The Power of Why: Breaking Out in a Competitive Marketplace, by C. Richard Weylman (2013). My rating: 5 of 5.
Your website says what you do, how long you have done it and how much you care. So does every competitor’s. If a prospective customer read all of them side by side, could they tell why they should pick you? Weylman’s short book is about answering that question from the customer’s side of the table.
What the book covers
Weylman writes as a sales and marketing coach, and he draws on stories from his work with clients. The book runs under 200 pages. He opens with three questions. Why are your customers buying from you now? Are they staying, or shopping around, and why? What do your competitors understand about their customers that you do not? The rest of the book shows how to find the answers and turn them into what he calls a Unique Value Promise, then how to build a company that keeps that promise.
What stayed with me
Features are not reasons. Weylman is blunt: “What you do or who you are or how you do it is not the answer” to why someone should hire you. The answer has to be about the customer’s life and the outcome they want.
Ask, do not guess. He writes that “Knowing what your target consumers really want and why and delivering it beats what you think every time.” His eight rules for customer interviews are the most practical part of the book. Choose interviewees carefully. Use a set list of questions. Meet face to face. Have customer-facing staff conduct the interviews. Rehearse the setup, pick a comfortable setting, write answers down word for word, and put them all in a spreadsheet. The repeated words become your message.
Two questions. He tells a story about a Lexus salesperson who asked two things: why do you want this car, and whom are you buying it for? One logical, one emotional. That pair works in almost any first meeting. Why now, and who are you doing this for?
The promise needs people. If your staff cannot or will not deliver what the promise says, the promise fails. Weylman says to make the hard personnel call.
Even a church campaign. One example is a church capital campaign built on Nehemiah’s call to rise up and build. It was a reminder that the same discipline applies to stewardship.
A few notes
A value promise must still be true. Weylman’s call to exceed expectations every time is a fine internal standard, but it should never become a marketed guarantee. Lawyers and accountants work under advertising rules that bar misleading claims and promised results. If you interview customers or clients, tell them how you will use their answers, and get written consent before you quote anyone publicly.
Who should read it
Owners and marketing leads of small and midsize businesses, and professionals who want to describe their work in their clients’ words. It is a quick read. The interview chapter alone is worth the time.
Quotes are short excerpts credited to the author. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The price you pay does not change. I read this book on my own, and no one asked me or paid me to review it. See Disclosures.