When customers visit your site for the first time, they have just one question in mind about your product or service. It may be a selfish question, but nonetheless it is the question that needs to be answered:

What’s in it for me?

That’s it. In other words, how can what your business is selling benefit me, the visitor? Why should I buy from you and not someone else?

Hint: the answer is not anything to do with your company’s story, your personality, or the number of doo-dads and gizmos that your widget features.

That includes you, single-person shops. The business may be all on your shoulders, but it’s decidedly not all about you.

The correct answer is to explain, clearly and persuasively, the value that your product/service provides. Your visitors shouldn’t have to hunt with a magnifying glass for the value you bring.

We could just stop there, but let’s look at an example.

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Exhibit A

XYZ Company is a full service provider of technology services as well as pro-active IT consulting. I can assist individuals and companies. At XYZ Company I take pride in helping people stay on top of their technology needs, including routers, LANs, switches, firewalls, data retrieval, and email systems. I have been an IT professional for over five years and I’ve seen it all! XYZ Company feels that it is our mission to arm you with the best tools for your situation.

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Exhibit B

What happens to your business if your computer network crashes? How much profit and productivity will be lost if you lose all your data?

At ABC Inc., we take that worry off of your plate. For one low monthly fee, we safeguard your computers and data, ensuring you’ll never have to face thousands of dollars in lost revenue because of equipment failure.

Sign up today and rest easy knowing your profits are protected.

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Which of the above examples makes you want to buy IT services? If you answered Exhibit B, congratulations, you win!

A few things that B does better than A:

1. It hits on a pain point right away. You’ve got a real problem, and here’s how to fix it!
2. It’s all about you the consumer. A mentions “I” or “we” five times, and “you” only once; B uses some form of “you” six times, and “we” twice.
3. It’s easy to understand, and it’s focused. A sort of rambles (who really wants to know about all those IT terms?), comes across as wishy-washy, and never really gets anywhere.
4. It’s easy to see the value in what B is offering. A is very vague on that point.

Take a few moments to evaluate what your site is saying to your potential customers. If it resembles Exhibit A, model your messaging more towards Exhibit B. Make it about them, not you, and see what happens to your bottom line.

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