The moment of truth before the
By Sheperd Simmons On Message Strategy
Before your prospect makes a decision to buy, there’s a message that brings them to that decision point. So the moment they see your message… that’s a moment that matters. That’s the moment of truth before the moment of truth in marketing.
What is “Moment of Truth” in marketing? (The OG MOT)
First off, I’m going to shorten “moment of truth” to MOT. Because if I didn’t, this blog post would be longer than a pharmacy receipt. (Looking at you, CVS.)
Originally, MOT was about an instance of contact between a business and a customer, and the impression the customer had as a result. That’s a customer-experience thing. Later, Procter & Gamble turned it into a shopper-behavior thing. Their aim was to recognize the bit of time a consumer came in contact with a product, and their resulting decision to buy or not to buy. P&G also expanded on the concept, identifying a “First” MOT, as well as a second and a third.
Well, this is marketing. So what do we do? We turn this into a competition! Because obviously, P&G’s “First MOT” simply wasn’t first enough. That’s when Google one-upped P&G. Then some other company one-upped Google. We had a “zero” MOT, followed by a “less-than-zero” MOT. And then a whole ‘nother definition came along… about the delivery gap or something. Seriously? That’s not even a moment, dude.
Anyway, if you feel like spiraling, you can read the whole history of Moment of Truth in marketing. Forbes does a great job on it. Personally? I think we’ve gotten a little carried away.
For the moment (haha) let’s side with the dictionaries. We’re talking about an exact point in time. It’s the instant a feeling is felt.
It’s the instant a feeling is felt.
Now let’s define the Moment of Truth before the Moment of Truth in marketing
We’ve established that the original MOT is when a prospect encounters a company or a product. An impression is made, an action is taken. The MOT before that is about the message that got them there. Whatever their takeaway or decision is, it’s informed by feelings and facts. Those had to come from somewhere. From your social post. Your store environment. Your video. Point is, the moment they encounter your message, that’s the “MOT before the MOT.”
“Okay Sheperd. Isn’t this basically the same as Google’s ZMOT?”
Yes and no. Google’s only describing it in their own context: research (i.e., search). Hey, I know it’s the 2020s, but salespeople still matter. So does in-store signage. Intrusive ads. And word-of-mouth. So yeah, what I’m talking about could be called the ZMOT. And I admit, that’s a whole lot less clunky than “the MOT before the MOT.” But TBH, I don’t care about coining a term.
Why should we care about a “pre” Moment of Truth?
What I’m trying to accomplish here is to remind everybody (myself included) of the importance of the message.
Do we really need a reminder?
I believe we do. Because marketing is more complex than ever. Our calendars and conversations are consumed with debate and decisions about media, data, process, and metrics. “Should we be on TikTok?” “Is this list scrubbed?” “Are we GDPR compliant?” “Who’s on the scrum team?”
I really feel for our clients. Seems like they have to contend with more questions and variables every single day.
Don’t get me wrong. All that stuff is important. Really important.
But it’s all back-of-the-house.
Because what happens after you’ve made all those decisions? After you’ve got the perfect placement and the perfect persona and the perfect privacy policy and the perfect performance indicators? When it’s all said and done, there comes a moment in time when your prospect encounters your message. And in that moment, there are three questions:
- What does it say?
- How does it make them feel?
- What does it make them want to do?
If you want those questions answered in the way you hope, then you want to stay focused on your message. And, I submit, you need a message strategy.
The four principles of message strategy
What makes a message effective? Four things:
- Customer-centric
- Clear
- Compelling
- Controlled
We call those the four principles of message strategy. We believe in them so much, they’re in our mission statement. Check that… they ARE our mission statement.
(Sidebar: If the mere mention of “mission” makes your eyes roll, treat yourself to our post on how not to write a mission statement.)
We’ve got plenty to teach about these four principles, but let’s focus on compelling for now. When I’m putting myself in your prospect’s shoes, I like to say, “Make me feel something.” That’s what a compelling message does. The right feeling leads to the desired follow-through.
Make me feel something.
Let’s look at some compelling cases in point.
Examples of compelling marketing messages
We put a couple of ads in front of our friend John Lombardo, a really smart dude who writes for us sometimes. We already know John’s a sucker for Corvettes and watches. So he’s pre-qualified as the target audience for these messages. Let’s see how he reacts.
Example #1:
Credit source: Corvette Forum
John’s response: “Love the framing. The glow from the words. The classic red Corvette. I think I can hear that Prince tune in my head now. The sleek angle of the photo makes me think that car can drive God-only-knows how fast. And the copy itself is just… romantic, isn’t it? I’d love to have a car people write songs about.”
Now if you’re a marketer, you can ride WordHippo all the way to “bold and breathtaking.” But fancy adjectives are nothing more than you drawing your own conclusions. It’s far more compelling when your audience draws their own. Tell them without telling them. See John’s last sentence? That’s the conclusion he came to. All by himself.
Tell them without telling them.
Example #2:
Credit source: Breitling
This is a Facebook ad from Breitling. The description: “A chronograph. A calculator. A legend. Get to know the new Navitimer, reimagined in style and color. This is the blue-dialed Navitimer B01 Chronograph 46.”
John’s reaction? “Wow. What a great picture, right? Honestly, this could be an ad for the accessory tray. Look at that wood grain. I imagine all of my watch-wielding childhood heroes like James Bond and JFK.”
Compelling? Who doesn’t want to emulate their heroes?
Message strategy is verbal AND visual
These two examples bring up an important point. In #1, all the juice is in the words. In #2, it’s all in the picture. We communicate with both. So as you focus on your message, keep in mind that it’s in your design as much as your writing. It’s also in your scent, songs, and seating area. Truth is, everything sends a message.
Control the message, control the moment
Does your message make your prospects want to click through? Drive to the store? Download your app?
When it comes to the final action, P&G had it right 17 years ago. But the MOT before that MOT is a defining factor for your brand’s success. We all need a reminder that your customer cannot possibly appreciate all the thinking that’s behind that banner ad. All they see is your message.
