There’s a long-standing joke in the ambulance service. If a patient says to you ‘It’s painful when I do this…’ and then proceeds to show the “this” part, the standard answer is ‘Well, don’t do that then!’. I might not be a paramedic anymore, but I still find that funny. I know… we’re a funny bunch! All joking aside though, if someone is in pain, then their reaction is to ask for help. And that’s very much the same when it comes to business. But what is a pain point? And how can you use pain points to make better content for your business? Keep reading.
What is a pain point?
It helps to understand what on earth a pain point even is, first of all. This is the second post in as many weeks where I’ve used one of those jargon terms, isn’t it? What can I say? There is no better way of describing this than calling it a pain point!
No, it’s not an achy part of your body, first of all. But it does relate to something your customers or audience might be experiencing. In simple terms, a pain point relates to a specific problem your audience is going through. That’s why they’re looking for someone like you to solve it for them.
As a super quick example, one of my client’s pain points is that it takes her forever to write a single blog post. It’s time better spent working for her clients, marketing for new clients and doing all her business admin. And so she doesn’t bother with the blog post anymore, and you all know why you need to blog, right? By outsourcing that part of her business, the problem is being dealt with while she continues working on her business.
Ultimately, if you can understand your audience’s pain points, you can figure out how to solve them and use that information to build up your brand message and marketing. It’s a win-win situation! Just ask yourself, what problems do I help people solve?
The four typical types of pain point
Productivity
This pain point is probably the most common. It relates to how your clients’ productivity is affected by a task or part of their business. So, like my example above with the blog posts. Addressing this pain point allows you to save your clients time and reduce their stress levels.
Support
Your potential clients are struggling and need support in a part of their business. So they might need a new website, but they lack the skills and knowledge to maintain the website after its built. You could offer maintenance packages as part of their website build to address this pain point.
Process
This pain point is all about giving excellent customer service. What can you do to make the process of working with you enjoyable for your clients?
Financial
Ah, money was bound to come in somewhere! Think about how you can save potential clients cash or even earn them money. An example I use is that it might cost X amount for a sales page, but you’ll make that money back and more when the persuasive sales copy sells your product many times over!
So, how do you find out your clients’ pain points?
The simple answer is to ask them! It’s time to start listening to your audience and your existing clients. Ask them questions to find out why they sought your services and why they chose you. Ask your audience questions too. All those following you on social media, or who have signed up to your mailing list. They might not be your clients yet, but ask them what problems they’re experiencing so that you can try and help them.
Open your ears and eyes, take in all the information they’re giving you. Document it all and then go away and mull it all over.
Then, once you’ve got a good idea of your clients’ pain points, you’ve already got your foundations for all the content you’re going to be producing in the future! Use what you’ve learned to write blog posts and social media posts. Create helpful lead magnets that solve some problems. Now put yourself out there as the expert and watch your client base grow.
If you ever need help with putting your words together, do get in touch. I’d love to help you grow your business!