Probably one of the toughest things you’ll learn in business is discerning the difference between benefits and features. And this knowledge can make or break your business … because people buy benefits, not features. So if you’re pushing the features of your products and services, you’re not going to sell much.

Thing is, features are easy to list and talk about. It is translating those features into benefits that gets a lot of people stuck — especially coaches, speakers and info-service professionals. That’s why I dedicated an entire call (call #6 with Annie Jennings and Stacy Amara Kauffman) to the topic! I’m even dedicating an entire chapter of my up-coming product, Plan Your Business, to the topic!

The rule of thumb for telling the difference is this:

A feature is a fact about your product or service:

• The pen is red.
• You record your coaching call and provide your clients with the recording so they can refer back to the session in the future.
• You incorporate audience interaction into your presentations.

A benefit is the edge that feature provides your client:

• Red helps you find the pen in your purse more easily.
• Your client can concentrate on the coaching conversation and not on taking notes.
• Your audience is engaged and learns the material more effectively.

Do you see the difference?

Here are some articles I found on the web that might help you translate your product and service features into benefits:

BookCoaching.com Business Tip of the Month – December 2003
“Benefits vs. Features: Know the Difference!”

Entrepreneur.com
Marketing Features Vs. Benefits: Learn the difference, and then see the difference in your bottom line.

Marketing Expert & Author, George Torok
Benefits vs. Features