Brand Love & Functional Hope Are Scalable & Inspire Functional Optimism.

(Note: I’m not advocating Harlow’s experiments. To avoid stereotyping humans, let’s continue analogizing stressful circumstances by extrapolating Harry Harlow’s findings.)

Psychology & marketing involve human interactions with & reactions against factors altering life-quality.

Observing people's successful actions inspires hope. Customer integrators help with plans for learning about conditions & skills to build functional hope.

When customers successfully create & consistently preserve value, functional optimism blossoms. Functionally Optimistic customers will likely return to buy resources to upgrade/renew/maintain functional value.

Factors plus human interactions/reactions cause additional planned or unplanned effects/factors which bring more interactions/reactions. Continuous interactions & reactions involve relating to/with people, functions, dysfunctions, products & ideas/beliefs because these relate to major life factors.

Avoidance/Escapes fail when problems aren't identified. Customers need insightful guidance to avoid/escape negative certainties. Customer integrators optimize retailing by being parent-like confidantes & guides.

Since maternal relationships are important, inadequate “nurturing” stressed Harlow’s newborns. Without maternal guidance for finding & using resources, newborns were stressed by unrecognized gaps.

Niche newbies might fill perceived gaps & suffer from worse unrecognized/unremedied gaps. Customers’ misperceptions interfere with using insightful information about where/how to seek remedies.

Interactions contribute/inflict quality changes, so people alter plans & learn skills or must delegate/recruit/hire managers to adjust results. Having similar conditions & goals, people can share costs & benefits of contractors/retailers to guide choices for creating advantages.

After delegating/relying on specialists, customers rest or resume other priorities fitting personal specialties. Specialized brain cells process input until fatigued. Task-switching can somewhat unburden/reset some cells.

Some mental stress comes from personal & social expectations. People need temporary distance from responsibilities & expectations. Hired helpers allow rest. Recreation releases pressure.

People want logical reasons to fulfill emotional desires. If individual benefits don’t seem totally logical, explain how/why combined benefits create logical advantages.

Example: Seeming low-priority entertainment is important to restore energy with positive feelings. People need stress-relief to feel secure enough for unfamiliar possibilities.

New logical plans can fail & confidence fades, when people are distracted by previous results deteriorating. Loss-avoidance is prioritized over gains. Tension saps energy. Despite seeming oxymoronic, rest is more productive after enjoyment releases tense energy.

Since people might misunderstand & dismiss sparse offers, compellingly explain the logic & how you aid customers with productivity through relaxation &/or activities. Provide vital insights to justify attention because short, bland advertising is easy to ignore.

Enjoyable novelty might attract passing interest which people might repeat. You might sell enjoyable novelties occasionally. To form relationships, you & customers should share philosophical grips like rescued people gripping rescuers’ hands.

Customer integration relates/attaches to customers' lives with advantage offers fulfilling important criteria. Projects should stop/mitigate/prevent current & further threats, so customers have less stress/boredom & better focus for successful learning & implementation.

Integration adds value, replaces missing elements &/or strengthens/restores/supports necessities for completely functional units. People might settle for inadequate functionality because they haven't observed, experienced or learned anything better. Advantage offers should open experiential worlds (variety) with insightful knowledge & observations.

Offer Acceptance Criterion: Customers wonder how they used-to/would manage without your updated advantages. Despite competitors/substitutes, your advantages add/preserve better specialness. Advantage offers upgrade life-quality which energizes/empowers customers to directly increase progress.

Build Value Oases. Compete with Value Deserts.

Like Harlow's babies retreated to cloth-covered surrogates for comfort, people can tolerate stress by remembering their comfort oases. When you offer high-quality oasis elements, compellingly explain necessity of relief which differentiates your advantages.

Recovery & high-stress avoidance are valuable immediately & long-term, plus revitalized people can create & maintain more personal/familial/social value. Revitalization refills people with things removed or injured by stress.

You & influencers might recommend kits (products/techniques) based on observed &/or experienced triumphs & disappointments. Help members understand by specifically describing people’s progress from projects.

Progress can mean increased distance from threats/chaos &/or increased proximity to opportunities. Like gardeners evaluate progress: Vegetables thrive. Weeds don't.

Some projects are successful by eliminating troubles & establishing distance from threats/chaos, so step-by-step progress is trackable.

Despite imperfect conditions, you can help people focus productively by decreasing inaccurate guesses/diagnoses & problem-induced stresses. Guide customers' preparations so interference isn't inevitable.

Rechecking for troubles is necessary, time-consuming maintenance. Since planning can reduce surprises & scheduling can reduce disrupting other activities, what indicates necessary prevention practices & repairs?

Offers can be advantageous when projects don’t disrupt lives. If people must reschedule activities, offers are less convenient & interfere with other productive projects.

To gather food Rhesus mothers leave or bring babies who desire playing & wandering/exploring. If surrogates were constantly available, babies had bad choices: Hunger/thirst or painful wire surrogates.

When customers are dissatisfied by available options, guide evaluations of situations improved by options. Which improved situation is better?

Checking My Back-trail. Where’d I Go Wrong?

Many course-changes make meandering back-trails & details pile onto current inconveniences & emerging unfamiliar factors. Retailer teammates' offers should decrease disruptions.

