by Everybody has their breaking point.
I know, that sounds like the tagline for some long-forgotten cheesy revenge movie from the early ‘90s.
I can see the trailer now…
Gravelly-voiced voiceover:
“EVERYBODY HAS THEIR BREAKING POINT…”
(Shot of Arnold Schwarzenegger – or Steven Seagal, depending on budget – doing something manly but looking all zen while doing it)
“…THIS WAS HIS.”
(Shot of Something Bad happening to someone Arnie/Seagal cares about – wife, daughter, dog, personal training guru, you know the drill…
Shot of Arnie/Seags looking shocked, then vengeful, then literally COVERED IN GUNS as he sets out to right wrongs)
Fun.
But it’s true, we all have moments in our lives when we make decisions based on the gut feeling that “enough is enough”.
Often we do it when a problem we have has become urgent.
What was previously a low-level, ignorable irritant now requires immediate action.
So we grab our tools and fix the damn leaky roof we should have fixed weeks ago.
Or we tell our bosses to shove it, and quit our jobs to finally start that biz.
Or, in the less extreme but most common circumstances, we whip out our credit cards and buy things.
Which means:
Your customers and clients had breaking points too…
It’s likely they experienced one when they decided to buy your thing, or when they hired you to solve their problem.
Breaking points can be difficult and painful to experience, but they make for great marketing if you use them right.
Especially in good ol’ case studies.
Sure, tons of businesses use case studies and testimonials in their marketing, but too many focus just on the solution – on the experience their customer had AFTER they bought.
But when everything’s rosy, you get one-sided case studies that simply show how life could be for your prospects, but forget to connect with them about how it is NOW.
It’s much more powerful if you also talk (or have your customers talk) about the specific OBSTACLE that was in their way before they reached their promised land.
Get them to open up about their ‘Crisis Point’ – about WHY they came to you when all seemed lost.
How did they feel at that moment?
What happened immediately before it?
Who else was affected? (Family, colleagues, their own clients etc)
These are the moments your prospects – the ones who haven’t yet solved their problem – can empathise with right now.
They want to know there are others who once felt the same way, so they can feel comfortable knowing they’re making the right choice.
They want to know that the folks sitting pretty on the other side of the solution weren’t always there, and that things were just as tough for them too.
You can include Crisis Points in your case studies by asking your customers this simple, powerful Clarity Question:
“What was the moment you realised something needed to change?”
Do it the next time you send out a survey, or interview a customer.
People remember significant moments in their lives. They hold onto them…
Often they remember a lot of details – like where they were, who they were with, sometimes even what they were wearing.
The sights, sounds and smells of a breaking point moment stay with us.
So prepare to be surprised by the depth of response you get when you ask that simple question.
Then you can add the descriptions of your best customers’ breaking points in your marketing, making them more specific, and helping you sell unique.
It’s a key storytelling tactic, and one you don’t have to bury in the middle of a story. You can open a message with it too…
Like with Arnie in the movie trailer, you can actually lead with your ‘hero’ (customer) experiencing their obstacle or threat.
The power of stories means your reader will naturally want to know a) how they got to that point, and b) how they got past it.
You can do this in your sales pages, case studies, emails…
The idea is to create a sense of narrative, to lean on your reader’s instinctive curiosity, and also to create a specific, tangible image in their mind.
It’s about conjuring emotion, and creating empathy.
The better you setup your obstacle, the more satisfying it is when someone overcomes their Crisis Point…
…with the help of your wonderful product or service, of course 😉
Try using breaking point case studies in your next campaign or making them prominent on your website.
Here’s this month’s key Clarity Question one more time, to get you started:
“What was the moment you realised something needed to change?”
Now go find out!
