If you haven’t heard me talk about PAIN POINTS before, I strongly suggest jumping back and reading “Why You Need Pain Points in Business” first, and then come back and join us!

If you’re all caught up on the pain point conversation, let’s dive in to two of the most frequently asked questions I receive in my direct messages…

Question 1: Do pain points always need to be negative or “painful”?”

This is a really great question! And in short, the answer is “No!”.

Think of solving a pain point as more like answering a common question your ideal client / customer might have. Not every pain point is going to be addressing a huge challenge or something negative—but it should add value to your followers’ online experience.

Here’s a few examples from different professions to help explain.

Let’s say you’re an ARTIST selling your paintings. A few of the “pain points” you might want to address include:

• I’d love to commission a piece of artwork but that feels intimidating. How do I do that?

• I want a piece of art that I know the inspiration and story behind. 

• How can I be sure I’m buying an original and not a print? 

• I have a huge wall in my home that needs a piece of art, but how do I know what size / proportion it should be? 

I wouldn’t say any of these pain points are “painful”, but answering them certainly solves a question your target customer is looking to have answered. In doing so, you’ll be bringing great value to their online experience and increasing the likelihood of them remembering your name or brand and seeking you out when the time comes for them to invest in a piece of art.

Now let’s take a RETAIL business selling clothing. You might want to consider addressing topics like the following: 

• I don’t have time to keep up with fashion trends. What do I need to know for this season?

• How can I style one piece of clothing multiple ways (to justify a higher price point)? 

• What style of jeans work best for my body type?

• I wish I could afford X, Y, Z (Promote services like AfterPay, if you offer this.)

Again, none of these are “painful”, but each of them is an opportunity to solve a “challenge” your ideal customer is facing. It also allows you to become the go-to resource (and shop) for this customer. Think about every time you receive a new stock order. Instead of the contents of each box simply being new “eye candy” for your customers, you could make it SO much more; an update on new-season trends to try, a styling lesson, a comparison of different products, an education in different types of fabrics, a fun fact about the number of hours the designer spent hand-beading a particular dress. See how each of these ideas actually answer the above pain points?

Question 2: Do pain points need to apply to everything I post online?

Not every post or online interaction you have is going to link directly to a pain point; it’s more about making sure your overall brand messaging takes this approach, including your website! In saying that, it’s actually much easier to address pain points than you probably realise. (Take the above retail store example.)

Any time you’re stuck for something to say in an Instagram caption or Facebook post ask yourself: “What’s a question I can answer for my audience?”. Chances are by answering that question you’ll be doing three really important things:

• Solving a pain point

• Adding value to your followers’ online experience

• Serving your audience

And the upside of doing these three things? Selling (aka making money) will become a WHOLE lot easier.

I truly believe the more your serve the less you’ll have to sell.