As marketer, you can’t help but see a clear parallel between what Coppola did to prepare for the shooting of this wonderful film and what we must all do before writing and producing any marketing or sales piece.

The prep work Coppola did for this movie is mind-boggling (you need to watch the interview to see what I mean). It makes writing a complex white paper look like child’s play.

For instance, months before shooting The Godfather, Coppola created a “promptbook” — a large three-ring binder that contained the entire text from Mario Puzo’s book by the same name.

To assemble this promptbook, he cut out all the pages from the book and pasted each on a sheet of paper. This enabled Coppola to have lots of margin space for note-taking.

In his promptbook, Coppola then noted the essential criteria each and every scene had to address. To make the film engaging and believable, Coppola felt that two specific items were particularly important:

1) The Core: meaning the goal of the scene. The one message or idea the scene absolutely had to communicate to the audience for it to have an impact.

2) Pitfalls: Factors that could end up screwing up the scene in some way. This included specific dangers to avoid, clichés to stay away from, and factors that could make the scene boring.

To illustrate the importance of these two criteria, Coppola refers to a key scene in The Godfather titled “The Killing.” If you’ve seen the movie, this is the scene where Solozzo, Michael Corleone, and Captain McCluskey (the corrupt chief of police) meet at a restaurant to strike up a deal between the families.

But Michael has other plans. His only reason for meeting these guys is to kill them both as revenge for Solozzo’s earlier attempt on Michael’s father’s (Vito Corleone’s) life.

Reading from his promptbook in the interview, Coppola felt that the core of this scene was “to show the killing as terrifying and explicit as possible, having already taken the tension to an unbearable degree.” And also, “to further define Michael’s character in regards to his cool, totally calm execution of these men.”

If you’ve seen the movie, you have to agree he accomplished both objectives.

He then describes the potential pitfalls: “This is a very important scene for the movie and for Michael Corleone. Rushing the scene would absolutely ruin it!”

Again, if you’ve seen The Godfather, he certainly dodged this pitfall. Coppola rushes nothing in this scene — yet it doesn’t feel long or boring. In fact, this is probably one of the most suspenseful and memorable scenes in the movie.

Coppola’s understanding of the “core” and potential pitfalls for each scene is a big reason why The Godfather is so engaging, so riveting, so authentic. In fact, in the interview he tells us that this was the scene that convinced the executives at Paramount Pictures to keep Al Pacino in Michael’s role.

Apparently, up until this point the studio didn’t think he was a good fit and were on the verge of firing him (against Coppola’s will).

The Takeaway

As marketers, we can borrow these ideas to help us strengthen just about every type of marketing message. It doesn’t matter if you’re writing web copy, a white paper, an email campaign, a direct mail letter, case study, press release or brochure.

What’s the “core”? What critical message must you convey? How do you want the prospect to feel as she reads the piece? What do you want her to do when she reads it?

Just as important, what are the potential pitfalls? What could go wrong as the prospect reads your message? What could make him delete the email, throw away your letter or perceive your white paper as a brochure in disguise?

And above all, how can you make them an offer they can’t refuse?

“But then the big grocery chains popped up everywhere in the 80s and 90s. They started selling cakes for $10 and $15, and that put many of my competitors out of business. Not only were they pushing a cheaper product, but they also offered customers something most of us couldn’t: the convenience of picking up a birthday cake while they shopped for groceries.”

According to Jim, other than cutting prices (which didn’t work), most local bakery owners didn’t know how to react. Only a few survived. And those that did, including Jim’s bakery, still struggle to make ends meet.

How sad. These businesses were local institutions, some of them for three and four generations.

But as I listened to Jim, I couldn’t help but wonder if he really knew and understood his target market. Was he chasing after the wrong crowd? I’m not an expert on the bakery business, but here’s what I know:

* Jim’s bakery is in an older part of town that’s being revitalized.

* High-income professionals are moving in, buying up all the older homes and updating them. In turn, home prices are skyrocketing.

* These folks appreciate the finer things in life and are willing to pay for them — art, great food and wine, organic fruits and vegetables, delicious desserts made from scratch.

* Fine restaurants are popping up everywhere, catering to this discriminating crowd.

And yet Jim’s store looks like it hasn’t been updated since the 1970s. Worse yet, he’s still chasing the $15-cake market. The same group that prefers convenience and low prices.

It seemed to me that Jim’s best potential customers are the people who would never buy a cake from a grocery sore. In other words, his new, affluent neighbors. Discriminating consumers who appreciate a homemade treat made from scratch, using only fresh, high-quality ingredients.

