Rule number one in customer behavior: Buying decisions are always 80% emotional and 20% intellectual. That rule should be reflected in all of your marketing copy. Unfortunately, most of us find that it is much easier to talk about “what we do” rather than “what you get.”
Here is a depressing reality; most people don’t give a damn what you do or sell. No matter how much you wish it to be true, it is not. However, they DO care immensely about the results of what you do or sell. So guess what you should be focusing on?
A few months ago my 3 year old laptop finally bit the dust (in computer years it must have died of old age) and I found myself in a “Big Box” store completely baffled by the options. A helpful young man approached me and started asking me what kind of computer I needed. Good so far, right?
He was very bright and knowledgeable, hitting me with questions about RAM, CPU options, video threads, etc. I stood up and nodded as if I understood what he was talking about and finally replied, “I always thought they put little Keebler elves in there somewhere and make sure to spread cookie crumbs on the keyboard to keep them fed and happy.”
I could tell from his eyes that I had just lost my provisional membership in the “Geeks-R-Us” club and that I had just become “One of Them”. Well, so be it.
The mistake this guy made is assuming that I had the same interest in technology as he did, and naturally he asked me the same questions that he would like to answer.
Most of us make the same mistake, face to face and (more importantly) in our marketing copy. The secret is to focus almost exclusively on the “Pressure Points” of our customers. These are the emotional triggers that create tremendous motivation to act.
And fortunately, there are only two main “pressure points”. Desire to win and avoid pain … or more simply, “Greed and Fear.”
Plus, the best marketing combines both, creating a huge perceived gap that prospects are powerfully motivated to bridge. As proof of this, the next time you’re stuck in the store’s checkout line, flip through the National Enquirer and look at the ads.
You may think that your offering is much more sophisticated than anything found in the Enquirer, but if you see an ad there more than twice; it is a foolproof money generator. That’s because the National Enquirer has some of the most expensive advertising real estate available. Simply put, emotions are not sophisticated, but they are enormously powerful.
By clicking on these “Pressure Points” you will attract people who are motivated to act (resolve the emotional tension that has been created) rather than people who are looking for more information (intellectual curiosity).
Don’t forget that the purpose of any advertisement is (or should be) to motivate the customer to make a purchase decision and act RIGHT NOW. That action most likely includes taking out a credit card, which is the ultimate measure of success for all of your marketing.