by Sean D'Souza
Isolating the problem may seem like a counter-intuitive thing to do. Why wouldn’t you flag down a customer by talking about ‘allergies’, instead of the more specific ‘allergic to cats’? The reason is simple. The customer is more likely to respond to specifics. And once the customer has responded, you can then show the customer the rest of your products/services.
This method of isolating the problem, and then introducing the customer to other problems that need solving, can be best described by an analogy of a home. You have many rooms in your home, but you get your customer through the door, and get them to sit in the lounge. Once they’re relaxed, you then introduce the customer to the other rooms (other products/services).
Are we just inventing problems to compel the customer to buy? Are we creating urgency out of nothing at all? Your customer isn’t a fool. He/She knows what he/she wants. When you present the problem in the right manner, that want is elevated, and is given a sense of urgency. And that causes the customer not to put off the decision until later, but to take action right away.
Bag 2: The Solution
Problems attract attention. Of that we seem to be pretty sure by now.
So should we simply drop ‘the solution’ like a hot potato? And why would the solution be important? And just what is ‘the solution’ in the first place?
First let’s get the definition out of the way.
The solution is simply the answer to the problem. The customer has ‘a problem’. You bring up ‘the solution’. The customer has an issue that needs fixing. You’re the fix-it person. The solution is simply the answer to a need or want that the customer has.
But notice something. We seem to depend a lot on solutions when describing our products or services. When someone asks you what you do, you always answer in the form of a solution.
See how the solution is kinda weak? Because as a customer, you need to know what’s wrong with ‘the chairs’ in the first place. Solutions do a great job, but they need to follow the problem to create impact.
So if you were in the lawn-mowing business and someone asked you what you do for a living, you’d say something like: ‘I mow lawns’. Or if you are selling a product such as writing paper, you’d say: ‘I help people find exquisite writing paper’.
These statements are ‘solution statements’. So why is it that we use so many ‘solution statements’, when our brains instinctively react to ‘problem statements’? We use solution statements for one specific reason.
We’ve been trained to state the benefits and features.
Most of us have either read somewhere, or been told, to state the benefits and features of a product/service.
And benefits and features are synonymous with ‘solution statements’. They simply tell us what to expect in a product or service, and how to apply those features in our everyday life. And since benefits and features have worked so well for us in the past, we continue to use benefits and features. So what are we to do, now that we know the power of ‘the problem’?
You tend not to notice a solution, if you don’t have a problem in the first place. That puppy doesn’t scare you at all. But if it were a big, snarly bulldog headed your way, you’d be racing towards a ‘solution’ instantly.
Are we to simply drop the solution?
Not at all. We simply follow the sequence of the bags.
First the problem.
Then the solution.
And I suspect you know why I’m insisting on this sequence, but I’ll explain anyway. Our brains are always on the lookout for a possible problem. And so they’re attracted to the problem first. But when a brain runs into a problem, it also gets pretty anxious. And it’s only when it sees the obvious—and possibly the most appropriate solution—that it starts to relax.
So if you were walking in the park, and this big snarling dog was headed your way, your brain would instantly be activated. And in a matter of seconds your brain would be scrambling to find a solution. The scramble would cause you to be agitated, increasing your heart rate instantly. If you did manage to duck into an enclosed area and shut the gate behind you, you’d feel immediate relief.
This is the role of the solution: to bring relief.
But let’s jump the sequence a bit. Let’s say there was no dog. Let’s assume you were walking through the park on a day when nothing went wrong. Would you pay attention to the enclosed area in the park? Would you bother going inside? Or would you continue your leisurely walk?
You probably wouldn’t have noticed the enclosed area even though you’ve passed it several times before. And yet, as this four-legged menace heads towards you, you’re now paying attention to something you’ve never really paid attention to before: the enclosed area with the nice, secure gate.
The nice, secure gate is what your customer is looking for as well.
When the customer is faced with a problem, he or she’s looking for a solution. But the customer’s brain is not just looking for the solution, it’s also looking for whether you as a supplier of products/services understands its owner’s problem. So let’s take another example to see how the problem and the solution act in tandem with each other.
Let’s say it’s a hot, humid day.
And you’re helping two adorable kids sell cold, lip-smacking lemonade.
Let’s also assume that your lemonade stand is clean, tidy and your signs are well displayed. And then, just for good measure, you’ve got these sweet kids with the cutest ‘buy-my-lemonade’ looks on their faces.
Would this mean that most of the people passing by would no longer stop and drink your reasonably-priced lemonade? If you think that most passersby would stop and drink the lemonade, you’d be right.
