How do you think about features, advantages and benefits in the context of messaging?

I recommend creating an internal glossary for your company so everyone shares the same understanding. Here's how I think about it: Features - Specific functionality of a product. Core differentiators - What are the 3-5 unique capabilities you have that separate you from the competition? What are you better at? Solution - What problem do you help your target customer solve? A solution completes the sentence: “We help you…” Benefit - What overarching benefit do you deliver for your target customer ...Read More

I think when it comes to features <> benefits in messaging you really can't have one without the other. Features are the what, benefits are the why - people need to be painted a picture of how you are going to help them solve their problems. A checklist alone doesn't make someone more productive, but a checklist that enables them to get their ideas out of their brains and ready to be collaborated on across their team tells a very different story. As a PMM it's our job to help bridge the ga ...Read More

Lead with the why. Your messaging framework should be rooted in the positioning statement, which speaks to the problem you’re trying to solve, who you’re solving it for, how you’re solving it, and why you’re uniquely positioned to do so. Once you’re clear on that, you can summarize  it in customer friendly language. What’s the most important thing you want customers to take away from your message? This is your key message, around which the rest of the framework can be built. Your key message sho ...Read More

We try our best not to get too caught up or carried away with our great product features! Ultimately - it's about the value we deliver to customers and so we try to infuse the business value into the messaging as much as we can. The other thing we try to do (sometimes successfully!) is to avoid jargon/'fluff' in the context of messaging....in other words, keep the messaging plain and simple. If our messaging resonates with the least technical of our customers, that's a win! The sales team can th ...Read More

Features, advantages, and benefits should support your message, not be your message. A lot of B2B marketers don't elevate their messaging above simple benefit statements. To encourage impactful messaging, I use a "pyramid" framework. On the bottom are your Features and advantages. This will be expansive, but be sure to include the aspects that differentiate your offering. The second layer are Benefits. These are intentionally vanilla. They will look like typical ROI line items: save time, save c ...Read More