How to explain a complex climate or science proposition to new buyers
Your team can explain exactly how the technology works. A new buyer may still struggle to understand where it fits, which problem it addresses or why they should make time for a conversation. More technical detail rarely resolves that gap on its own.
A useful proposition gives people a way into the subject. It connects a recognisable need with a clear offer, credible evidence and an appropriate next step. The science remains intact, and readers can decide which detail they need next.
Choose the decision your message needs to support
Buying decisions often involve people with different responsibilities. A technical lead may investigate performance and compatibility. A budget holder needs to understand the operational case. A delivery team needs to know what adoption would involve. Giving them the same explanation can leave important questions unanswered.
Start with one audience and one moment. Are you introducing an unfamiliar approach, inviting a feasibility discussion or helping a team compare suppliers? Write down what the reader already understands and what they need to decide. This gives the communication a useful boundary.
Our brand strategy work starts with this relationship between audience, proposition and direction. It helps connect specialist knowledge with the people you want to reach.
Build a proposition using five questions
Use the following worksheet with your commercial and technical colleagues. Answer in ordinary language first. Where an answer depends on evidence you do not yet have, record the question for investigation.
Who needs this? Identify a specific role, situation and responsibility. A facilities manager reviewing heating controls is more useful than anyone interested in sustainability.
- What are they finding difficult? Describe the task or decision in their words. Include the consequence of leaving it unresolved.
- What do we help them do? Explain the practical function of the offer before listing its technical components.
- Why should they believe us? Match each important statement to a relevant test, demonstrator, method or approved example, including its limits.
- What is the sensible next step? Choose an action proportionate to the reader’s readiness, such as reviewing requirements or discussing a pilot.
Give different readers a route to the right depth
Your opening should establish the audience, problem and offer. A supporting diagram can explain the process. A technical page can then provide methods, specifications and evidence for readers carrying out a detailed assessment. Label these routes clearly so a reader can move between an overview and the underlying detail.
We took a related communication challenge into our work for The Rivers Trust’s Mainstreaming Nature-based Solutions programme. We created a brand, guidelines and website for a programme involving 23 partners. The website brings its work, regional tests and partnership information into a shared digital presence.
When a programme brings together different kinds of expertise, its audience needs a clear account of the shared purpose and an easy route to the work behind it. Establish that structure before asking design or a headline to carry the entire explanation.
Test what people understood
Show a draft to people who resemble the intended audience. Ask them to describe who it is for, what it helps with, what remains unclear and what they would do next. Avoid explaining the draft before they respond. Their account of the offer is more informative than a general question about whether they like it.
Ask a subject specialist to check that simplification has preserved the important conditions and distinctions. Then carry the agreed proposition into the website, presentation and sales conversation. Each format can vary in depth while keeping the same underlying meaning.
If your organisation has a valuable idea that is difficult to explain, bring us the audience question and the evidence behind the offer. We can explore a clear, credible way to introduce it.
