What if you could shift your time from working with each and every prospect – and instead only spend time with those that are ready now?
What if you had customers coming to you, because they relate to what you’re saying and connecting what they need with what you offer? This leaves you spending time with prospects that have a ‘now’ problem that you can solve for them.
For any Partner organisation, winning new business can feel like a never-ending challenge.
Partners tell us daily that they’re wasting time on unqualified leads, that they’re relying on current customers for new opportunities, and as a result are getting distracted by the need to find new lead sources. What they’d rather is to spend time converting more qualified leads (not qualifying them from the first touch), and they want their sales generated from a mix of existing customers and new business.
Salespeople need the ability to spend time with their highest probability prospects, and this means there is an expectation that the marketing team hands over leads that are already qualified and ready to buy.
We know that this is much easier said than done. Creating a funnel that delivers steady lead generation is no easy feat – and requires a specific approach to how you structure and deliver content through each stage of your funnel.
So, what comes after you have designed your competitive offer, and started steady lead generation by knowing your ideal client?
One of the most important keys to not just steady lead generation, but spending time with the right people, is making sure the messages you have in market are attracting the people you want.
This obviously starts with knowing your ideal client (if you haven’t read our previous article about knowing your ideal client, now is the time).
By crafting a messaging approach that is focused on specific customer pains and problems, we are able to attract the right people with consistent and relevant messaging they can relate to.
If you have ads running, you’re posting on your platforms or updating your website content, but your messages just aren’t generating the leads you want, or not enough – there are a few common reasons.
1. You’re continuously changing what you sell to fit who you are talking to
When you don’t have messages that relate to your core offer and satisfy the problems and pains of your core customer – it’s likely that your salespeople are simply asking prospects what they need, and assuring them you can solve it.
Instead, you must stick to your guns! A clearly defined offer that supports the skills and capability you have within the business, matched with specific targeting to your core customer with messages that resonate with them will result in lead generation.
2. You’re not selling results, but the skills and tools in the business
If there is one way to blend into the Microsoft Partner ecosystem, it’s to simply sell skills and capability.
On the flipside, if you sell results and outcomes, you immediately differentiate yourself from the 1000’s of other MSPs and ISVs in your market. Customer’s may not know what skill, capability or tool they need – just that they have a problem that needs solving. If you start the conversation with skill & capability – you are only attracting customers who already know they need that specific skill or capability.
3. You’re changing what you sell – not how you’re selling it
One of the many pitfalls of not attracting leads, is thinking the reason you don’t have a steady lead flow is because what you’re selling is not right.
Instead, we must consider how we’re selling our solutions or services to the people that need them. Chances are, what’s needed is a simple messaging re-alignment that targets your core customer, and you’ll start attracting interested people and smashing your partner enablement strategy.
At Partner Elevate we use a specific process to unpack the four keys to creating messages that attract interested people: pain, problem, possibility & process. We do this by using the Message Amplifier™ Worksheet.
To get started we must first consider three things.
1. What you customer needs
What is the core need of your customer? For example, do they need to increase efficiency, remove manual processing, increase security protocols, know they are compliant, or a safety net backup solution?
This statement should be high-level, but clear and specifically related to your core solution or service offering.
2. The one result you give them
Next, what is the one result your customers get or experience after engaging with you? For example, if you are offering a security or backup solution, is it peace of mind you give them? For Modern Workplace, it could be confidence that remote workers can remain efficient, a more productive line of business, or increase ROI.
3. What you do the best
Last, what is the thing that you do the best, that no one else in the market does – that allows your core customer to get the one result.
For example, do you have specific IP in the business that can automate processes, or have you got a discovery process that creates systematic project delivery? This is your special sauce, the thing that makes you different.
Now that we have defined what your customer needs, your one result and what you do the best, it’s time to use the four keys to create your messages.
Problem
Without your one result, your customer experiences this problem.
They probably have more than one problem, but we want you to think about the top one they face, because they aren’t getting your one result right now.
Pain
What are the direct effect of your problem?
Think about pain points your customer experiences every day when they are faced with their problem. It could be that their staff are unhappy, and there is high turnover, or they fear a security breach.
Possibility
What is the opposites of your problem?
Now that we know the problem and the pain that your customers faces, you need to communicate what the possibility of a solution looks like. This is outcome focused – so if the problem is that their systems are insecure, then the possibility is that the systems are secure.
Process
The possibility are 100% achievable with this processes.
This process is your differentiator, it is the thing you implement that helps them manage or solve their problem and achieve the possibility. For our security example, perhaps you have a 12-step implementation process that covers all the bases to ensure system security with no gaps, or a disaster recovery process that has them back up and running in no time.
Now we’ve uncovered the problem, pain, possibility, and process that links your solution to your customer’s need, it’s time to use the Core Message Builder™ to put it all together - with this simple sentence that speaks directly to your core customer:
Do you feel as though [pain] because [problem]? Have [possibly] with [process].
Of course, a little finessing is always required.
If you would like help creating your key messages,