The uncomfortable truth is that if the website and sales pitch focus on different things, maybe it’s the website that needs to adjust.
It’s tempting to see the website as the final word on a product or service. The benefits and presentation that we’ve carefully put together should have been selected as what we want our prospects to see. But what happens if the sales team are focusing on something completely different? We put ourselves at a big disadvantage. Most prospects will have made an enquiry because of what’s on the website, but if this is not what they hear in the sales presentation, we’re tying one hand behind our back.
I can recall one example from many years ago, when an industrial automation supplier was breaking into the market shouting loudly about the breadth of its range. To back up its push, the company flooded the market with sales reps. And what did those sales reps lead off with? The fact that there were so many of them, and that support was consequently personal, local and super-responsive. A completely different side to the brand.
What the sales team thought was most important was undoubtedly a genuine benefit …but it wasn’t what the enquirer had been looking for. At least on some occasions, they must have been talking to the wrong prospects. It reminds me of when the trailer for a film is nothing like the film it’s supposed to be introducing; the result is the ‘wrong’ people go to the cinema, and their reaction is poor.
Now, in a perfect world, we’d get the sales team to pivot and use the brand messaging. But that’s not going to happen. The uncomfortable truth is that if the website and sales pitch focus on different things, maybe it’s the website that needs to adjust. Or perhaps there’s a good compromise.