What's in it for me? The question your website must answer

The other day I had a look at a few websites of freelancers and agencies. Not out of curiosity, but because I had a question on my mind: Why do some sell better than others, even though their services are comparable?

The answer was clear after ten minutes. It's not the quality. It's the communication.

The problem: features instead of benefits

Here is a fictitious example, compiled from dozens of websites that I have seen over the years. Many of them read something like this:

"Web developer with many years of experience in CMS. Certified. I offer individual solutions from consulting to implementation and ongoing support."

Below this is a list: Web development, CMS configuration, individual customizations, upgrades, technical consulting.

Let's be honest: which of these answers the question that a potential customer has in mind?

And that question is not: "Does this person have the right certification?" It's: "Can this help me? What's in it for me?"

The answer to this question is not on the website.

Customers don't buy technology

I maintain that most customers don't care whether their website is built with TYPO3, WordPress or any other system. The main thing is that it works. The main thing is that it produces results.

Reading "TYPO3 template development" is about as interesting to a CEO as "I use a size 17 wrench". What interests him: Does the tap work afterwards?

Customers think in terms of goals, not technologies:

• "Will this website help me get more inquiries?"
• "Can my employees maintain the content themselves without having to call a developer every time?"
• "Is the site stable, even if we are currently running a campaign?"
• "Can our three country teams work independently without blocking each other?"

The key question is always the same: Does the website help me achieve my goals?

Before and after: this is what the difference sounds like

Here are a few examples of how the same service can be read from two perspectives.

Feature perspective: "We offer TYPO3 multi-domain setup with multilingualism."

Customer perspective: "Your teams in Germany, France and the USA maintain content independently without getting in each other's way."

Feature perspective: "High-performance and stable TYPO3 infrastructure."

Customer perspective: "Your website runs reliably, even when 10,000 visitors are on it at the same time. You won't lose any revenue due to downtime."

Feature perspective: "Granular backend rights management."

Customer perspective: "Everyone in your team sees and edits exactly what they need. No chaos, no accidentally deleted pages."

And an example from the agency world, because the feature trap strikes there in the same way:

Feature Perspective (Pitch): "We develop a customized TYPO3 editorial system with individual content elements and role-based workflow."

Customer perspective (pitch): "Your marketing team can create campaign landing pages independently from day 1 without having to wait for IT."

Same content, completely different effect. In the first case, you describe what you do. In the second case, you describe what the customer gets out of it.

Not just the website: Offers, pitches, emails

The principle doesn't just apply to your website. It also applies to offers, pitches and every email to potential customers. The feature trap is particularly dangerous with offers because the offer is often the only point of contact before the purchase decision is made.

If your quote says "TYPO3 upgrade from version 12 to 13, including TCA migration and extension compatibility check", then the customer sees a technical task whose value they cannot assess. If it says "After the upgrade, your website will run with the latest security technology, will be faster and your team will be able to use the new content elements that were previously unavailable", then they will see the benefit.

The rule of thumb: Whether it's a website, quote or initial consultation. First answer the question "What's in it for me?" before you go into technical detail.

The rule of thumb: 80% transformation, 20% features

There is a rule of thumb that I think is a good starting point: 80% of your communication should be about results and transformation. 20% can be features and technical details.

But be careful: this is not a rigid rule. It depends on the target group.

Of course there are customers who specifically want TYPO3 because they know it or have heard of it. And there are IT-savvy decision-makers who want to see technical details. For them, features are definitely relevant.

But then there are also customers who have no idea about technology and neither the time nor the inclination to deal with it. They want to know whether their problem is being solved. Period.

Communication should always be tailored to the customer. Anyone who has studied the DISC model will be familiar with this: a dominant (red) type wants to hear results and numbers. A conscientious (blue) type wants the technical details. A steady (green) type wants to know that they are in good hands. A proactive (yellow) type wants to see the vision.

I have already written a more detailed article on this topic, which I link to here.

This doesn't mean that you need a separate website for each customer type. But it helps to serve different levels in your texts: the quick overview for those in a hurry, the concrete results for those who are results-oriented and the technical depth for those who want to know exactly.

What has changed for me

I'm not immune to this myself. My texts used to focus more on features and technology. "TYPO3 seminars and support" is initially a feature description.

For some time now, I've been paying more attention to answering the question "What's in it for you?". With every newsletter, every social media post, every product description. It doesn't always work perfectly, but I make an effort.

The result: my newsletter subscriptions are constantly increasing. The waiting list for the TYPO3 complete course is growing. If I put out a post that clearly states what someone will get out of it, people sign up.

I have never measured this scientifically. But the trend in my Matomo statistics is clear: since I've been communicating the benefits more consistently instead of the features, more people are coming.

What you can do now

Take a look at your homepage or an important landing page. Read the text from the perspective of a potential customer. Not as a developer, not as a technician. As someone who has a problem and is looking for a solution.

Ask yourself a single question: Is it crystal clear what I get out of it? Or do I end up with more questions than before I started reading?

If you are unsure whether your texts work: Ask someone. A partner, a friend, an existing customer. Or use AI tools such as ChatGPT or Claude as a sparring partner. Brief the AI with a clear target group description (keyword: brand compass), have it evaluate your text from the customer's point of view and ask: "Is it clear what the customer will get out of this?"

You'll be surprised how honest the feedback is. And how quickly you can find the adjustments.

If you can make the value of your work visible, you can also bill it fairly. I have described how this works in concrete terms in my article "From hourly billing to value billing". The two topics belong together: First describe, then bill.