What's the difference between a "bonus" and a "benefit"? It's simple. A benefit is something that is a part of the product you are selling (or the service); and a bonus is the "more than my job's worth" EXTRA component that has actually nothing to do whatsoever with the product you are selling. Now, it is true that bonuses can have benefits; they SHOULD have benefits and you should tell people about those benefits, else it isn't a bonus and completely worthless, basically - LOL! To know the benefits of any product (a core product OR a bonus product!) is of the essence to explain to people WHY ON EARTH they should buy this thing. Basically, you get three kinds of benefits: 1. Immediate benefits - What is going to happen AS SOON as they've bought this? This is REALLY, REALLY, REALLY important. People lose the sight of the "bigger picture" the more stressed they are; that is a direct cause and effect. The more stressed, the more RIGHT NOW!!! their thinking becomes, and anything beyond "manyana" is just a fog that will never happen. This is a good time to work with SENSORY and TACTILE benefits - that wonderful "new car" smell, the excitement of unwrapping the box; the pride of showing it to a friend when you get home; a sense of relief because now a problem will stop. The "instant download" of the Internet is perfect for this, but to spell out the IMMEDIATE BENEFITS beyond "you can start to read right away" for e-infomercial products is ESSENTIAL. *** A Note: Hard Pitching INCREASES stress! The harder you pitch, the more you need to concentrate on the IMMEDIATE benefits to make the sale. 2. Usage Benefits - How do you benefit WHILST you are using the product? This is about ease of use, good feelings that arise because you are using this product (and not any other!), what you can DO with it, what problems in daily life this product solves. *** A Note: Remember that telling people what DOES NOT happen because you're using this product (no stress, no hassle, no time wasted, no PAIN!) is definitely also a big BENEFIT to them. Cessation of pain is a MASSIVE motivator! 3. Long Term Benefits - What will happen AFTER the product has been used? This is the one that advertisers often find the hardest or get confused - this is not about how the product tastes or smells or looks, or how nice it is to eat at all any more. This is about how you found LOVE ***AFTER**** the benefits from eating the product had set in, made you more attractive, brought about the change. So if you are selling an orange, this "long term benefit" shows the happy couple on their honeymoon at sunset, for example. These "long term benefits" are usually very standard - happy couple on the beach, a naked woman with an inviting look, freedom on a shore, your name in lights, that kind of thing. ***A Note: Just because you are selling screwdrivers does NOT mean your product doesn't have such long term benefits at the end. EVERYTHING does, somehow. Why does someone buy a screwdriver? To fix something ... to make something more perfect ... to move towards a more perfect life with perfect freedom, perfect love, perfect happiness ... When you hire an expensive marketing expert, the first thing they'll do is to send you back to YOUR OWN PRODUCT and MAKE YOU COMPILE LISTS OF BENEFITS of your product. The benefits of ANY product or service are what SELLS the product. To KNOW what these benefits are EXACTLY is the master key to be able to write advertising copy, to tell people about it, to answer their questions and concerns. You really can't spend enough time on finding out all about your own benefits (actually, that also works for dating agency advertisements ... you know ... you do want to find perfect love and happiness and freedom, don't ya ...!) and knowing what they are, DISCOVERING more and more good points about your products/services. When you got that "benefits" thing down and you can extract benefits immediately, see and know what they are and TELL THIS TO OTHERS, you can't go wrong anymore. If you THEN add BONUSES, which are also products which have FURTHER BENEFITS!, to your sales offer, THEN you have something that is worth buying and YOU GET A DEAL! Success To YOU! Silvia Hartmann
