Features and benefits in marcom copy

For most of you, this is obvious. But it’s also important, so here goes: All TV sets have a volume control. That’s called “a feature.” The power to turn up the volume REALLY LOUD so you can hear CSI Miami from the kitchen is called “a benefit.” Although the neighbors might disagree.

In marcom copy, the distinction between features and benefits is vital because most people don’t actually care about a volume control. What they care about is volume.

This demonstrates one of marketing’s greatest truths: Most customers think benefits are more important than features. It seems simple, yet there is confusion, although not among marcom professionals such as you and we. But others less highly evolved have been known to blur the lines—which is a nice way of saying they sometimes get it all wrong.

Engineers, for example, are among the smartest people in class. But engineers know about engineering, not marketing. Thus, engineers tend to write marcom copy like, “The new Quad 2830 has Fashwander connections with solid state portal facilitation.” They seem to think the benefits of solid state portal facilitation are obvious—and they probably are to engineers. But they’re not always so obvious to customers.

Sales VPs can also fall in love with features while ignoring benefits. So can CEOs. And marcom writers. That’s a shame because benefits are where the action is. Benefits are the reason people send in the coupon, ask for more information, or have a sales team stop by. Benefits are why people jump up in their cubicles and shout, “Wow, this just what we need. Let’s go buy one right away.” Or words to that effect.

Benefits are so important that we’ve developed a duo of handy tips for Harding writers to use when they create marcom copy.

Tip 1: Features are about the product. If someone writes about a product’s size or power or connectors, someone is writing about its features. Features can be exciting, such as, “Now with portal facilitation.” Or they can be boring, such as, “Comes in a cardboard box.” Problems arise when a feature sounds like a benefit. This leads us to:

Tip 2: Benefits are about the customer. Benefit copy explains what a feature does to make the customer’s life better. In short, benefits answer life’s most basic questions:

• What problem does this solve for me?
• How will it make my job easier?
• Will it get me promoted to CIO in time for my class reunion?

Solid state portal apps run cooler is a benefit. Even better is what textbooks call the benefit of the benefit: That means you can cut energy costs by 30%.

“That means,” BTW, is a mindlessly simple, but useful, device to segue from features to benefits. And almost any sentence that includes “you” is likely to include a benefit. For example, you can reduce downtime. Or you can make backups automatically. Or you can have your cake and eat it, too.

So without meaning to get all preachy and didactic, a benefit is always about what a feature does to help you, the customer. But what does all this do to help you, the marcom executive?

By highlighting benefits, you can preside over more effective marcom copy. And that means you can enhance the success of your company. And that means management will smile upon you. And you already know what that means.

To see some examples of how we highlight benefits in marcom copy, please visit us at hardingmarketing.com.

And while we’re on the subject of benefits, please give us the benefit of your thoughts in the Comment box below.

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