Why We Buy: Features vs. Benefits

It is Biological, Not Psychological

It has been well proven that ‘Why We Buy’ is based on biology rather than psychology — “People don’t buy what you do; people buy why you do it.” ~ Simon Sinek

Once again Simon Sinek delivers a fabulous talk on the core of human nature — and in this talk — how you can apply it to business life in a way that makes the world a better place for all of us.

Why We Buy – Features vs. Benefits

If you liked this video, in another video, Simon speaks to why some companies succeed and others fail.  His codifying chart called “The Golden Circle” — based on his whole philosophy of the power of WHY — is exactly why you should review your own marketing copy on a regular basis.

It is easy to list features because we like bragging about ourselves and what we do, but people do not buy based on what we do. That surely influences the decision making, but…

“Let me give you an example. I use Apple because they’re easy to understand and everybody gets it. If Apple were like everyone else, a marketing message from them might sound like this: “We make great computers. They’re beautifully designed, simple to use and user-friendly. Want to buy one?” “Meh.” That’s how most of us communicate. That’s how most marketing and sales are done, that’s how we communicate interpersonally. We say what we do, we say how we’re different or better and we expect some sort of a behavior, a purchase, a vote, something like that. Here’s our new law firm: We have the best lawyers with the biggest clients, we always perform for our clients. Here’s our new car: It gets great gas mileage, it has leather seats. Buy our car. But it’s uninspiring.”

“Here’s how Apple actually communicates. “Everything we do, we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently. The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully designed, simple to use and user-friendly. We just happen to make great computers. Want to buy one?” Totally different, right? You’re ready to buy a computer from me. I just reversed the order of the information. What it proves to us is that people don’t buy what you do; people buy why you do it.” ~ Simon Sinek at TEDxPuget Sound “How great leaders inspire action”

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