Thursday, December 10, 2009

Keep Your Eye on Solving the Problem

Whether you are selling to a customer, pitching a story to an editor, or writing a business plan, its key that you express what you do and how your technology works in the context of the business problem at hand.


In the case of sales – your customer has a problem, and is seeking an answer to his/her woes. So when a prospect visits your web site, picks up your literature at a tradeshow, or sees your ad online, they are quickly (within seconds) trying to determine what you do, and whether you have a solution that is right for them. It is therefore critical to always take the buyer’s perspective and keep their problems in mind when creating positioning statements or sales messaging.

When pitching your story to an editor, the objective and strategy is the same. You are still selling. The editor is the broker, and his/her readers are your customers. The best PR storylines are all about solving problems, and providing solid evidence (i.e. customer stories) to prove you’ve been successful in your mission.

This article in MIT Sloan Management review, takes the problem/solution sales paradigm to yet another level – business planning. The article covers business planning deal-killers and guides entrepreneurs on how to avoid these fatal mistakes. And the number one flaw of most technology start-up business plans? Failing to identify the problem and/or pain that your technology solves.

http://sloanreview.mit.edu/business-insight/articles/2009/2/5121/why-business-plans-dont-deliver/