“Nobody Cares About Your Products (Except You),” is one of the core rules that author and marketing thought-leader David Meerman Scott espouses in his latest book, World Wide Rave, and throughout his other works and blogs. 

The most zealous anti-smokers that I know are former smokers.   The fact that in hindsight, I can see that I was guilty of being a bit too proud of the features and functions of my own products as a technology marketer makes me just a bit maniacal about David’s product rule as a user and consumer of tech products today. Unfortunately, it seems like there are still quite a few technology marketers out there that did not get the memo.

My Mini-Technology Odyssey:

For the past few weeks, I’ve been in search of a solution that will allow me to better serve my customers and grow my business.  My opportunity is to extend my service offerings by providing e-learning services/courses to subscribers to specific audiences.  Based on the feedback that I’ve received in teaching or supplementing my MBA programs with on-line offerings and given the time and cost challenges that so many professionals are facing, I’m convinced that it is time to expand into subscription-based e-learning. 

What I thought would be a simple search has turned into a quest worthy of Homer. While it is quite possible that I’m seeking fulfillment for a problem that has not yet been solved—a service that will allow independents and small firms to offer e-learning via a hosted platform with e-commerce and participant management functions, I don’t think this is the issue. There are plenty of firms that purport to offer all, most of or parts of this solution.  I think. 

Here are the Marketing Lessons I’ve Discovered Thus Far:

-Value-chain and systems thinking are foreign topics.  There are a myriad of pieces and parts providers that might sell more pieces and parts if they were able to connect people like me with other providers and partners in the value chain. 

Instead of focusing on where their offering fits, these firms view the world through the eyes of their products, not the needs of their customers.  Remember the old saying that no one buys a drill, they are buying the hole?  It’s true. 

In one memorable discussion with a rep for a flash authoring tool, he seemed taken aback that I might ask about platforms or other service providers where I could use the output of his company’s offerings.  A review of their web site left you thinking that this very substantial organization viewed themselves as the center of the e-learning universe, yet in reality they are just one component provider.  Marketing myopia, anyone?

-Feature lists do not equal answers to business problems.  Most of the service providers that sound like they might just solve my problem forced me to wade through long lists of discrete, acronym filled feature lists and jargon, only to leave me wondering whether they truly have what I need.  What do you do?  Who do you serve?  How are your offerings solving problems?  None of those questions are tackled head-on. 

-Once you get a live human on the phone, you want to throw him/her back.  Not once have I encountered a rep on the phone that is capable of indicating whether their offerings meet my needs.  They either are clueless or they are so obviously incented to sell what they have, that they engage in something that reeks of used car sales tactics. 

–Speaking of used car sales: What will it take for you to drive this product home today?  I love the vendors that require you to walk on hot coals to gain access to pricing.  Most often, they require a demo before sharing pricing with you.  Sorry, but life is too short.  I don’t care about YOUR SELLING PROCESS!  I want a solution to my business challenge. 

Tough Love for Marketers:

1.  Revisit your website and ask your customers and targeted buyers to tell you whether your messaging and presentation are helping them understand how you might solve their problems.  Build content to match your buyers and ensure that it speaks to solutions, not features.

2.  Develop a systems-thinking mentality if you are selling pieces and parts.  More than likely, no one needs your piece and part in isolation.  The better you can relate and link your offerings to other good offerings in the value-chain, the more your prospective buyers will be comfortable in purchasing your offerings. 

3. Stop with the offensive, insulting and invasive selling tactics and pricing shell games!  You are just pissing us off.

4. Educate your reps.  Teach them how to ask questions and help clients solve problems. 

The Bottom-line for Now:

Enough with the myopic thinking and feature-focused, jargon-filled gobbledygook that passes for marketing messaging.  Help someone solve a problem and you will sell more.  Guaranteed.