “How much are you asking for?” principle which I’ll dive into in another post.), but instead I’ll just point you toward charlesatlas.com and leave you with this little question: What are you really selling?
P.S. It might look old timey, but I found this ad in a comic published in 2001 (hence the website.) The Atlas folks know they’re famous for their ads, and they’re smart enough not to mess with a good thing.
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My platonic life partner in marketing Dominic Canterbury found this plastered across the window of a car yesterday.
Talk about knowing your niche. This guy’s got the “piece of crap car about to fall apart” market cornered and doesn’t waste even one second talking to people who wouldn’t be interested in his service. Does it take him more effort to reach each customer? Probably, but I bet his return rate is freaking astronomical.
Good job, Tom. Good job!!
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July, 2006
Hey, folks. Welcome back to the HWW newsletter. I’m feeling worn out and weary after spending the weekend pumping out pulsatingly powerful plays for 14/48: The World’s quickest theatre festival and the last couple of days diving into the whacky world of podcasting for Biznik, but don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten about you.
Let’s dive right into this month’s barrel of monkeys and wisdom. And if you feel like you just aren’t getting enough Haddad in your life, check out the HWW Blog.
Wants, Needs and Justifications
“I want you (I want you)
I need you (I need you)
But there ain’t no way, I’m ever gonna love you . . .”
-Meatloaf
Alright, dear HWW readers, quick quiz: In the wide and whacky world of sales and marketing, what’s more powerful? Creating a want? Or filling a need?
Take your time. This one is important. Got it? Really? You sure? Ok, pencils down. Here’s the answer:
In marketing, as in most of life, Wants are much, much (much) more powerful than needs. In fact, Wants beat the sweet patootie out of Needs, take Needs’ lunch money and leave Needs all bruised and battered in the hallway trying to stuff its papers back into its broken trapper keeper while Wants goes off to flirt with that pig-tailed girl in Algebra class.
Just think about it:
You needed a way to get back and forth between your suburban mini-mansion and your in-city cubicle, but you wanted a slick and stylish mini cooper with super-tight handling and a racing stripe down the side.
You needed a drink to soothe your parched throat, but you wanted a cool, refreshing and satisfying can of original Coca-Cola.
You needed an honest, kind, loving and loyal spouse, but you wanted a bright-faced piece of beefcake with bowling balls for biceps and pearls for teeth.
And once you had that want set firmly in your heart, settling for a plain old fashioned need would have been, well, one heck of a let down.
As a marketer and businessperson, your job is to create rampant desire. As a marketer, you’re job is to create both tangible and intangible benefits to what you’re selling that are so powerful that they instill in your customers a pure and unbridled lust so strong that they just about trip over themselves trying to empty their wallets into your greedy little hands.
What happens in Marketing, stays in Marketing
But here’s the funny part. Somewhere along the line of the want/need equation the left brain and right brain collide. The passion driven right brain says “I want this, I want this, I want this!,” while the logical and dour left brain says “Well, I’m not sure that’s the most logical choice and really I think we’d get by just fine if we got a nifty little motor scooter.”
Which is where the almighty Justification comes in. The excuse. That little bit of pure (and hopefully true) logic that gives your customer permission to go ahead and get what they want.
And the Justification can be all sorts of things.
It can be “Well, this computer is a bit more expensive but this brand lasts longer so in the long run it won’t cost me anymore at all. And besides, it’s so shiny!”
or
“As a trout fisherman I could certainly use insider information on new lures and and techniques and with this 60 day money back guarantee, well, I guess I really don’t have anything to lose after all.”
or
“I’m not sure I need six gallons of popcorn while I watch this movie, but it’s only 50 cents more and I’m already paying too much . . . what the hell.”
or . . . . well, you get the idea.
It helps to think of marketing like an argument. Or like rhetoric. Like a debate. Or a seduction. You need to lay out your cards, transmute features into benefits, create awe-inspiring desire and, simultaneously, anticipate and answer all the little questions and speed bumps that are getting in the way of your customer doing what both of you want.
But, Chris, if I’ve got a great product or service, shouldn’t that be enough? Can’t I just put up a sign saying “Hey, these are quality wares, come and buy them?” and sit back as customers storm through my door and leave me fat, happy and rich?
If you’ve got a monopoly on water in Reno, then sure, sit back and enjoy, you don’t need to market at all. But for the rest of us out there in the wide world where, really, the difference between most products just aren’t that different, it’s all about stirring up desire.
Now, I’m not saying that you should ever lie to or cajole your customers. You’ve still got to do good work or provide a high quality product, but the fact of the matter is that these days the difference in actual quality between one product and another just isn’t that high. If you’ve got a product or service you really believe in and you want to sell it successfully, you’ve got to go for the heart.
And if you want to talk about this further, drop me a line at chris@haddadink.com
Get Strategic
Strategic marketing consultant and friend of Haddonia (he’s got diplomatic immunity in my office), Dominic Canterbury has just launched his very own blog. It’s downright tasty and refreshingly comabtive. Check it out at http://www.dcstrategic.blogspot.com
And that’s all for this month, folks. I need some food. But I really want a sandwich. See you on the flip side.
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Podcasting guru Scott Bourne and I went over to 
