Why Scaring People Makes for Successful Marketing
Posted on Aug 22, 2009 in Articles
“Excuse me sir, I just noticed your child is riding the “Fairy-Princess-32″ model bicycle. Aren’t you at all concerned about your child’s safety?”
Of course, you have no idea what this random fellow is talking about, and let him continue. “Those were recalled in 2008, you know. Some nasty gear problem or whatnot. I could be wrong, so don’t take my word for it, but I’m pretty sure they talked about those on the news a while back, remember? I was down at the local bike shop earlier and they had some sales though…”
Faster than you can stop yourself, you’re already dashing to your nearest bike store to pick up a new bike for your precious little girl, because you can’t have her playing about in an unsafe environment. Little did you know that “kind bystander” really worked for that same local bike shop.
But before we start running about scaring people (as fun as it is), there are a few important points to keep in mind.
Grab Attention Immediately.
It’s a busy world, and nobody has time to listen to a speech about why they have a problem or why you can solve it.
Simplify the process by just asserting an issue (politely, we don’t want any black eyes here), and then explaining why it’s an issue.
The initial “What? I’m in danger?!” reaction is your biggest selling point when marketing this way, so aim to do that without making a scene of things.
Evidence is Key.
Remember, for anything you want to say, you need evidence. Like in the story, all successful marketers who use scare tactics will back up their claims with evidence. Whether or not it’s actually real is up to you to determine.
More often than not, all a marketer needs to do is plant the idea in your head with some information to back it up and you’re already sold.
Without any backing statements, anything said just comes off, especially with scare tactics, as a whole lot of hot air and doomsday declarations.
It’s About Them, Not Your Product.
Throughout the entire conversation exampled above and many other cases, you’ll notice that these advertisers and providers often don’t even need to ever bring up themselves or their products.
Shouting out their information and trying to sell you products would instantly alert you of the fact that they’re doing no more than trying to offer you a product, so don’t do that.
Make it your primary goal to solve your audience’s problem, and then they will naturally gravitate towards you as a provider if you are one.
By informing you of your own problem or vulnerability, marketers have already established themselves as an authoritative figure in the subject, as well as got you thinking about them and the problem together.
So it’s as easy as just casually tossing around a statement in the mix of the rest of your information to get them to get your next client.
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