If you have never caught the TV show Mad Men, you owe it to yourself to check it out at least once. It is about a posh Manhattan advertising agency set in the 1960's. Don Draper, the leading man in the series, constantly reminds his team that the ads they present to their clients need to focus on benefits, not features of the product or service they are trying to sell. Here is the trailer for Mad Men, which in itself is selling the benefits of the show.

 

Contrast the video below of Bipasha, a beautiful model, pitching Pantene Shampoo. There is a real disconnect between the model and the product because the video is choppy due to poor editing and hissing on the microphone which takes away from the message. You can't envision how she uses the shampoo (even though she has beautiful hair) and most importantly, the product pitch is lost.

 

Lastly, take a look at the new iPad video. Wow! What a difference! It is showing you the benefits of the new iPad and they aren't telling you anything about the product. Take a look and see for yourself.

 

What are the key takeaways you can use for your next product launching event and how would the team at Mad Men pitch it to you? Don Draper himself would say the following:

Benefits trump features every time. Benefits describe the way the qualities of your product positively affect the attendee, ultimately by making their life better and easier. Often times focusing on one benefit is good enough, such as the new iPad ad did above. 

Compare the following statements about light equipment rentals:

(BENEFITS) Lighting for your next event sets the mood in the room, illuminates the product or people that attendees need to focus on, and can provide an endless array of composition options through color and design. 

(FEATURES) Lighting has many options including pinspot, stationary, LED, spotlights, color, and of course, natural. Work with your AV team to determine which lighting option is best for you. 

What problem is the product solving for your attendees? 

Here are some samples of problem solving statements:

  • Rent iPads for your next meeting so attendees don't have to carry around binders, laptops, sponsorship information, and tradeshow brochures. A 10-ounce tablet can do the trick!
  • Use wireless audience response systems to track and compile speaker and conference evaluations. No more paper to pass out, collect, and compile! Response rates will increase to at least 90% with ARS units.
  • Wi-Fi network arrays can solve your bandwidth burden. Having a fast and robust router can keep your attendees online, all the time.

Use video, photos, and color at every opportunity. 

lightingI could describe the lighting in this room, or I could show you a photograph and you would get it immediately. 

We are visual learners. The more video, photo, and/or color you can implement into your message the better opportunity you have for the audience members to grasp the concept. 

AV Event Solutions will be your Mad Men consultants for lighting, sound, iPad rental, audience response rentals, Wi-Fi array, and computer kiosk solutions. Give them call today at 888.249.4903!