You don’t have to do it. Whatever it is.

Unless you want to, but why would you?

Why take out the trash? The opportunity cost of relaxing in your chair instead of taking out the trash is a stinky house. On the other hand, you will forgo some relaxation should you choose to take out the trash, but you gain fresh air. What benefits you most?

Should you go to the movies tonight? The opportunity cost of saving your money to eat out tomorrow instead of going to the movies tonight is not seeing the movie. Or, you could decide to cancel going out tomorrow and cook something at home, then you get to see the movie tonight. Again, what benefits you the most?

When someone tells you no, they have chosen not to choose you, you are not their highest-valued option. So the question is, how do you become the highest valued option for those you wish to serve?

One way is to make the people you serve feel better about choosing you.

But how?

Marketing agencies for the major film studios specialize in building anticipation and buzz about opening weekend. But it’s not just about promoting the film; it’s about promoting urgency to see the film, first. This is done intentionally in an attempt to elevate the viewing of their film to be your highest-rated choice. For the audience, the opportunity cost of not choosing to see the film on opening weekend is not being able to talk about it with their friends, which makes them feel bad. By choosing to see the film on opening weekend, they get to be one of the cool kids, which makes them feel good about themselves.

But what about the trash? This one is interesting. Trash bag companies figured out what makes people feel better about choosing them is solving the pain point of smelly air. While taking the trash out will make someone feel better about themselves, it doesn’t sell trash bags. So a couple of trash bag companies produced a bag that eliminated the smell. This solved the problem of smelly air, which made people feel better about choosing those brands of bags. Now for these customers, the opportunity cost of choosing to buy a brand of trash bags that doesn’t neutralize the smell is having a smelly house and having to get out of their relaxing chair, which makes them feel bad.

Selling, marketing, getting beyond no, at its core, starts with figuring out how to make the people you wish to serve feel good about choosing you.

Ok, that’s all for today. Good luck out there!

#CreateSomethingGreat

Photo by Alexandra Maria from Pexels