Price is not an issue. I bet most would pay $30 to $40 for a beautiful, homemade cake. And because most are health-conscious, when they do have the occasional sweet treat, they want it to be delicious!

(In fact, I recently saw a documentary on Warren Brown — the lawyer-turned-baker from Washington D.C. that did this very thing successfully: he markets high-end, made-from-scratch cakes and desserts to a young, affluent crowd. Check out: www.CakeLove.com.)

Where am I going with this … and what does it have to do with marketing software?

Here’s the deal: If you don’t know what your target market is — if you don’t understand who your best prospects are (and I mean if you don’t know EVERYTHING about them) — you’ll waste a heck of a lot of blood, sweat and tears marketing to those who will never buy from you.

Of course, you may be targeting several markets. But if you can’t properly identify all your audiences, you’ll end up chasing after the wrong crowd. You’ll waste your time promoting your products and services to someone who — to continue the analogy — would rather pick up an uninspiring, $15 cake at Wal-Mart.

This is a powerful exercise. In fact, one of my clients recently doubled annual sales once they realized their best target market was one they never thought would be interested in their products.

So, what are your best target markets? Can you clearly define them? Can you get narrower in your description? How are you addressing each of these audiences in your marketing communications? Do you truly understand their objectives, key pain points and potential buying objections?

Whether your products sell for $100 or $1 million, make sure you’re absolutely clear about who’s going to “get it.” Then, go to market with a message that resonates with this crowd.

###

What about your inside sales team? At this stage, how aggressive are they
with prospect follow up?

Here’s the issue: Today’s busy and overworked buyer doesn’t have the time or
patience to absorb a great deal of information about products and services,
especially early in the buying process. At this point, the less you send, the
better.

Yet the natural reaction of so many software companies is to do the opposite:
flood inquirers with too much information.

Too Much — And All at Once

So here’s what happens. The email with the requested information is too long
or contains too many attachments or links. So the buyer “sets it aside” to read
later (they were in the middle of something when they received it). They end up
forgetting about it, and their interest eventually fades.

Or maybe the information packet you sent them is bursting at the seams, so
they again set it aside to review later. Or maybe your inside sales team is
hungry and aggressive and overwhelms (or scares!) the prospect away by
trying to do too much too soon (i.e., trying to get the buyer to commit to an
appointment too early).

Fact is, there’s a direct correlation between the amount of information buyers
want and where they are in their buying process. For example, at the early
stages there’s only an identified need, and often not very well defined. At this
point, prospects are merely scanning the horizon for possible solutions. Their
goal? To narrow down the list of choices — an overwhelming challenge when so
many vendors are firing away every piece of collateral in their arsenal.

Put Yourself in Their Shoes

So what do buyers do when they receive too much information from too many
sources? They do exactly what we would do in the same situation. They
naturally gravitate to the most appealing and digestible set of information. The
packet or email that contains just enough to help them identify potential
solutions to their problem.

And this is critical because the vendor that can communicate the right message
clearly and succinctly will often help shape the selection criteria.

This month’s takeaway:

Resist the temptation to send too much. At the early
stages of a sales cycle, send only the bare minimum. Qualify the prospect well.
Then send only what they need to easily determine if you can potentially solve
their problems. This goes for print and digital content as well as phone follow
up.

Of course, as you move forward in the selling process with the prospect, the
amount and depth of information required will increase.

But early in the cycle, less is more.

###
Enjoyed this article? Feel free to use it on your website, print publication, or e-
newsletter. All I ask is you kindly attach the following credit, and also let me
know where the material will appear:

“Ed Gandia helps software and high tech companies write direct response and
marcom pieces that feed pipelines and drive revenue. Ed’s focus on producing
results-oriented copy stems from a successful, 11- year career in high tech and
industrial sales. To subscribe to his free e-newsletter on copywriting and lead
generation, go to www.EdGandia.com/GetMoreLeads ”
Need help writing powerful white papers, case studies, sales letters, web
copy, ads, or other marketing materials? Looking for some expert search
engine optimization (SEO) advice that won’t break the bank?

I’d be happy to review your existing materials or discuss a marketing problem
you’d like to solve — at no charge.

Call me at: 770-419-3342, or drop me a line at ed@edgandia.com

Found this information helpful? Why not forward it to a colleague?

Yet, surprisingly, this “next step” mentality is not as prevalent in B2B marketing.
Besides the offer or call to action in an email campaign or direct mail piece,
marketers sometimes fail to give prospects other options. For example, an
invitation to place a call or send an email. Or an offer to download another
informative document. Or a web page where they can go to learn more. Maybe
even some kind of quiz, poll, or conversion calculator.

