April 16, 2012 - FEAR

The dark side of selling. We had to get to this eventually, as many things are sold using fear. From life insurance to LifeAlert. From pharmaceuticals to presidents. Fear is a potent tool.

However, you can't just the fear tactic willy-nilly. Oh no! You gotta have a game plan. So here are the 4 steps.

1. Introduce
First, you must tee up your threat. It's sort of the "Hey You," but not with something people are happy to hear.
Did you know there's a murderer on the loose?
Didja hear about the flesh-eating virus?
What do you think of when I say the phrase "swamped in debt?"


2. Demonstrate
Why should people be scared? And more importantly, is the audience that's being appealed to in any danger. You wouldn't run a TV spot on waning libido on a kid's network, because the message wouldn't frighten them. It's also important to keep the nature of the threat in mind. Car Accident = scary, realistic, could happen at any time, preventable, controllable. Asteroid = nothing we can do, unrealistic, unlikely
The car accident is much scarier than an asteroid.

3. Introduce (the solution)
The only thing that can save you is ______. Buy my_______ if you want to live. You, in fact, become the hero because you are throwing a life preserver to the audience.

Duck and cover!

It's got to be a simple and affordable solution you are presenting. But the most important thing to remember is to . . .

4. Show

You've got to see someone using the solution. You must see the relief on their face and the worry draining away.It's best if the person using the solution is frail, weak, or innocent, because not only are they highly relatable, but it proves that absolutely anyone can be saved by whatever it is you're promoting.

"I don't have to burn my hands!"

Some final tips for making fear a factor:

-Use vivid word pictures: Instead of sea monster, try tentacled bloodsucking creature from the abyss

-Convince the audience that the threat is likely to happen

-Make the threat relatable. Who is the audience going to care about getting hurt? What will cause more panic and worry. What's more relatable-- a Bactrian Camel? or a cute little puppy?

Quick! Save him!

Quick! Kill it!

-Personalize the message by saying "YOU." Make the audience feel as if you're really talking to them.

-Finally, use the negative. Which is more effective? 

Check your smoke detector regularly so you know when there's a fire.

If you don't check your smoke detector regularly, you will never know when your house is on fire.

Until it's too late

I rest my case.