Blog from Maribeth Kuzmeski of Red Zone Marketing
Infomercials help brands sell over four billion dollars of products and services every year. While some members of the advertising industry view infomercials as second-rate campaigns, in general, they work. That’s why they are on all of the time! So whether you use the medium or not, following these 3 elements of what makes them so successful is smart business.
1. Infomercials build a comprehensive and convincing case. Infomercials are designed to capture viewers’ mindshare, inspire them to write down their phone number, dial it, and buy. And the only way that will happen is if the infomercial works as a complete stand-alone sales presentation. The goal is to build a comprehensive and convincing case for buying by giving viewers all of the information they need to make a purchasing decision. They explain every benefit, answer all objections; and then do it again.
2. Infomercials present testimonials to eliminate objections. Infomercials prove the worthiness of a product by showing it in action and then presenting the results with real customers. The goal is to inspire action by taking all of your objections away. But if you can’t use testimonials in your business, don’t worry. You can still verbally explain what others have said about your service and personal touch. For example: “The best way to describe what we do is by sharing what one of our clients said last week…”
3. Infomercials provide strong and immediate calls to action. Infomercials make a very specific offer. They don’t give you lots of options or choices to customize; instead, they make the recommendation easy to understand. You essentially have only two choices: buy, or don’t buy. And to get you to act right away, the offer is typically doubled, or accompanied by an additional free product.
Do you build a convincing case, eliminate objections and make a specific offer? If not, it may be a great time to test out the proven methods of infomercials. Why? Because they work!
Maribeth Kuzmeski
Maribeth Kuzmeski, MBA is the founder of Red Zone Marketing, LLC, which consults to Fortune 500 firms on strategic marketing planning and business growth. She is the author of 4 books, has frequently appeared on TV and radio, and has written articles on marketing strategies for hundreds of publications including Business Week and Entrepreneur. She regularly speaks to audiences on topics relating to business development, marketing, and sales strategies. Maribeth is author of The Connectors: How the World’s Most Successful Businesspeople Build Relationships and Win Clients for Life (Wiley, September 2009).
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