Given the right conditions and the right packaging and display, many would stop for the lemonade because it provides a relief (solution) to the hot and humid day. But we fail to take one little factor into consideration.
That in any market, there isn’t just one product or service to contend with.
In every market, you have ten, twenty, or even five hundred lemonade stands on the same sidewalk. And if your sign is simply a solution, like all the other signs, then the customer’s brain may simply not react to your sign. But a sign with a problem gets attention.
In just about any market, there are going to be competitors. And you can bet your socks that most of your competitors won’t understand the concept of the problem and solution. They’ll simply sell the solution: ‘Lemonade’. But a sign that says: ‘Germ-conscious?: Filtered lemonade’ stands out immediately because it’s highlighting a problem before the solution.
The solution keeps that attention.
So no, the solution can’t be dropped like a hot potato. The solution does indeed have a place. And its rightful place is right after you’ve brought up the problem. Once the problem has been activated in the customer’s brain, it’s imperative to bring up the solution.
But there’s a difference between the solution and the process.
So what’s the difference?
The process is the method you use to solve a problem. The solution, on the other hand, is simply the answer to the problem.
Let’s take an example.
Let’s go back to the allergy centre example.
When someone asks you what you do, you may say: “If you’re allergic to pollen, I help you get rid of your allergy forever”. Now that’s a problem and solution (and target profile) rolled in one statement. And instantly it gets the attention of the prospective customers.
But what if you were to describe a process instead of a solution?
Here’s what a process would sound like: Our solution is to use the glramoxcotyhinx testing device, to determine the speed of your body cells and to enable your natural defense mechanism to go 230 cycles quicker than before, and yada, yada, yada.
Ugh!
Your process may be very, very interesting. But the customer is only interested in the solution for now. So yeah, stow that process away for now.
That’s not a solution. That’s a process.
We’re not interested in your process, We have ‘a problem’: We ‘achoo’ when we come into contact with pollen (and vice versa). Your solution should be: You help me get rid of the allergy. We do not care how you do what you do, and what crazy devices you use. At this point, the only solution we’re interested in is to stop me from #@$%^$%# sneezing all day long!
In effect, your ‘solution statement’ should be the mirror-image of the problem statement. So if the problem is getting stuck indoors, the solution is going outdoors. If the problem is a backache, the solution is the lack of the backache. If the problem is frenzied dog attacks, your solution is protection from frenzied dog attacks. It’s the sequence of the problem followed by the solution that makes the message so very effective.
But how do we know that problems and solutions need to follow in sequence?
We see proof of this problem/solution activity every night on television.
It’s called the News. So if you were to watch the 6pm news tonight, what do you think would be the first item on the news? Yup, it would be the biggest problem of the day.
And what would be the second item on the news?
Naturally, it’s the second biggest problem of the day. And so the news would progress steadily ‘til you reach the puppy dog stories. So when do you get to hear about the warm, fuzzy news stories?
Yes, right at the end of the news. And why do you think that is so? You guessed right. If all you did was have puppy dog stories at 6pm, you’d never watch the news.
What’s more, this phenomenon is not restricted to 6pm.
Read your newspaper, or switch to any online news report and notice what’s making the headlines today. Go to the supermarket and glance at what the gossip magazines have plastered across the front page. You’ll find that someone’s divorcing someone, or someone’s been arrested, or someone’s gone and done something really, really naughty.
In fact, you’ll soon find that almost every media outlet from the radio, to television, to magazines uses the power of ‘the problem’ to get your attention. And the reason why they use the power of ‘the problem’, is because the brain is focused on ‘the problem’ . The brain learns to recognise a problem, long before it sees a solution.
If you don’t isolate the problem, ‘all roads’ look the same to the customer. And they fail to pay attention to your product or service offering.
And yet, the vast majority of businesses insist on using a solution to get their message across. All you have to do is simply open your newspaper on any day of the week, and these are the kind of ads you’d see:
Enjoy amazing harbour views - Restaurant
Tell everyone about your event - Public Relations
Sleep soundly - Bed Company
Create your own web page - Web Training
Enjoy a career in diving - Dive School
What was your reaction when you saw these ads?
Did they get you extremely excited? Did they compel you to find out more? If you’re like most people, most–if not all– of these ads would have been close to invisible. Whoosh, your eyes would have gone past them in a blur.
So what does get your attention in the newspaper?
