
Over the years I’ve seen a variety of tag lines. Some great, some poor, and some make your head hurt.
Creating a good tagline is an incredible task on its own, but it doesn’t need to be—nor does it need to be just one single tagline. I’ve seen companies use a variety of tags, a variety of phrases and sayings to really drive the point home.
One of the companies I’m involved with, Spivis, uses a tag line for one of their products, Free WiFi Center, that I really love.
It’s short, it’s simple, and it’s powerful.
“Making the complicated awesomely simple.”
To me, that hits home and really puts into perspective all that they do. And what’s better than the tagline is that they follow through with that saying to the letter. that’s something I feel many companies drop the ball on.
Saying something catchy is one thing, delivering on such a promise is another. And boy, do they deliver. Of course, I’m involved in the company, so that’s just one man’s humble opinion. 😉
Regardless, that’s not the point of today’s article!
I want to talk about the line on its own—making the complicated awesomely simple—and compare it to what most companies do.
Clearly, the goal of any business is to service a real need, build a client base, cater to that client base and make a profit. One would assume that “making the complicated awesomely simple” would be the goal of any company, because surely that would facilitate the journey to profit.
But quite the opposite is actually true.
Many companies take a different approach. In fact, many companies should promote the tag line,
“Making the simple annoyingly complicated.”
We’ve all been there… All we want to do is buy this widget, we’re there with cash in hand, ready to buy, and we can’t find it, or it’s not available immediately, or they need to go get it across town, or you need to jump through a series of flaming hoops just to get it.
Have you ever seen a digital ad for a product, and thought dang I want that, so you click the ad/product only to have it land on the general catalog forcing you to now search and find what you originally wanted?
Or have you ever called in to place an order somewhere, only to have the salesperson on the other end talk you out of a sale?
There are a million and one ways to really complicate the buying process—and your goal as an entrepreneur is to simplify it.
People, more than ever, are in a hurry. They have no patience, and when they want to buy, they want to buy NOW.
What are you doing to make buying from you AWESOMELY SIMPLE?
I challenge you to go through every piece of your business and ask yourself, “can we make this easier?”
Ask your staff, survey your clients, and shop your own products and discover the areas where you could simplify the process.
Always remember, the more forks in the road, the better the odds they make a wrong turn.
Take away the forks, give them a nice, clean, straight, simple and clear path to doing business with you.
This reminds me of an old study I read years ago. A store wanted to run a test based on the theory of “options.”
They set up a little sampling booth in a local shopping center offering 3 jam samples to taste, and then followed up the sampling with an offer to purchase one of the three samples.
A little later, they offered a dozen jams to sample, and a dozen jams to purchase, and even the act of sampling dropped significantly.
When there were only three options, people didn’t have much deciding to do. It was 1, 2 or 3, and sales were great.
When given a dozen options, they became frozen, the old paralysis by analysis, and sales crashed.
And it’s important to note that not only did sales drop significantly, but the amount of free samples handed out dropped as well.
Are you offering too many options? Is there any area where you can cut back, simplify things and provide only a few options?
I know what you’re thinking…”but I have so much to offer!”
That may be true, but it doesn’t mean you need to offer everything right up front.
Think of how car dealerships do it… Do they present you with everything right out of the gate?
No.
First, do you want a car, truck, SUV or minivan?
Once they’ve gotten you making positive decisions, they start to narrow things down, next up might be how many doors do you need, what colors do you like, what style, and finally, at the very end, what special add-ons do you want?
If the moment you walked onto the lot they pulled out a list with every single make, model, color, and optional package, you’d freeze, panic, say you’re just browsing and high tail out of there. And most likely tell all your friends how pushy they are.
How simple can you make your business?
What can you open the door with that’s soft, non-invasive and, in all reality, not asking them to decide or think too much? Then, as the relationship builds, and only then, you can start to offer more.
Always remember: make the complicated awesomely simple.
To your success,
Al
PS – A little side note… Often—in fact nearly ALL the time—it’s very difficult to see how complicated things are for the consumer purely because to you, the owner, it’s second nature. I recommend getting someone who is NOT in the business to audit your processes and tell you what’s complicated and what’s not. Many businesses that I consult with are so complicated, it takes me a few tries to get the hang of it—and that’s the same with your prospect. I have a general rule: if it confuses me, it confuses others.
PPS – One last thing, I promise! Part of the reason people DON’T buy if its complicated is because it hits them right in the self-esteem. When people feel like something is complicated, they often get a touch of self-doubt and feel embarrassed that just maybe they’re the only one that doesn’t get it, is confused, gets anxious and wants to run the other way. Anxiety is a real thing, and more people than you realize are affected by it. Are you in the business of making your clients feel insecure? I hope not. Keep it simple, silly.
Alain Blais
CEO RYS Group
alain@rys.group
The Blais family enjoying the views at Lake Tahoe.
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