why i've stopped talking to customer pain points in my brand messaging

We are often told in branding and business to speak to customers pain points, it’s a popular strategy to entice customers to work with you or buy your products. You’ll notice it used a lot in copy however recently I’ve started to feel this isn’t the best approach for my business and I’ve explored an alternative more uplifting and ethical approach.

What are customer pain points?

Customer pain points are a marketing and brand messaging strategy which identify areas your potential customers are feeling frustrated. By doing this you make them feel like they need something to improve what they are currently doing and they aren’t good enough.

An example of a pain point for my customers would be…

Frustrated with your DIY branding that is holding your business back? 

I’ve used this pain point on my old ‘work with me’ page along with several others. And what happens is people already feel a sense of failure, they feel panicked that their business isn’t good enough and they haven’t done the right things to help their business grow. This can also be applied to life, as products are sold to make us feel that we are not ‘enough’ and need something to improve ourselves.

Yes it’s a tested formula that works, and probably works fast. But for me business and brand building is an organic and thoughtful process so I would rather stick to good, ethical intentions and make people feel inspired about the possibility as opposed to dismayed about their current brand reality.

How do you feel when you are sold to on ‘pain points’?

Perhaps like me you get a bit of a sinking feeling in your stomach, a feeling of overwhelm, and a massive dose of self criticism is launched on your brand and business.

Have a think of some of the recent adverts you’ve come across and see if you can notice the pain points and notice how they make you feel. Beauty products are a great example, particularly aimed at womxn and aging! Let’s face it, noone ever feels empowered after watching a beauty advert. 

Communicating Inspiration vs pain points

After discovering the inspiring work of George Kao I started to question this approach. I realised I want people to feel inspired and uplifted when they come across my work as opposed to like they are never doing enough. I admit that I had blindly followed this advice without really thinking if it fitted with my values.

With this in mind I’ve decided to focus on making people feel INSPIRED and EMPOWERED as opposed to DEPRESSED about the state of their brand in my content and communication! It’s been refreshing to step away from that idea that we need to make people feel their business is failing by talking to customer pain points so that then we step in and save them.

Below is an example of how I’ve changed the messaging on my Brand Builder course page to make people feel inspired and excited by the potential of their brand and business… 

How changing my approach and not talking to customer pain points has impacted on my business

I have to admit my original website pages especially my course and services page, spoke to pain points because they were the main examples I had seen.

It never felt quite right though, and as my brand has evolved I realised my website copy needed to change. I’ve just spent the past few weeks updating the copy on my website and working with a copywriter to create a message that feels true to my brand and it feels (and sounds) much more empowering.

I’ve noticed a difference in the enquiries that I’ve been getting. People aren’t looking to me to ‘rescue’ their brand and business, but are getting in touch with the idea that they need a little help in the areas such as branding where I can bring in some expert knowledge.

When I receive an enquiry it comes from a place of empowerment, the customer believes in their business and knows that with a bit of branding help it will elevate their brand to an even better place. With my course I’ve noticed people seem to be more excited and inspired, as opposed to feeling that they are starting from a place that is not good enough.

Overall the whole experience feels more positive and uplifting and I like the idea that people who discover me will feel inspired and empowered by my content as opposed to feeling inferior and encouraging self-criticism.

I’ll be carrying on this messaging throughout my communications and I’ve tweaked my home, work with me and learning pages and I’m looking forward to seeing the positive effects it has on my audience!

You can read the full article that inspired my shift away from talking to customer pain points here.

Here is an example below of the new uplifting tone on my ‘work with me’ page…

want to learn more? Keep on reading below…

• Read the article that inspired my shift away from talking to customer pain points
• How to build a brand that connects with people
• Learning from my business mistakes
• View my new services page and see if you can spot the change in tone