Words that Sell –
How NOT to Use Psychology in Your
Marketing and Selling

NOTE:  This article is an excerpt from my new eBook Words That Sell. If you like what you see here, you’ll go bonkers for the real thing.

Simple mistakes – big blunders!

Nearly every person who sets out to sell something makes a simple but profound mistake. They approach the prospect or target market as though everyone responds to exactly the same logic. That’s just knuckleheaded thinking. Here's why - there are four personality types and sixty mental filters. Any one of those 64 combinations can control a person's decision-making psychology. So, the odds of two people responding in exactly the same way are virtually impossible.  The odds of your being able to influence an entire target market with your own natural logic are zero. 

So, what can you do to improve your results? First – damage control. Stop making stupid mistakes. Second, replace the flawed thinking with smarter psychology.

In this piece, I’m going to expose language problems that nearly every human being suffers from. In other articles, I’ll show you how to overcome the problems by using psychological techniques that very few people (outside of business communication experts) understand, and even fewer know how to apply. 

Mistakes to Avoid

As I give you these problems, just look through your marketing materials or selling scripts.  If you spot any of these problems, eliminate them.

1. Don’t write long headlines.
Think of the human eye as a lazy couch potato. When it sees a long headline, it thinks, “Oh @$%&. You mean I have to read all that? Waaaaah!” Actually the eye doesn’t have to actively read it. Your brain is faster than your eye, and that’s one of the two reasons the average time on a website continues to decline. Long headlines on websites and paper marketing invite the reader to look away from your message.

What about face-to-face? At the beginning of a presentation, you would also deliver a headline. That would be the tantalizing statement designed to capture the audience’s curiosity. Short and sensory will pay off for you. But as the headline gets longer, tantalizing turns into torture.

2. Don’t try to be funny.
In an earlier life, I was a comic, comic actor and comedy writer. I learned this lesson over and over. What one person thinks as funny, is absolutley offensive to other people - and you never know who those people are. Too many people are offended by any light-heartedness aimed at serious topics. And, too many people are offended at the lack of lightheartedness. It’s a no-win situation for you. So, don’t try to be humorous.

How to do it?  If you absolutely must step in that direction, seek to make people smile, rather than laugh. The better psychology is to get them on your side before you attempt the humor. Find something positive that all people in your audience (target market) have experienced. How can you do that? Consider using images of (or references to) babies or puppies.

3. Don’t set your headlines in ALL CAPITALS.
I say this for two reasons: 1) it’s hard to read, and 2) readers perceive all caps as yelling. They feel like you are yelling at them, and who likes that?

There is another fascinating reason not to use all caps. Next time you’re at the grocery or convenience store, look at a surgeon general’s warning on a pack of cigarettes. The cigarette company doesn’t want people to look at it, certainly not read it. So, what do they do? They set the warning in all caps. That way, they make the warning invisible. How well would that work for your marketing message? (BTW - Their other trick is to print it in a gold color on a white background – again, invisible.)

4. Don’t be so quick to explain How.
There is a psychological order to the information you should give. This goes for your marketing and selling, as well as your keynotes and seminars - any time you want to help people make the right decision. First comes the Why. This addresses why anyone would pay attention to you. Second, comes the What. Just what are you talking about? Only third comes the How. And, that is where most people make their biggest blunder. They nearly always start with How. At the beginning of your letter, article or presentation, no one wants to know How anything. They want to know Why they should pay attention to you.

5. Don’t be so vague.
A recent trend in marketing is to write a headline that is non-specific, like: “8 Ways to Boost Your Bottom Line!” Anyone who has ever held a job knows that there are a zillion ways to boost a bottom line. So, how would you improve on that vague head? Just be a little more specific:  “8 Ways to Give Away Money and Boost Your Bottom Line.” Or "8 Ways FaceBook Can Boost Your Bottom Line.” Or "8 Ways Giving FREE Information Can Boost Your Bottom Line."  Give just a little more information.

Why Does This Work?  It isn’t just a “personal taste” difference. If your headline lacks specificity, you show your lack of relevance. If you can’t prove that you are more relevant than other similar firms or offers, why would anyone want to do business with you? When you’re vague, you’re saying, “I don’t know much about this, but I need to make a sale.”

In Conclusion
Selling is nothing more than applied psychology. Marketing - ditto. Every time you open your mouth to speak, or start to type a letter, you’re starting to use psychology. Obviously, the more you learn about the psychology of communication, the better you’ll do at marketing, selling, recruiting, reporting, building alliances, seminars and keynotes. The fundamental tool in all of those activities is words. The better choices you make with your words, the more tantalizing your business language will become. Then, you’ll not only capture attention, you’ll also hold it and become more inspiring.

Your Reward
Hundreds of you have already requested our report titled Words That Sell. That report started as a 2-page introduction. Over the past two years, we’ve added new nuggets to it. Now, it is an eBook filled with intense wisdom and know-how, and it’s available from my website. Next step - Free consulting on how to use Words That Sell.

Send me your marketing letter, phone script or other marketing/selling piece. We’ll select seven pieces to critique. I’ll explain in detail what’s wrong with each and how to fix all the mistakes. I’ll also include those critiques in future articles. Email your pieces to me at: michael@aboutpeople.com