I just read and commented on a great post by Todd Cabral over at the Science of Marketing blog, Market Conditioning: A Tap on the Shoulder. Todd talks about how important it is to get on your prospect's radar by conditioning them to pay attention. He says:
"Market conditioning is more important in some markets than others. If the problem your company solves is well known and extremely painful, there is less conditioning to do. However, when a problem is lurking beneath the surface or not well understood, this marketing technique is critical."
This is where I started thinking about status quo. Status quo is essentially the way things are - what your prospects' business environment is today. This can include an abundance of frustrations and obstacles they must overcome to successfully complete their business objectives, or it may mean they never achieve the levels of success they aspire to.
But, until they understand that the problem is actually a costly one that need not persist, they will tend to proceed as usual. Hey, it's easier, it's non threatening and knowing the obstacles of today is far more reassuring than risking the unforseen consequences of undertaking change.
This is why thought leadership and knowledge marketing are so important. But, the only way these methods work is if you know your prospects really well. You need to not only know they have a particular problem, but you need to know what it costs them, why it exists and be able to clearly demonstrate the upside [business value] for embracing change.
Todd also points out that objections can bias your target market against your marketing if you don't address them from the start. A great observation, and one many marketers miss. We all think that our products rock and that as soon as we expose our prospects to them they'll be suitably impressed. But that's not necessarily true.
Once your prospects have taken a strong position about something, you will not get them to shift their thinking without taking the effort to prove why they should and present alternatives with validation. The "what's in it for them" principle in full swing. If you just jump in downstream from their objections and expect them to see the error of their ways, you're message is likely not even on their radar.
So, when you create your personas, profiles or however you get a clear view of who your target market is, pay attention to status quo. Learn enough about your prospects to ensure you can address their current mindset before you go about trying to convince them to change.
People don't like to be pushed. Pull them over to your side with a well thought out content marketing stream that begins at status quo and delivers what they need to know at every stage throughout their buying process.
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