Keep it Simple
by Dera DeRoche-Jolet

Has the thought ever crossed your mind that all this computer and web technology is just too confusing for the average person to understand? I’m always surprised at how much some people don’t know. Actually, the more I read up on things the more I find out how much I don’t know.

Maybe you’ve read a computer magazine, spoken with a salesperson or visited a web site to learn about a new computer product only to mutter afterwards, "I don't get it. It's way too complicated."

Well, if you have, you're not alone, and it may not be your fault. Yes, things are moving ahead so fast it’s hard to keep up but part of the problem is those "computer people." The way I see it, many tend to spin their wheels in attempting to market all this new technology. In other words they have an amazing tendency to say much and convey little. Does the majority of the population know what they are talking about? Most end users, might actually want to buy the product, if they knew what it was and what it cost and how they might use it.

For example, I’ve been to a company’s web site where I believed I would find full details of a product. After clicking my way through several pages, the only thing I knew for sure was the name of the owner of the company and the fact that they were launching a wonderful new "solution" that they believed would solve somebody's problem. But whose problem were they solving? And how were they solving it? Don't ask me.

I’m also surprised at how little some people know about the computer sitting in front of them. I’ve spoken with people who don’t know how to make a new folder or copy a file from one folder to another. Some are afraid that they’ll set off a nuclear attack if they press a wrong button.

The real problem is that those technology people take for granted that everyone else knows as much as they do. Most people don’t, and if the tech people want to sell their product they have got to do it in a way that reaches the average person.

Alarm dealers have the same problem in communicating their message. The services and equipment that you sell are second nature to you. But it is probably not second nature for your potential customer. They really don’t know what a PIR is. Yes, they may have heard the term but they may not know exactly what a PIR does, or more importantly, why they need one. They also don’t know what it means to shunt out a zone. So when the term rolls off your tongue as you are trying to make the sale, stop for a minute and see if they have a blank expression on their faces. Yes, use the term but explain what it means.

The same goes for false alarms. You know the problems. You’ve read all about false alarms and what the industry is doing about them. But all your potential customer might know is that someone down the street was fined for it and it was probably the alarm dealer’s fault.

So forget the industry jargon and describe your product in a way that even your grandmother could understand. It’s possible that even your grandmother might buy an alarm system if you explained things in simple terms and told her exactly what it is you are selling, why she might need it and how it will help her. Speak plainly and give examples.

The ability to spew forth industry terms might impress other alarm dealers, "techies" and possibly government employees. But remember they are not the ones who will become your customers. It is the public, the average person, who you want to reach with your message. They won't waste their time trying to figure out marketing material or a sales pitch that goes above their heads. And, if they do buy a system, they won’t be afraid to use it like some of those "average" people who now have a computer sitting in their home who are not taking full advantage of its capabilities.