In its marketing material every business makes claims about itself or its products or services.  There are some fairly generic claims made, such as “best prices” or “unique features”, and if you are going to make them you need to be one hundred percent sure that you can substantiate them.  Do your research.

Sometimes business make very specific claims about their offer, often backed up by a guarantee.  This can be a very effective marketing tool, if you are really, really sure about your claim.

Consider the following:-

“We guarantee you will lose at least 4lb in weight in the first month, or we’ll give you your money back.”

“We are so confident that this knife will stay sharp that we offer a lifetime guarantee.”

We’re not going to discuss the wording of a guarantee here; that needs a lawyer.  But it’s clear that if the knife doesn’t stay sharp or the client only loses 2lb your claim could cost you a lot of money, not only in payouts to dissatisfied customers but also in the effect the damage to your reputation would have on future sales.

It is very tempting to make bold statements about your products and services in an attempt to differentiate yourself from the competition, and whilst this is a worthwhile aim, you need to be careful that you don’t inadvertently do harm to your business by not being able to, literally, put your money where your mouth is.

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