Editorial surely would. All that doom and gloom about the cat burglar who was pillaging your neighbourhood would get your attention. Did you notice how your eye went to the increase in taxes? Or the little child that has gone missing? And yes, if there was an ad that was smart enough to create a problem, you’d be noticing that product or service for sure.
So yes, problems start the sequence.
They get your attention. But if you overdid the problems, your customers would be so intimidated that they’d actually avoid dealing with you. Which is why the solution has to come to the rescue as quickly as possible.
The problem isn’t more important than the solution. It’s just that the problem comes first in the sequence, and then the solution follows shortly after.
And let’s briefly go back to our examples from the first chapter:
Example 1: Website strategy workshop
Example 2: An allergy clinic
Website strategy workshop
Problem: Are you sick and tired of internet systems that force you to become a ‘monster’? (Most internet-training systems ‘convince’ you to do things that you think are ‘yucky’. They make you believe that the only way to get sales, is to use methods that border on ‘sleazy behaviour’. So is there a way to be ethical and still bring in growing amounts of revenue?)
Solution: Here’s how to create a website strategy that’s ethical, yet extremely profitable.
An allergy clinic
Problem: Do you find yourself sneezing after one or two glasses of wine? Do you find that you literally launch into a sneezing fit and have to take an anti-allergy pill every single time?
Solution: Here’s how you can get rid of the allergic reaction in less than 24 hours (and without any pills or medication whatsoever).
As you can see, we’ve isolated the problem from the last chapter. And simply presented the solution to that very problem, without trying to be too creative or clever.
Not being too creative or clever is important, because the customer is not looking for a clever answer. They have a problem. You’ve identified the problem. They want a solution. Give them the solution.
If you try to be clever with the solution, you’ll confuse the customer. The solution is just the flip side of the problem.
The solution is the flip side of the problem.
If the customer’s computer is slow, you’re speeding it up. If the customer’s mattress is too spongy, you’re providing a well-supported mattress. If the customer’s paying too much for their airfares, you’re providing a low-price alternative.
There’s nothing clever about the solution.
There shouldn’t be. All the solution should do is flip the problem around.
Which takes us to Bag No.3.
At this very moment we realise that two bags have come off that conveyor belt. And there’s the third bag slowly edging its way towards us. The bag called the ‘target profile’.
Avoid the temptation to bring up the ‘solution’ first. First problems, then solutions.
If you don’t spend time working out your target profile, you may as well waffle your way through your sales and marketing, forever. The difference between a great sales and marketing message, and a good one, is an understanding of target profile.
So pay very, very close attention as we pick Bag No.3 from the conveyor belt.
Summary: The Solution
Solutions are just as important as problems. But they have to follow the sequence. They should only show up once the problem has been introduced. Don’t jump the gun and put your solution before the problem. Doing so will greatly reduce the impact of the communication.
Solutions are pain-relievers. They bring down the ‘pressure cooker situation’ created by the problem. They assure the customer that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Audit your communication rigorously for solutions popping up first. Your natural tendency will be to put a solution first. Resist that temptation and keep it second.
The solution is different from the process. The client is not interested in how you do things—well, not at the start anyway. The role of the solution is to nullify the problem, not to explain the long-winded process you use.
The solution is the flip side of the problem. There’s no need to be clever about the solution. If customers have rain falling on their heads, you’re providing a raincoat. A ‘rain-repellent plastic covering’ would be a clever description. And being too clever simply confuses your customer and drives him away.
Bag 3: The Target Profile
Let’s say you’ve been given an assignment.
You’ve been told a relative is turning fifty this year. And you’re not sure, but you guess he might like to have a TIME magazine cover. A c
over that gives him a sense of what was happening in the exact week he was born.
So what are you going to do?
Are you simply going to go back fifty years, and pick any cover? Of course not! Why would you do that? You’d first do some digging, wouldn’t you? You’d first find out which month that relative was born. Then you’d find out which day, so you could accurately locate the week. And only once you had those details would you let your credit card take the hit.
If you wanted to play Santa and get a gift just right, you’d be in big trouble if you didn’t know exactly what the person wanted. Playing Santa requires you to understand ‘target profile’, in order to do a great job of gifting.
But suppose you got the details only marginally wrong.
What if the person was born on the 1st of November, and you got a cover that just missed that date—and happened to be a cover of the week before the 1st of November. Would that do? I mean it’s close enough, eh? What’s the big deal? But even as you’re saying ‘big deal’, you know that the cover you managed to purchase—close as it to the date—is miles away. The only cover that will make the gift perfect, is a cover that includes the exact week in which the ‘birthday-boy’ was born.