Understanding the difference between features and benefits is the key to successful selling. Sounds pretty basic but many companies and entrepreneurs highlight product or service features and then forget to tell the customer how these features translate into benefits. Often these two words, features and benefits, are confused and loosely used in sales pitches.

Features are quite simply the characteristics of your product or service. They highlight the quality of the materials used in manufacturing or in point form list a variety of services you may provide.

Benefits on the other hand show exactly what your product or service can do to satisfy a need. They show how your product or service can be used to save time, reduce stress or make the customer’s job easier and in business to business cases more profitable.

Remember if you don’t know what is important to your customers then it does not matter how many features you list. Listing features assumes that your customers can translate them into benefits. You are asking them to do all the work when the reality is that customers want you to do the work. They want you to show them exactly how they will benefit. They want you to show them how purchasing your product or service will solve their problem or fill their needs.

Here’s a simple exercise you can do to help focus on using the benefits to make a sale.

First, make a list of every feature your product or service has to offer. Second, ask yourself what benefit each feature provides, there may be more than one. Third, in looking at the benefits, ask how they will connect with the needs of your target customer. Four, develop a number of benefit statements that you can use when communicating with different customers.

If prospects can’t readily identify with the benefits you provide, they are likely to move on stopping with the first company that relates to what their needs may be.

Another way of highlighting the difference between features and benefits when it comes down to a proper analysis is that features are all about the product or service while benefits are all about the customer.

If you keep that in mind when crafting your next ad, updating your website or blurb for social media you’ll be on the road to greater success.

Joe Smith is a communications consultant and an accomplished fine artist. He can be reached via email at joesmith@shaw.ca.