Put a number to it, then draw a picture.
Let’s say you raise chickens and farm eggs for a living.
And unlike big agribusiness, you’re trying to raise your chickens under humane conditions, to follow the spirit and not just the letter of the law for “organic,” and that your chickens truly are “free range.”
How do you compete with all the agribusiness jerks who cut corners, spin words, play the loopholes and then get to claim the same “organic” and “free range” titles as you?
When the average shopper looks down at all her options staring up at her in the Whole Foods aisle, most of her choices are all going to say the same things, over and over again: organic feed, free range/cage-free, omega 3s, yada yada yada.
How do you make your eggs stand out in a sea of sameness?
Answer: put a number on your claim.
The other eggs say “Cage Free” and leave it at that.
Alfresco Farms specifies “108 SQ FT Outdoors Per bird.”
They put a number to the idea of “free range.” And that added credibility was enough to win my sale.
But it’s the picture they draw on their Website that really brings it home:
Now you know EXACTLY how much the other jerks are equivocating when they call their hens “cage-free” or “free-range.”
And you not only know, but FEEL in your gut, just how big the difference is between Alfresco Farms’ pasture-raising and some mega-farm’s “organic” and “cage-free” practices.
So when you’re faced with a similar challenge, give this a try: Put a number on it, then paint a picture.
P.S. Note that this company also tries to use alternative labels and certifications: “pasture-raised” vs. “free range” and “certified humane” over and above “certified organic.” All good things to do, but none of them have the power of putting a number to the claim.
This article was written by my brilliant partner Jeff Sexton.
Morty Silber, CEO
Mad Strategies Inc.
a Wizard of Ads Partner