As an affiliate sometimes we wonder why things don’t sell. Well when it comes to selling it all comes down to psychology.
( This is a repost of a response I made to a post at WickedFire.com , thought it was worth reposting here. )
ORIGINAL POSTER:
How I spent my free Facebook funds
$200.. down the drain. I thought there would be enough alcoholics or at least college students in this country to at least turn my facebook bucks into cash. I was wrong.
This is the ad I was running..
Make Beer At Home
You can make beer at home. Easily. Try it now. You have no idea what you are missing.
1,000,000 impressions….$200
310 clicks…. $200
experience… worthless
MY RESPONSE :
People are motivated by two things typically.
1. Pain
2. Pleasure
People that are in pain are much more motivated then those seeking pleasure. Lets take your teeth for example.
Scenario 1
Your teeth are dingy from all that coffee you drink and you’d like to look good for some chick or event or whatever. You go to the dentist and they say yeah I can whiten you teeth, that will be $300. So you decide to think about if you really need it that badly. Hell maybe your teeth are ok? So you talk yourself out of it and move on.
Scenario 2.
Your back right molar is starts to throb in pain all of a sudden. So you wait a bit and as the hours go on it hurts more and more. So you decide to go into the dental office and get it looked at. The dentist takes some x-ray’s and says you need a root canal. That’s going to be $1200. Do you hesitate to buy?
People in pain are always more motivated. In this scenario it was physical pain, but mental pain can be just as anguishing. The classic keeping up with the Joneses scenario like people feel like they are falling behind that pack very motivating. People that are over weight being called fat a bunch of times and looking in the mirror and feeling like shit. Motivated?
I know it’s kind of sad scenario honestly but unfortunately it’s the truth. If you can speak to peoples pain you’ll sell stuff…
I mean honestly how are you feeling about your Facebook skills right now? Think you’re good at this stuff? You just blew through $200, so you’re probably now feeling like this may not be for you huh? Stop and imagine that was your own $200. Probably feels even worse doesn’t it? If I had a report I that would tell you a step by step tutorial exactly how to make money with Facebook… would you buy it?
Haha well I don’t have one just wanted you to feel what it’s like to have that pain and then me offering up the answer. Did you feel it?
The pleasure side of things is right, too: I’m a researcher and was running surveys on sexual attitudes. Tested a few FB ads, and the most successful ad (consistent .04%-.05% ctr, up to .09% in some countries) played on people’s fantasies — presumably something quite pleasurable.
Whether I’d pay for such a service (or ebook!)… to twist your idea back on itself, probably only consider it once/if I’d felt the pain of losing substantial money on FB — as the original poster did! I’d want something more than standard marketing guru crap, and (obviously) something more than simply the pleasure/pain distinction you talk about. Lots of creative examples, too. From there I’d wonder whether your insights apply to my niche…
…Actually, come to think of it, one could automate something that avoids all those problems…
Thanks for the insightful post steve.
First off I wouldn’t sell an ebook. If I’m going to educate I’ll give it away. It was merely an example and I was creating an opportunity for the person I was answering their post to feel that pain of losing the money he did. And letting him feel how motivated he was by that.
I’ve been a student of the psychology of sales for a long time. And what has worked the best for me is playing on fear and greed. Preferably both at the same time. I decided to start doing AM because I’m tired of outside sales. And along the way, I discovered a love for copywriting. I’ve got a (sizable) quote from the blog of a copywriter I stumbled across recently that very poetically discusses this:
The quote is from daniellevis.com and yes, he’s one of those guru types that tries to sell expensive products. Hence the not hyperlinking to him. I didn’t want anyone to think I’m peddling his wares.