Steps to Identifying your Customer's Pain Points
As a copywriter or marketer, it’s your job to relate to your audience. You need to frame the problem that they are experiencing and offer a solution. A critical part of copywriting is the creative use of emphasis and empathy but just how do you use this to make a lasting impact?
Engaging with your readers
It is better rather just bundling all of the issues that someone might face into one condensed ‘problem’, it can be incredibly beneficial to differentiate between the different types or levels of problem. The easiest way to do this is by differentiating between internal problems and external problems.
What’s the difference?
For example of an external problem might be something like: “I am looking for a new pair dress,” or “I am looking for a new toothbrush.” Seems innocent enough, right?
External problems are directly connected to internal problems, and an internal problem is one that someone wouldn’t usually tell anyone about. It could be something that they’re embarrassed or even ashamed over, or that they just wouldn’t like anyone else to discover.
Typically very difficult to frame for an internal problem. If someone is looking for a new pair dress, the internal problem it might be connected to is: “I’m worried that I’m putting on weight” or “I’m embarrassed that these dresses make me look fat.” Similarly, if they are looking for a new toothbrush, they might be embarrassed that their teeth aren’t sparkly white.
External problems are always connected to an internal problem, and as a copywriter or persuasive marketer, it’s your job to find out what they are. As a Copywriter or Marketer, when you are touching on an internal problem, you can demonstrate that you empathize with your audience, as you already know exactly what they are going through.
This will make your audience much more willing to trust you; you will be seen as more relatable and much more understanding.
So, what next?
The most important is to address the external problems (what the customer is already researching) to get their head nodding. Once they’re in complete agreement with you, start digging in with the internal problems. Your customer will start to relate to you much more because you are demonstrating that you really do know what they are going through - you are not just pretending to get it using a superficial problem.
As a creative marketer, it’s absolutely essential that your customer trusts you. You need to provide them with clarity - your voice will not only be clearer, but more trusted. Let’s face it: you’re more likely to buy something from someone you trust, right?
Checklist
Emphasize the problem before you begin discussing a solution
Show your customer that you get it
Address the external problems
Connect the external problems to the internal problems
Follow these steps to make sure that your reader will be right there with you, every step of the way.
