No pain, no gain

 

We’ve all heard and used this expression before in everything from exercise, to exam revision to eating our greens. And the scope of this expression ringing true even extends into marketing practice. No pain, no gain.

 

Have you ever heard of a ‘pain point’? This is a marketing technique that is used by many (if not all) of the biggest companies in the world to maximize on sales, so if you haven’t heard of it, Read on!

 

The ‘pain point’ technique is where a service or product supplier asks what their customers’ pains are and how their product or service can remedy that ‘pain point’.

 

By identifying the issues your clients may have, you can then show them how your service will solve the problem that’s been nagging them for too long.

 

What pains do your clients and prospective clients have that will enable you to BOOST more visitors and product sales through clever marketing? Perhaps you have a lot of clients coming to you complaining of dry and frizzy hair? Market to more than just those that come to you with this problem – with a marketing campaign showing those with dry and frizzy hair how you can solve their dilemma!

 

You may already be doing a great job attracting website traffic through adverts, emails and other marketing campaigns, but are struggling to get those conversions and get new clients through the door. In a world full of noise and insincere marketing tactics, it’s not easy to get your message in front of the right audience who are the perfect candidates to be your next client. But by identifying and targeting your clients’ pain points, it will help you to reach out and attract the people who crave what you are selling and convert them by pulling at their pain point.

 

So how do you go about implementing the pain point marketing technique?

 

• Firstly you need to identify what your customers’ pain points could be. Unruly hair? Flat hair? Damaged hair? Think about what your customers complain to you about most with their hair. Still not sure? Ask your clients while they are visiting your salon what problems they have with their hair.
• Next, think about how can you solve their problems.
• Lastly, focus your next marketing campaign around those pain points and highlight how you can help solve them.

 

How does this type of marketing technique work?

 

Far too often salon businesses solely focus their marketing campaigns on how great they, their services and products are, without creating a campaign that prompts an emotional response. Pain, fear and anxiety are strong emotions that drive behaviour. That is where pain point marketing comes in. Customers will always spend money to combat pain before they spend out to pursue pleasure. Therefore, the more acute the pain you can target, the more likely your audience will be to take you up on your solution.

 

Show them someone struggling with the same problem that they can immediately relate to – show them their pain. And then show them the solution – you have the answer to their problem! The emotional response will likely be enough to convert them into purchasing the problem-solving product or making an appointment at your salon.

 

Example:

 

If you asked a client “How do you feel about the condition of your hair” about 90% would say that their hair is dry or damaged. You could create a marketing campaign focused around the question “Is your hair dry, damaged, frizzy or unruly?”

 

When a potential client who feels their hair fits the bill sees the campaign, they will relate to the content. You have found their pain! Now you now need to offer a solution to this client by offering a service or product that will give them the smooth, frizz free and beautiful hair they have been longing for.

 

Tell them how they can find out more information about the service or product (e.g. “visit this webpage to find out more”). You could even include testimonials from other clients that have used the service or product that once had the same issues as them but are now pain free. And finally, offer what they need to do to be pain free. Add a CTA (call to action), call your salon, visit your website, email etc.

 

Weight Watchers are pioneers of pain point marketing. Their campaigns usually involve real people telling their stories of weight loss with before and after pictures and the struggles they had before Weight Watchers came into their life. Another overweight person may identify with their story of struggle and feel Weight Watchers might be the right route for them too. They then follow the CTA and visit the website and sign up. They are the converted. And it works time and time again.

 

Recap

 

Step 1: Understand who your target customers actually are.

Step 2: Understand the pain suffered by them as it relates to your product or service.

Step 3: Devise and deliver a message to them that shows how deeply you understand their pain AND how your product or service provides a way out.

Step 4: Always include a CTA.

 

So what are you waiting for? Go forth and solve your clients’ issues!

 

Want a little extra help with discovering your clients’ pain points? Want to make marketing a focus in your business but not sure where to begin? Let BOOSTmySALON become your very own marketing department and watch your business grow. Get in contact with us today!

 

HappyBIZness

 

Carey