In other words, a fallback position that, in the end, could be just as effective as
the main call to action — or, in some cases, even *become* the call to action.

The Shocking Power of the “Next Step”

Probably the most startling example of the power of the next step, and why it’s
so effective, is contained in Malcolm Gladwell’s book, The Tipping Point: How Little
Things Can Make a Big Difference.

In his book, Gladwell describes the fear experiments conducted by social
psychologist Howard Leventhal in the 1960s. The results of this study are
absolutely fascinating. And the implications for marketers are tremendous.

According to Gladwell, Leventhal wanted to see if he could persuade a group of
college seniors at Yale University to get a tetanus shot. To do this, he divided
the subjects into two groups and gave each a booklet describing the dangers of
tetanus and the importance of inoculation. In the booklet, he also clearly stated
that the university was offering f-r-ee tetanus shots at the campus health
center.

But not all books were the same. Some students were given a “high fear”
version, which described the disease very graphically. This version included
pictures of tetanus victims having seizures and undergoing painful treatment
involving catheters and nasal tubes.

The “low fear” booklet was much more subdued. It still described the disease
and its risks, but used a much softer approach and included no pictures.

The Results

At first, the results were fairly predictable. When given a questionnaire after
reading the booklet, all students appeared to know a great deal about the
dangers of tetanus. Those who were given the “high fear” version were more
likely to say they understood the importance of inoculation. Most even stated
they were now planning on getting the shot.

But here’s where things get interesting. One month after the experiments, only
3% of all subjects (both “high fear” and “low fear”) had actually gone to the
campus health center to get a tetanus shot.

Surprising? Leventhal thought so.

To dig deeper, he conducted the experiment once again with a new group of
subjects. Except, this time, he made a very minor modification to BOTH sets of
booklets. In this round, he added map of the campus to every booklet. The
map showed university health center clearly circled and even a list of times
when shots were being administered.

This seemingly minor changed had a tremendous impact on results. After
reading the modified booklet, 28% of the new subjects got inoculated. Also
surprising, just as many low-fear subjects as high-fear subjects got inoculated.

So, why did such a subtle modification to both sets of booklets — the addition of
a campus map and health center hours, in essence, the “next step” — do the
trick?

Make it Practical and Memorable

According to Gladwell: “The students needed to know how to fit the tetanus
stuff into their lives; the addition of the map and the times when the shots were
available shifted the booklet from an abstract lesson in medical risk…to a
practical and personal piece of medical advice. And once the advice became
practical and personal, it became memorable.”

The lesson for marketers: Don’t underestimate the power of even the simplest
“next step” in any marketing piece — especially in documents where you might
not normally do this, such as press releases, white papers or case studies.

Put yourself in your prospect’s shoes. Try to imagine what other relevant
information he or she might find useful, practical and, if possible, memorable at
this point in their buying cycle. Then, offer them some choices and see what
happens.

You just might be surprised at the results.

###

Book Review: Lead Generation for the Complex Sale

I recently read Brian Carroll’s book, Lead Generation for the Complex Sale”>Lead
Generation for the Complex Sale. If you’re in B2B sales or marketing, and you
deal in a complex sale, this is an absolute must-read.

As Carroll points out, the only way to put an end to the internal sales and
marketing blame-game, and start producing results that drive revenue, is to
take a more holistic approach to lead generation. An approach that starts with
mutually defining (by both sales, marketing and other stakeholders) what makes
a lead “sales-ready.”

Only then can a company develop and execute a truly effective, multi-modal
approach to lead generation. And only then can a company start seeing
exponentially better results without a commensurate increase in effort,
complexity or budget.

No flaky theories, abstract ideas, or hard-to-grasp concepts in this book. It’s all
meat — and written by a guy who eats his own medicine every day. Highly
recommended.

####

Enjoyed this article? Feel free to use it on your website, print publication, or e-
newsletter. All I ask is you kindly attach the following credit, and also let me
know where the material will appear:

“Ed Gandia helps software and high tech companies write direct response and
marcom pieces that feed pipelines and drive revenue. Ed’s focus on producing
results-oriented copy stems from a successful, 11- year career in high tech and
industrial sales. To subscribe to his free e-newsletter on copywriting and lead
generation, go to www.EdGandia.com/GetMoreLeads ”

Need help writing powerful white papers, case studies, sales letters, web
copy, ads, or other marketing materials? Looking for some expert search
engine optimization (SEO) advice that won’t break the bank?

I’d be happy to review your existing materials or discuss a marketing problem
you’d like to solve — at no charge.

Call me at: 770-419-3342, or drop me a line at ed@edgandia.com