Do Your Potential Customers Know They Want Solutions To Their Challenges?

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Founders and small business owners often compile an offer without giving it a second thought. Will people actually want what they want to offer? Do they even know they need it?

Packaging your offer into something that is likely to sell is one thing – and it is a science on its own. But how do you sell something when you don’t know if people need it?

It comes back to the buyer journey – which progresses through 5 stages. Where your potential customer or client is at, will determine whether they will be interested or not.

It will also determine how you need to package your offer, and how you need to focus your messaging.

The Five stages of buyer awareness in the buying cycle:

1. Unaware.

The prospect is living with a situation, constraint or issue, but doesn’t realize the potential risks or drawbacks associated with not doing anything about it, or doesn’t know how solving it would make their lives easier or improve their cash flow.

For instance:

Somewhere in corporate America, someone is sitting in a meeting, furiously taking notes. What that person doesn’t know is that while taking notes, their attention is divided. While they take notes on what is said, they themselves are not contributing to the conversation, or asking any meaningful questions.

2. Problem-aware.

The prospect is aware of the issue, and realizes it is a pain point. They still live with it, though, and deal with it as best as they can.

For instance:

Still in corporate America, the person taking the notes becomes aware of the downsides of taking notes, but considers it a necessary trade-off to do their job.

3. Solution-aware.

The prospect is aware that solutions do exist, but has not yet begun to do any real research. For now, having a solution is simply a thought that needs to be pursued, but there is no concrete information on the table.

In corporate America, for the person who usually takes notes by hand, these solutions could include things like delegating to an intern, recording the meeting and having it transcribed, recording the meeting and then using speech-to-text software to transcribe it, or using an AI solution.

4. Product-aware.

The prospect has started doing research, and is aware of some of the potential solutions. They become aware of costs and features, and how the features could benefit them.

By now, our note-taker has focused her research on note-taking apps, which will leave her free to engage in the conversation, and ask clarifying questions.

5. Most aware.

After doing their research and due diligence, the prospect has focused on one particular product or service – hopefully yours – and is on the verge of making a buying decision.

At this point in time, the only thing that could keep them from making a purchase is the cost, and unanswered questions. By providing more information, or offering a discount, it is relatively easy to nudge them into making the purchase.

How do these 5 stages affect your marketing campaigns?

If the prospect is completely unaware, you will need to convince them they have a situation that needs solving, and that it would be worth their while to solve it.

If the prospect is aware of the situation, but not aware of solutions, it becomes easier. In many cases, it is ideal to catch the prospect at this stage, because you are offering a solution with no other competition in sight.

If the prospect is aware of potential solutions, you have to demonstrate why your solution is more beneficial to them than the other potential solutions to their issue or situation.

If the prospect is aware of competing products, you need to differentiate yourself from the competition, and demonstrate the value of your product or service, and how it directly benefits the prospect more than siding with the competition would.

If the prospect is already most aware, most of your work is done. In many cases, this is due to a word-of-mouth referral, or exceptional branding which made you the logical choice. In this scenario, it is all just about providing clarity and overcoming basic objections.

In conclusion:

Depending on where your prospect is on his or her buyer journey, they may not even know they need what you offer. At this point in time, you first have to make them aware of the fact that they need a solution, and only then can you present your offer.

It all comes down to your target customer, and who you want to go after. Do you want to go after prospects who have no idea they need you, but also have no idea of the competition?

Or would you prefer to go after people who are more aware, and just work to position yourself above the available competing solutions?

Of course, you could run different campaigns aimed at people in different stages of their buying cycle. If you do, you will soon note which of your campaigns are more profitable or more effective than the others, and you can double down on what works best.