The Magic of FAB: Turning Products Into Value
There is a moment in every salesperson’s life…
when they realize that people don’t buy products—
they buy what those products mean to them.
My moment arrived years ago…
in a small home-appliance store
on a slow Tuesday afternoon.
Let me take you back there.
The Day I Stopped Selling Machines… and Started Selling Meaning
A mother walked into the store with her 10-year-old son.
She looked exhausted—
you could feel the weight of responsibility on her shoulders.
She wasn’t buying a washing machine.
She was buying relief.
But I didn’t see that.
Not yet.
I did what most salespeople are trained to do.
I began listing features:
“Ma’am, it has a 7kg drum…
14 wash programs…
Inverter technology…”
She looked at me as if I was reading the periodic table.
Her son blinked twice—
bored out of his mind.
And I knew…
I had lost her.
Just then, my senior—a 55-year-old gentleman with decades of wisdom—walked over.
He placed a gentle hand on my shoulder and whispered:
“Stop giving information.
Start giving meaning.”
Then he turned to the woman,
looked her in the eye,
and said the line that changed my entire career.
“Ma’am… this washing machine saves two hours of your time every day.
Two hours you can spend… with him.”
The woman turned to her son.
Her lips shook.
Her eyes softened.
And suddenly—
the machine wasn’t a machine anymore.
It was time.
It was freedom.
It was motherhood restored.
And just like that…
she said, “I’ll take it.”
That day, I learned the model that transforms selling:
THE FAB PROCESS
Features → Advantages → Benefits
But most importantly—
Benefits that matter.
Let’s explore FAB not as a formula…
but as a human story.
1️⃣ F — FEATURES
“What the Product Has”
Features are facts.
Numbers.
Specifications.
“7kg drum.”
“14 wash programs.”
“Inverter motor.”
Features speak to the mind,
not the heart.
They inform—
but they don’t inspire.
My senior smiled at me later and said:
“Features are how you talk to the product.
Benefits are how you talk to the person.”
2️⃣ A — ADVANTAGES
“What the Feature Does Better”
Advantages are the bridge.
They turn raw information into usefulness.
A bigger drum means fewer loads.
An inverter motor means lower electricity bills.
More wash programs mean flexibility for every fabric.
Advantages make the product sound practical…
helpful…
logical.
But logic alone never closes a sale.
Because customers don’t buy comparisons—
they buy outcomes.
3️⃣ B — BENEFITS
“Where the Magic Happens”
Benefits answer the question that every customer is secretly asking:
“What’s in it for me?”
Benefits transform products into experiences.
Benefits turn features into feelings.
Benefits take the customer from
“What is this machine?”
to
“How will this machine change my life?”
When my senior told the mother:
“This gives you two extra hours every day…”
He wasn’t describing a washing machine.
He was describing:
✔ Less stress
✔ More rest
✔ More freedom
✔ More moments with her son
Benefits don’t sell the product.
Benefits sell the future the product creates.
💡 THE HIDDEN SECRET BEHIND FAB
Customers forget features.
They forget advantages.
But they never forget benefits.
Because benefits touch the heart.
A feature says:
“This phone charges in 30 minutes.”
A benefit says:
“You’ll never panic about low battery during your important meetings.”
A feature says:
“This scooter gives 60 km per litre.”
A benefit says:
“You’ll save money every single day.”
A feature says:
“This software automates your reports.”
A benefit says:
“You’ll finally go home on time.”
FAB isn’t selling.
FAB is empathy disguised as sales.
CONCLUSION — “You Sold Me Peace”
The mother bought the washing machine that day.
Not because it had 14 programs…
not because of inverter technology…
but because of one truth:
It made her life better.
As she left the store, she told my senior:
“You didn’t sell me a machine.
You sold me peace.”
Ladies and gentlemen,
Features inform.
Advantages explain.
But Benefits…
Benefits transform.
The next time you sell something—
Don’t sell the specs.
Don’t sell the product.
Sell the meaning.
Sell the future.
Sell the better version of your customer’s life.
Because in the end…
People don’t buy products.
People buy better versions of themselves.
Thank you.