If/Then/Why

How To Define What You've Really Got To Sell (And Who To Sell It To) In 2 Easy Steps

Written Jan 29, 2008, read 999 times since then.

An old friend popped by today wondering how the hell he can figure out the perfect market for his product and cut to the core what the heck he’s actually selling.

I gave him some advice that made his eyes light up and his teeth to shine all bright and scary.

It’s phenomenally, almost-stupidly simple advice, and I’m going to share it with you right now.

Here’s what I told him to do:

If you’ve spent any time reading great sales letters and marketing copy, then you’ve probably noticed that one particular open tends to pop up again and again and again. In fact, this is kind of the “fall back”
opening sentence that greats like John Carlton, Gary Halbert, Brian Keith Voiles, David Garfinkel and a raft of others call on when they’re first cracking into a letter and putting their magic “moneyfingers” to work.

What is it?

The classic “If (problem or desire) then this is going to be the most important letter you ever read.”

For instance:

“If you’ve ever wanted to drive a golf ball with the explosive force of a howitzer cannon . . . ”
“If you have any interest at all in putting the real power of online video to tremendously profitable use for your business. . . ”
“If you have high blood pressure and are sick of the drugs, the pain and the fear . . ”

It’s an amazingly versatile way to get your letter going and to mark out to your prospects that what you’re selling is really for them.

But if you turn it on its head, the old “If, Then” open is a phenomenal way to help you figure out what you’re really selling and who you reallyshould be selling it to.

Here’s what I told my ski bum buddy (and what I’m going to tell you too).

If you’re having trouble figuring out your market, your offer or what’s really unique about what you’ve got to sell, just play a little fill in the blank.

“If you’re a (BLANK) who wants to (BLANK), then this will be the most important message you ever read.”

Don’t over think it. Don’t try to get fancy. Just very calmly fill in the blanks.

Fill up a whole page with possibilities. Have fun with it.

And, as you go, be as specific as you can.

Who is this really for?

Who is this really important to?

So saying “If you want to make more money, this will be the most important message you ever read.” won’t get you anywhere. It’s too broad, weak and limp and applies to everybody.

But saying “If you’re a mom who’s sick of leaving your kids with a stranger every morning and wants to make $3,000.00 a month like clockwork while working from home and having plenty of time to give your kids the love and attention they deserve, this will be the most important message you will ever read.” is a heck of a lot better.

The key is to be specific to the point that you come up with something that calls out to your market in a way where they almost have to raise their hands.

Something so powerful that it makes them feel like you walked into a crowded room and just shouted their name.

And now here’s the fun part. Once you’ve got your If/Then statement, write down the why.

Why is this message going to be so important? What amazing result are you going to deliver to them? What does your product do that will make just learning about it so darned valuable to your prospects?

Now, this post really isn’t about writing copy. It’s about getting your product, your target and your position super clear in your mind.

And it’s a little trick that you can use right now to drastically cut down the time it takes to define your market, figure out what your product does and come up with an almost-stupidly powerful message that your target market just can’t resist.

Learn more about the author, Chris Haddad.

Comment on this article

Posted by Stephanie Clancy, Kirkland, Washington | Feb 02, 2008

This was great Chris - I'm working on a marketing piece right now that I could use this on. Thanks!
Posted by Robbin Block, MBA, Seattle, Washington | Feb 04, 2008

Thanks for this easy tool. It's also useful for explaining how to write a benefit headline. Just remove the "if", "when" (the audience is basically implied) -- something like, “Make $3,000/month at Home and Still Have Time for Your Family."

Of course, Chris was exaggerating to make a point, but be careful about making false claims. Be sure what you're saying is based on what you can actually deliver.
Posted by Chris Haddad, Seattle, Washington | Feb 04, 2008

Me, exaggerate? Never.

Though if I was really going to exaggerate, I'd do something like "Make $40k a month sitting at your kitchen table in your underwear . . . even if you can't type, can't use a computer and have terrible agoraphobia that won't let you pick up the phone."

But you get the idea.
Posted by RJ McHatton, Redmond, Washington | Feb 05, 2008

Great suggestion.

RJ
Posted by Adrian J Cartwood, Deerfield, Illinois | Feb 05, 2008

Great advice. I found a simple tool to help me 'generate' USP's (Unique Selling Propositions): http://www.avnmembers.co.uk/knowledgebase/Business/uspgenerator.htm

Can't rely on fill-in-the-blanks marketing, but it sure helps get the 'brain juices' flowing! AJC.
Posted by Tony Funderburk, Lakewood, Colorado | Feb 06, 2008

WMMW

Your slogan makes a cool stitch design. I enjoyed the article, Chris. And once you become the client or the target audience, you can really fly with the advice you've posted here.

