But the telling part about the song; the phrase that reveals why this Wild Thing is so attractive, the reason why the writer of the song says, “Wild Thing, I think I love you,” is contained in this phrase, “Wild thing, I think you move me.”
How do I know? Simple.
Wild thing stirs the emotions of the writer of the song (Joan Jett). He moves her. Makes her feel things she longs to feel. Makes her heart sing.
So, let me ask you this. Does your marketing move your prospects?
Do your ads hook your prospects emotionally and make them feel something – just by reading or watching your ad?
If not, get ready for poor results because it is your prospect’s emotions that will move them to take action.
There are two parts to every person that you must persuade to sell effectively. What are those two parts?
1. Emotions
2. Logic
But, you must make the critical distinction between the two.
People buy for emotional, not logical reasons.
Think about it, what is the logic in paying $8 for a cup of coffee at Starbucks. Is it really 8x better than the coffee you can get for a buck at the gas station?
While emotion should be your prime target, don’t forget the logic. People back up there emotional decision with logic.
I’m in to motorcycles, so let’s take Harley-Davidson as an example. Both my dad and my Uncle have recently bought new Harley-Davidson Motorcycles, with price tags from $12,000 to about $19,500 - pretty pricy for something with only two wheels and no roof.
Was this a logical decision to buy a Harley? No. Let’s consider the facts shall we:
Motorcycles are dangerous (if you have even a minor wreck chances of injury or even death are pretty high), you can’t ride them in bad weather (rain, snow, wind, extreme heat or cold), they are uncomfortable to ride for long distances, and in the case of a Harley they are very expensive.
Not too appealing for a lot of people. But to Motorcycle enthusiasts – motorcycles make perfect sense. And to the loyal Harley man or woman – there is no other bike but a Harley.
So what exactly stirs someone enough to fork over $12 to $20 grand for a new Harley. Well, it ain’t because they sat down and made a cost/profit analysis on buying one. It’s usually because they want to feel wild, virile, strong, free, dangerous, powerful, in-control, or maybe just plain bad.
When someone buys a Harley they are sold for these reasons, but they do need some logic to back up there decision. Again, not a ton of logic – but enough.
So, if we were trying to sell the logic of a Harley we might talk about horse power, torque, resale value, American craftsmanship, etc.
“Pull back on the throttle and – there goes the neighborhood.”
This line was used for years along side images of powerful bikes. It captures the emotion of the biking experience – raw power at your fingertips. The ads would then go on to give the specs of a particular model. Not bad.
So what about you? Are you selling to your prospect’s emotions? Do your ads move your prospects and customers to take action?
You need to ask yourself – “what is my prospect really buying when they purchase what I sell? What is it they secretly or openly hope to get?”
Then craft your message to strike those emotional chords.
But my Business is Different!
You may be saying to yourself, but I sell a commodity. Decisions for my product are made solely on a price basis – no emotions involved whatsoever. Well, I’ve come to believe that if price is the only determining factor on why someone does business with you, it’s your fault it’s that way.
Back in the mid 90’s a Plexiglas manufacturer in the Southwest took their commodity product that was just like all of their competitors and created a huge spike in demand by adding an emotional kick to process.
Through research they discovered that delivery drivers from companies who bought Plexiglas could have some bearing on the decision making process. Because everyone’s Plexiglas was about the same – same quality, same price – most buyers didn’t really care where it came from.
So this particular manufacturer sent out direct marketing to all delivery drivers in the area offering a FREE 32 oz mug and FREE soda whenever they wanted to stop by and get it. They also offered FREE hotdogs, FREE peanuts, and FREE soda whenever someone stopped by to get an order. They also put a big screen TV in the lobby that played ESPN and they put a big swamp fan in the lobby to take the edge off the summer heat.
Just using this simple strategy this commodity business grew by a heft percentage within about 12 months.
Their marketing didn’t talk much about the specs of the Plexiglas, only enough so that everyone new that their stuff was good. They focused on moving the decision makers or in this case, the influencers (delivery drivers), to take action.
The word emotion actually means “to move.”
If you want to sell – don’t neglect the logic, but you’d better have an emotionally charged ad or you’ll never get your prospects off of their butts.
Come on, come on, come on…..Wild Thing!