Sell the benefits, not the features

It's always there. Everyone knows it. But no-one says it.

I've just finished a messaging refresh with a national charity. It covered a really important initiative for them, one they wanted employers to jump on board with.

On the surface, there was nothing hugely wrong with what already existed. But then I put on the glasses of the intended audience, which always helps to reveal the most important factor - will they care?

There was plenty in there about what the initiative was and what you needed to do to join in. But did it straight up tell them how it was going to improve their audience's world, scratch an itch for them?

It didn't take long to surface it. A workshop with a group of key people, asking what was actually going to change for the employers if they joined in, and they reeled off a whole load of answers. It just needed the right question and framing.

It comes back to the old advertising mantra - sell the benefits, not the features. The Ikea ad below is a great example. It doesn't tell us how many drawers the unit has got or how big they are. Instead: tidy room. End of.

Or to put it another way: what's in it for me? Tell them what they want to hear.

​ WEBINAR CATCH UP: Lore - the new storytelling and how to do it​

If you came along to our webinar looking at lore and how we build it in our organisations, then I hope you found it useful and interesting.

A massive thanks to James Bird, Social Media Manager at Ealing Council, for his brilliant examples and stories about the great work they've been doing on social.

Catch up on the webinar (and others) on the link up there 👆.

​USE THIS: content and campaign ideas​

I usually share content here with an interesting idea that could be adapted to help you shortcut to creative ideas if time is short, but I thought this was a great way of also collecting creative ideas quickly.

They call it a Copy Safari but I think you could rebadge it as an Ideas Safari - there's so much stuff to take inspiration from all around us and it might only need a 10-minute walk around the block.

(Get this type of creative and content inspiration first on the Creative Catch of the Day WhatsApp channel.)

​AUTHENTICITY: no, WE'RE more authentic than you​

I've banged on about authenticity a lot in this newsletter of late and the race to be the MOST authentic seems to be in overdrive and so this is an interesting raising-the-stakes move from a beer brand.

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​STORY TIPS​: the quote behind the most important storytelling advice​

There is one piece of storytelling advice that probably comes out on top of all others and there's a very famous quote from a very famous writer behind it.

SOCIAL: The Round-Up

• ​LinkedIn Articles a route to engagement ​
• ​Instagram to allow comments to be edited​
• ​More evidence for the power and reach of carousels (this time as PDF docs on LinkedIn) ​
• ​Facebook wants to scan your camera roll to suggest pics​

​THIS IS COMMS: precarious balcony balancing​

I love posts like this that show the breadth, variety and sometimes downright perilous types of job a comms role takes in every day.
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​CONTENT​: dogs and babies​

I'm always fascinated by the emotional tracking of ads and content done by this company but also in this LinkedIn post, some insider proof, were it needed, that if you want your content to soar, it's all about dogs and babies.

​PUBLIC SECTOR COMMS SURVEY 2026​

The largest benchmarking survey of local public services in the UK is live, so help provide valuable data to help improve communications across the sector.

​FREE LEARNING: UnAwards winner webinar​

I was lucky enough to nab a seat at the UnAwards winners' Masterclass this week and, as ever, it was a brilliant learning event.

If you weren't able to get a ticket, make sure you sign up for the online edition this year - April 28, 12.30pm.

ABOUT US

​Turn The Page is a story-led communications consultancy, using the power of stories to create memorable, measurable campaigns, strategies and narratives.

Campaigns and comms led by stories are measurably more successful and improve engagement and trust.

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