Two very different conversations about the same thing struck me today.
The first was Seth Godin’s post about the rational marketer (and the irrational customer):
“The most common frustration I see, and I see it daily, comes from marketers who can’t figure out why more people won’t buy their product…Let’s say, for example, that you have a service that can deliver leads for five percent of what it costs to get them via a trade show. Why would any rational business, particularly one that says it wants qualified leads, spend that money on trade shows and not on you?…The problem is that your prospect doesn’t care about any of those things. He cares about his boss or the story you’re telling or the risk or the hassle of making a change.”
Why you need a story
The second was from a New York Times article about vitamins. It quoted a scientist who couldn’t understand why people buy vitamins (when study after study shows no positive effect from taking them).
“’I’m puzzled why the public in general ignores the results of well-done trials,’” said Dr. Eric Klein, national study coordinator for the prostate cancer trial and chairman of the Cleveland Clinic’s Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute. “’The public’s belief in the benefits of vitamins and nutrients is not supported by the available scientific data.’” (NY Times 2/17/09)
Stories trump logic
Vitamin-takers (and prospects) don’t care what the studies say or the statistics you can show. What they do care about it is how they feel about it. They “feel better” taking the vitamins. It doesn’t matter what the science says; the emotional payout is higher from taking the pills, plus it’s easier than changing your diet.
Don’t give statistics, write a story. A story about how your solution cuts their stress, or lets them go home earlier, or may get them a raise.
Photo: yogi
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