Tony: the Rich Media Writer
Posted by Koren Reyes, New York, New York | Feb 07, 2008

Thanks for this. I'm always trying to find the emotional tugs that call people to action, and this formula of "If...then" works well for that.
Posted by Fred Lebhart, seattle, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

IF you want great advice THEN be sure to read Chris Haddad's articles!

efelle media: Website Design, eCommerce & SEO
Posted by Pete McDowell, Clyde Hill, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

Thanks for sharing this advice. It's simple, effective and easy to apply.
Posted by Amy Lang, Seattle, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

Nice article! Thanks! I'll put to work ASAP!
Posted by Chris Radant, Seattle, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

Hey, Chris- I appreciate the sensitivity you're showing to biz peeps who get stuck inside their own point of view regarding their product or service. Like anything one is passionate about, it's SO easy to lose sight of why anyone else should love it as much as you do...and how to tell them.

I just hope people heard the part about it being a way to organize thinking and not so much a copy suggestion.

My question as a fellow writer is, when are these standard devices so old that no one pays any mind to them anymore? For example, "New & Improved" had a long life and was used so much that readers no longer bothered to roll their eyes, and then writers kept using it for another 5 years, because nobody tells us about the eye-rolling.

And what does using a standby tool say to your more sophisticated customers? "Ive seen this before" is not a good introduction.

So I'm just throwing in a dollop of what makes marketing complicated enough that not everyone should do their own with easy templated structures.

AND I think your article is very helpful to jolt people off their stuck places. I'm just adding the suggestion to move on from there and build your own company's personality too.

Nice job!
Posted by Michelle Copeland, Seatac, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

Thanks, Chris. This is great. I'm looking at starting up a couple of AdWords campaigns in the next week and this will be a very useful perspective to tap into -- and a game to play! Doesn't get better than that.
Posted by Wesley LeFebvre, Seattle, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

Great post. Exactly what I am trying to do with my real estate agent profile page. I've got the search engine ranking, now I just need more vistors to stop and contact me.
Posted by Chris Haddad, Seattle, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

To: Chris Radant,

Actually, I think for most folks it's a perfectly fine way to write some copy. I just used that open in a letter the other day that pulled in about $200k in sales.

One of the biggest mistakes I see people make in copy is trying to be "clever and new and cool" when using tested and proven "old skool" techniques will make them more money (and ultimately that's what marketing is for: making you money.)

Am I saying you should just go out and copy an ad from the 50s word for word? Not at all. But if you're a "newbie" to the marketing dance, you're a lot better imitating the old masters than you are trying to forge new ground on your own.
Posted by Michelle Basey, Kirkland, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

Once again, the magic of biznik! I walk over to my computer, and voila, exactly what I need to hear for what I'm working on right now.

Thank you so much Chris!

Oh, and you guys should check out his website - very cool!

Timeless Healing. Massage ‘until it is done’
Posted by Rachel Narhi, Seattle, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

Thanks Chris. I was just starting to write a new solicitation letter today. This is actually really helpful.
Posted by Debbie Rosemont, Sammamish, Washington | Feb 07, 2008

Simple, practical and effective ... what more could one ask for. Thanks Chris!

Professional Organizer and Productivity Consultant
Posted by Ian Ejan, Rancho Cucamonga, California | Feb 08, 2008

Yo Chris, thanks for sharing a piece of your copywriting talent!!

Creating a headline is by far the most difficult aspect of creating ad/copy. The If/Then/Why concept is brilliant when you simply have to "get it going." Many fall victimto analysis paralysis - ( myself included) and stuff never gets done.

My question is: How much hype(ing)do you use - or should I say - Should we border more on the hype or reality aspect of our product/service when were trying break thru the clutter of ads out there?

SuperBowl ads for the most part used 2 key ingredients in my observation. They entertained and hyped the heck out of their products. Sure made me want to drink more bud lite beers. LOL

Give me your thoughts.

PS> we met at BigSeminar8 in Atlanta -
Posted by Chris Haddad, Seattle, Washington | Feb 08, 2008

Hi Ian,

I use hype on a case by case basis. There's certainly cases where I hype like NUTS and others where I take a more laid back approach.

It all depends on: -The creator of the product -The stage of the market -The level of competition -How "Hyped out" people in that market seem to be.

Hype in itself isn't evil and really can be useful as hell, but it's a big angry stick and you've got to know when to use it.

Which basically means I'm answering your question by saying "it depends."