Make a Shift: Adding an Emotional Benefit to Rational Offers

Marketers know that rational benefits like speed and price are important. But rational benefits tend to be short-lived in a crowded category because someone somewhere is always willing to shave their prices in a UFC battle to the bottom.
 

Smart marketers know there is a way to rise above that dogfight—by adding an emotional benefit to rational offers. Take safety, for example. Years ago, Michelin Tires decided to shift the public’s perception of tires. Tires make for a low-interest, distress purchase. Nobody likes to buy them; they’re expensive and unsexy. So Michelin ran a very powerful advertising campaign showing a baby sitting on a tire, with the tagline, “Because so much is riding on your tires.” It was a completely emotional pitch for a completely rational product, reminding you there was about one inch of rubber between your family and the road. Michelin became a trusted tire brand.

Change the Conversation

Volvo couldn’t compete in terms of speed or price, so they had to change the conversation. They began by positioning their cars as the safest vehicles on the road. Volvo had invented the three-point seatbelt, but instead of keeping it as a proprietary feature, they gave the idea away to all carmakers. That move forever positioned Volvo as the safety-first company. It later did famous commercials using crash-test dummies. The tagline: “Tested by dummies, driven by the intelligent.”
 

Here’s the point: By employing an emotional benefit on top of the rational pricing benefit, Volvo is perceived to be the safest brand on the road—even when other brands beat them in safety tests.
 

That’s how powerful an emotional benefit is.

Turn Cold Benefits Into Warm Features

Now, think about that kind of positioning in your marketplace. Speed and price are like cars and tires: Everybody’s got them. But to rise above the noise in the marketplace, shift your customer’s perception of your business—transition from being a supplier to becoming a trusted partner. Turn cold features into warm emotional benefits. It’s not “parental controls”; it’s child safety. It’s not “camera technology”; it’s home security. It’s not “cyber protection”; it’s peace of mind.
 

Be human in your marketing. Be proudly local in a way Amazon can’t be. Be a community leader in a way Google won’t be. Make a shift toward subscriber value—and be a force for good.
 

Change happens at the speed of trust.
 

And when it does, we all rise together.

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