Fake deadlines – LexBlog
You’ve heard me talk about the value of using “fear of loss” in your marketing and that it is usually more effective than speaking to a prospective client’s “desire for gain”. A client or prospect will be more likely to call you, opt in, or sign-up when they know that if they don’t, they may lose something valuable—their freedom, money, access, peace of mind, or something else they “own”.
More prospective clients will sign up because they fear losing their home or business, for example, than will sign up to increase their income or profit.
So, when you have a choice, show clients and prospects what they stand to lose by NOT taking action.
But whether your message is about fear of loss or desire for gain, you can increase response to your proposition by telling prospects there is a deadline.
When you tell them they might suffer financial loss if they don’t act before a specific date, for example, the urgency of that deadline gets them to focus on their situation, increasing their fear and motivating them to make a decision they might otherwise have delayed or rejected.
Bottom line, when you point out (emphasize) a deadline, you usually get more business.
Deadlines are effective because they tap into one of the strongest motivators in business—scarcity. There are a limited number of days left to sue and time is running out. There are only a few seats left at your seminar, and they are going fast. You are accepting only five new clients this week because you won’t have time to handle more.
The client or prospect doesn’t want to lose anything. You’re doing them a favor by telling them about the deadline. Tell them what to do, when to do it, and what they will lose if they don’t.
The urgency of deadlines is good for your clients and good for you.
What about “fake” deadlines?
Telling prospects there are “only two days left” when there is no real reason for that deadline, for example? You could extend the deadline, add more seats, or make room for one more client, couldn’t you? So, technically, the deadline is artificial.
Do fake deadlines work? They often do. Should you use them? Maybe.
If you get more people to say yes and those people benefit by doing so, that’s a good thing for them. Where’s the harm?
The harm in using fake deadlines is that clients will deduce that it is fake and their trust in you will diminish.
So, if you use fake deadlines, don’t do them too often or too ?capriciously.
