Are You Confusing Your Customers With Unrelated Benefits?

You know when someone says, “I can do your accounts, bake a cake, and also walk your dog” and you’re like… “Wait, what exactly am I hiring you for?”

Turns out, your audience feels the same when your product or service tries to be all things to all people.

Let’s talk about benefits. Those glorious little promises we make when we’re trying to show the value of what we offer. New research has come out (and don’t worry, I’ve dug into it so you don’t have to) that shows this very clearly:

👉 Products with multiple related benefits generate 42% more sales than those with a single benefit.
👉 Products with unrelated benefits? They actually perform worse than the ones that just stick to one. Ouch.

Imagine This…

You’re hacking up a lung at the pharmacy. You grab two bottles off the shelf.

CoughGone: Relieves cough and sore throat.
HealthWell: Relieves cough, sore throat… and improves digestion?

Now, unless you’re trying to multitask with your organs, that second one just sounds like it’s having an identity crisis.

That’s because when benefits don’t clearly connect, we start questioning everything—like how good can this product really be at anything if it’s trying to do everything?

The Psychology Bit (But Keep Reading, I Promise It’s Useful)

When people see a product with multiple benefits that clearly relate—think shampoo that moisturises and fights dandruff—they go, “Oh! That makes sense. This must be a good one.”

But when the benefits feel like they belong to two different product categories—say, a shampoo that fights dandruff anddyes your hair—we’re out. It feels too scattered, too wishy-washy. Like it’s trying too hard.

Here’s what the clever researchers found:

42% more sales were made by healthcare products with related benefits.
Unrelated benefit bundles? Sales actually dropped by 66%.
People were 4.8x more likely to choose the cold medicine with related benefits.
Even services got the same treatment—a maternity care service listing relevant benefits (postpartum support, feeding help, companionship) was rated way higher than one that randomly threw in gardening and pet care. (Seriously.)

What This Means for You, Business Owner Extraordinaire

If you’ve got a digital product, a service, or even just a humble landing page with a bullet list of features—check that your benefits all tie together. Not just with string and hope, but with a clear, logical connection.

Ask yourself:

Are these benefits all working toward the same bigger goal?
Does this read like a solid package or a last-minute party mix?

Better yet, group your benefits under a theme. For example:

“Everything you need to launch your course in 7 days” (tech set-up, email sequence, landing page)
“Tools to streamline your week” (automated scheduler, pre-made templates, task manager)

Stick to three benefits—yep, that’s the sweet spot for persuasion. Any more and we stop remembering the best bits.

One Last Tip for the Visuals

Whether it’s a sales page, a Facebook ad, or even a cheeky little Instagram Story—show your offer next to the problem it solves. Dishwashing liquid by dirty dishes. Time-saving template next to a chaotic planner. Simple trick, but it can make people 26% more likely to choose your thing.

Final Word (And a Bit of Nerd Credit)

This gem of insight comes from research led by teams at Guangdong University of Technology, NEOMA Business School, and others (Journal of Business Research, Dec 2024). So, this isn’t just guesswork or guru fluff—there’s science behind it.

Keep your benefits tight. Keep them connected. And don’t try to sell a cough syrup that also gives you abs.

Join My Facebook Group