BUSINESS EDU Honing Your Marketing Message: How to Craft a One-Liner – by Cathryn Castle Garcia, Co-Owner C2G2 Productions, The Azores Cathryn Castle Garcia is a writer, business strategist and co-owner of C2G2Productions.com, a multimedia production company. She lives on Faial Island in the Azores.
In last month’s issue, we discussed the importance of identifying your ideal customer, your “audience of one.” If you missed the article, I encourage you to go back and give it a quick read, then complete the exercise before continuing with this article. Identifying your ideal customer is critical to your success, be-
ing a regulator, for instance. Internal and philosophical prob- lems are more complex, because they center on emotional wants. Miller says that by limiting our marketing messages to only external problems, we neglect an important principle, “Companies tend to sell solutions to external problems, but people buy solutions to internal problems.” To learn about the emotional wants and needs of our customer and how we can solve them, we must ask the right questions and be a good lis- tener. The Solution. Simply put, the solution is how your product or service solves your customer’s external, internal and philo- sophical problem. The Result. An effective one-liner must de- scribe the positive outcome your customer will enjoy because of doing business with you. It’s the “happily, ever after” part of the story. And it’s important. Get to Work: Your one-liner marketing message should go
cause without a clear target, your messaging will likely miss the mark. In this article, we’ll quickly review the One Question and get straight to crafting an answer that will help you hit the target with your potential customer. The One Question: Everything your business does must answer this question, “How will your product or service change my life for the better?” This is the question every single person who enters your dive center wants answered. Whether they
know it or not. It’s your dive cen- ter’s singular reason for existing – to have a solid answer to this ques- tion. By knowing your target audi- ence, you can deliver clear, consis- tent, focused messaging. You can let your ideal customer know ex- actly how you will change their life for the better. And you can tell
like this: “We help [ideal customers] who struggle with [problem] by pro- viding [your service/solution] so they can [result]. Grab your journal and start scribbling a list of prob- lems/solutions/outcomes. Play around with this, crafting a series of potential one-liners that include these elements. Remember, it doesn’t have to be one long sen-
them what they’ll need to do to enjoy the life-changing experi- ence of what your business offers. Then, you can repeat this conversation again and again. When your message is relatable, it is repeatable. You will create connections that cause a ripple effect. The audience of one multiplies and your business thrives. The Answer: In branding and marketing lingo, the answer to, “How will your product or service change my life for the better?” is called a one-liner. A strong one-liner typically includes three points: 1.) the problem your customer faces; 2.) the solu- tion your business offers that solves their problem, and 3.) the positive outcome that results from their doing business with you. The Problem. In his book, Building a Story Brand, business expert Donald Miller explains there are three levels of conflict, or problems: external, internal and philosophical. External problems are straightforward and simple to address, like repair-
tence. You can use several short sentences. Just make sure your one-liner is easy to convey and doesn’t sound “canned” or con- trived. Yes, it should contain all three elements, but it also needs to be conversational and not a sales pitch. This might take a bit of practice but stay with it. It’s important. Let’s Hear It: What’s your one-liner? Does it position your ideal customer as the hero and you as their trusted guide? Does it clearly tell them what you offer, how it will improve their life, and what they need to do to buy? If not, keep tweaking your message until it hits all three elements. I want to hear it, so please email your one-liner to me. (If you get stuck crafting a one-liner, let me know. I can help.) Once you’ve got your one-liner nailed, practice saying it over and over again. Memorize it. And make sure every person on your team can say it – with enthusiasm.
email Cathryn
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