By this point you've probably heard "show, don't tell."
The problem is that too many sales-led software companies aren't showing their product. They seem to expect the buyer to attend a demo to get the honor of seeing the product. (Hate to break it to you, but we shouldn’t expect a buyer to come to a demo just to see the product.)
According to MKT1's State of Marketing Report published earlier this spring, only 22% of sales-led companies have product screenshots on their homepage hero. Compare that to 37% for hybrid companies and 57% for self-serve. Emily Kramer of MKT1 hypothesizes that the root cause is that sales-led companies are afraid to show anything specific. I tend to agree.
And, yes, I’ve heard the pushback. It sounds like “there are too many variables in how the product works” or “we can't capture every use case.” That may be true. For example, in healthtech, if your product integrates with an EHR and you integrate with multiple EHRs, there are many variables that affect how the product will function. But that shouldn't stop you from showing the product’s core functionality in your marketing. You can keep your imagery high-level and save the detail for the demo.
Remember: showing the product is a form of proof. Making a claim about a specific capability? Prove it with a product image or GIF. (As marketers, myself included, when we think proof, we jump to social proof. But, especially for sales-led software, product proof is still an underused strategy.)
So, I'd like to make the case for doing both: “show AND tell”, instead of “show, don't tell”.
If you only show without telling (i.e., explaining), you've skipped the context that makes what they're seeing make sense. If you only tell (i.e. explain) without showing, you put the (huge) burden on the buyer to picture something they've never seen before. And how could your buyer accurately picture your product doing something specific if they haven’t even seen your product?
‘Til next week,
Carolyn
P.S. If you're selling into industries that aren't early tech adopters, software that just looks modern might be groundbreaking to your buyer. Software being sold into healthcare orgs is a good example. So many of the legacy programs they use look so old and feel so clunky that showing just a photo of your interface can deliver an aha moment. Those of us who live and breathe software often take that for granted (but we shouldn't).
Off the clock…
🎥 This Is a Gardening Show on Netflix. I’m not embarrassed to admit I’ve already rewatched this since it was released earlier this year, because what’s not to love about Zach Galifianakis traipsing around the PNW, teaching (and learning) about how to grow veggies?
📕 Nothing Fancy by Alison Roman. I revisited this goodie while hosting my parents. If you pick it up, try the chicken with caramelized lemon and dates (serve it with a tangy side salad and rice or farro to sop up the jus).
Before you go…
My firm (Boxcar) helps sales-led B2B software companies turn their proven sales motion into a clear messaging framework that generates more qualified leads.
Interested in working together? Reach out by filling this form.