You've heard it perhaps a thousand times before:  Tell prospects about your features and benefits.  Make them understand how great you are.  Heck, you built it, so be sure to tell them about all the cool features and capabilities of your product.  But in the end, they just don't care.  I'll bet you a nice steak dinner that the majority of time that companies present their solution, many of the prospects in the room are daydreaming about their weekend plans or how much work they have to do that day.

Marketing materials also often scream "learn this!" and "you must be convinced that with this data, we are the best!"  It just does not work.

Let's take a lesson from some consumer product companies.  They sell against people's dreams, ambitions, fears, and desires.  The body spray is not advertised as having the best ingredients or how long it was in development.  It is marketed to show people turning heads as they walk by.  It is playing to the deep desire of some people to be noticed.  The same goes for foods - they are usually portrayed in a setting that appeals to the buyer's primal desires:  soup being served by mom on a cold day ("Mom, you're the best!), or beer attracting the hottest babe in the bar.  Sure, they work in product features and stats (nutrition, taste, etc.), but many, many consumer products are sold on solving real or perceived problems that people have ("I must be super mom." or "I want the hot babe!").

So when you market - or run your sales calls for that matter - are you appealing to prospects with stats and numbers, trying to convince them to buy?  Or are you appealing to their inner desires - to have a secure network (because if they fail they are fired), or to have exceptional customer service (because retaining customers is cheaper than finding new ones).  Recall the Chinese proverb:  A man convinced against his will is truly not convinced. 

So instead of trying to convince someone with your facts, help them solve a real (or perceived) problem, and let them convince themselves that you are the right solution.

More on this topic later...