Superhero Sell Sheets

A sell sheet is a high-impact, single-page presentation of your core capabilities, customer benefits, and contact information. It is a smart way to get your brand into the customer's hands without the bulk or expense of a brochure. When you think about it, sell sheets are a lot like superheroes.

Superheroes tend to build their reputations around one or two specific qualities - strength, speed, ability to climb walls - and sell sheets typically highlight one or two specific services. For example, a medical communications provider may design a sell sheet for hospital prospects that highlights the benefits of electronic newsletters, and a different sell sheet for biopharmaceutical prospects that details services in instructional design or online learning.

Superheroes have a knack for appearing suddenly when they are most needed and taking care of business quickly and expertly. Sell sheets do the same thing with the help of their twin powers, brevity and versatility.

Brevity — An effective sell sheet includes branding, a core value proposition, a clear benefit statement and complete contact information, all on an 8.5"x 11" page. For maximum visual impact it is best to print your sell sheet single-sided and in color. The goal is to say, "This is who I am, this is what I can do for you, and this is how you can reach me" as efficiently as possible.

Versatiliy — Sell sheets offer infinite versatility and revision, which makes it easier to keep your message current and compelling. Chances are your visual branding, core value proposition and contact information are the same for all of your prospects. If so, create a sell sheet template with that information, then all you need to do is re-work your benefit statement to reflect the needs and interests of a particular target market. For example, a financial services provider may include information about their wealth management division on sell sheets for the individual investor market, and easily omit that section on sell sheets for their investment professional prospects.

If you need more reasons to start selling with sell sheets, consider this:

• Sell sheets highlight the benefits of a specific service or application to one specific prospect profile.
  
• Sell sheets enhance your brochure. Tuck the right sell sheet in, and you automatically personalize your message for the prospect.
  
• Sell sheets allow you to deliver your marketing message at a lower cost, giving you more opportunities to touch your target market without increasing your budget.
  
• Sell sheets bring value and visitors to your website. You can incorporate complete sell sheets into your website content or make sell sheets available for download from your site. Either way, you add value to your website and all who visit.
  

So, sell sheets.faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound? No. But faster than a multi-page brochure, more powerful than a business card, able to leap over your competitors with a single page? Absolutely yes! Whether your prospects are management consultants, directors of sales training, biopharmaceutical service providers, or marketing communications agencies, your sell sheets can be as versatile and powerful as your market and your capabilities.

Sally Bacchetta
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