is·sue (ísh´öö) n. 1. A situation that presents difficulty, uncertainty or perplexity. 2. A problem.
The issues of critical importance are those things that are of most concern to your BUGS. A key purpose of your marketing endeavors will be to find and understand these issues. These issues will be critical to meeting the needs of your customer. When dealing with ISSUES, you should keep these three important things in mind:
Issues of critical importance may or may not relate directly to the project you are targeting
"I really need to get this project done fast!" or "We just don't have the manpower to do this right; we need someone who can join us to get this done!" These are the kinds of comments more commonly heard; however, life may intervene with unwritten (and unanticipated) requirements, In such cases, you may hear remarks like "My son has cancer. I really need to be home with him and my wife a lot more this year, so I need someone to take care of the day to day supervision." or "The chairman of our board is up for election this year. If this project isn't finished before the campaign, she'll have a tough time dealing with the opposition."
Collecting these issues is the core to a winning proposal
This is the heart and soul of the "Magic." And this is what winners understand. Knowing what the real issues are gives you the magician's edge.
Issues change over time
You can't assume that the issues of a few years ago are the issues of today. Old information is worse than a black hole; it's a time bomb. You must confirm with the subjects themselves what today's critically important issues are.
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