Combine insightful knowledge to prioritize destinations & routes out of current circumstances. Avoid/Decrease concerns of problems recurring & endless journeys/projects by defining indicators of completed/successful changes.

Customized option offers inspire pleasant anticipation of relief. People are relieved by achieved goals but are more concerned about losses than gains.

Relief might focus backward when people realize problems stopped “pursuing” them, so they feel free to pursue happiness.

Develop advantage offers by adding insightful knowledge about niche members’ internal lives plus local/external obstacles, threats & opportunities. Your great offers will fail if most members wonder ‘BUT what if (trouble) keeps happening/happens again? Then (opportunity) won’t help me!’

Offer Example: ‘(Indications) show (problem) emerging. As (problem) gains momentum, do you feel pursued? (Store) consultations find techniques for using (products). When you advance, (problem) won’t chase you.’

Contractors serve travelers/snowbirds who don’t let property concerns inhibit enjoyment. Before sensors & phone apps, properties were monitored by neighbors/relatives without knowledge or equipment for diagnoses or repairs. Experiences can be fully enjoyed whether customers get alerts & call contractors or alerts go to contractors.

Whether your retailer teammates prevent, remedy or mitigate threats, help customers justify purchasing practical protection. Help customers maximize advantages & return refreshed to their regular or better lives with lighter moods & more energy.

Ensure customers’ conditions don’t deteriorate, so project prioritization is less stressful. Stress builds & negates delights when over-stretched/burdened people try reaching for physical necessities & delights.

What do you provide to bring value into customers’ reach or bring them closer to destinations?

People may be more vulnerable when reaching for unfamiliar benefits. Threats might overtake distracted people while they’re reaching.

Mentally & physically reaching while balancing, people simultaneously focus on proprioception & conserving desired value. Splitting focus may interfere with value retention/creation when inattention drops things.

People might struggle to retain low-value if they don't recognize better options.

Though newborns didn’t have comparisons/memories, surrogates had low value.

People might focus mostly on backtrails to detect threats & fret about weaknesses/vulnerabilities. Others charge ahead by focusing on opportunities & desires to preserve/improve strengths. Pursuing happiness is troublesome when people feel they're pursued.

When emerging/pursuing problems seem inevitable, people might surrender instead of checking horizons & planning/preparing prevention, mitigation or solutions.

Procrastinators & overwhelmed people might not check horizons or accept warnings. Go-getters might retrieve previously successful resources & assume new results are effective.

Analogy: Patients previously stopped antibiotic prescriptions when they felt better & saved pills for future infections/sicknesses. Medication potencies decrease; plus, weakened microbes can reproduce & recover to reinfect, then stop patients’ recoveries. Mutated microbes become resistant to treatments.

Suspicious patients/consumers might think physicians/advertisers lie/exaggerate claims about product effectiveness &/or problem severities.

Do niche members perceive governmental, educational &/or local authorities/influence

Review whether customers know how factors interact or might expect unlikely interactions. Customers might uncomfortably listen to lessons of possible mistakes.

Consultations review how current factors & actions can bring unexpected benefits & drawbacks. Potential benefits can inspire curiosity, so customers feel better about listening.

Empathetically cover how much/many actions are necessary to avoid drawbacks including stopping too soon, so customers schedule enough time. Empathy improves rapport & decreases defensiveness, so customers aren’t concerned about immediate pride & focus on how results might affect reputations.

Consultations decrease customers’ Cognitive Labor so they can focus on remembering/relearning & learning skills.

I'm including more quotes/excerpts than usual to bring more value. The full article has more insightful information.

Brand Love Scales—So Stop Settling for Being Liked by Doug Zarkin

https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/brand-love-friend-zone-stop-settling/

"Real growth comes when a brand moves from liked to loved, from acquaintance to advocate. And that transformation doesn’t happen through gimmicks or one-time stunts—it’s built through consistent, emotionally resonant experiences that create brand love."

"It starts with understanding your consumer’s pain points, aspirations, and rhythms."

"It demands curiosity, empathy & humility to realize trust is earned in small, consistent moments—not grand gestures."

"You start by asking better questions. 'What would make them want to come back?' 'How do I remove friction and add meaning?' You reframe marketing as a relationship, not a transaction."

"They’re necessary, not loved. When a better alternative shows up, they’re the first to fall."

Inspire “Brand Love” to create Customer Integration.

Copyright 2025 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

Your business's profit potential depends on how much value your market niche perceives in what you offer. They won't perceive any value unless they have a reason to think about it. It's why you need effective marketing.

https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

Advantage Offers Establish AIDA & AID Niche Members Decision Processes.

NOTE: Though I want you to learn these concepts & emulate my advantage offer examples as parts of your complete ads, I'm against artificial intelligence harvesting my work. I don't write complete sample ads. When I express concepts with salmon, piranhas & bears, these conflicts analogize human troubles.

I haven't studied AI, but I know there are various versions that are evolving. It's hard to know each week what various versions can/can't do. If somebody has artificial intelligence harvesting & plagiarizing ads &/or marketing concepts, it might skip my analogies.

Plus, I don't understand all human sensitivities, so I avoid stereotyping with analogies. Consultants should work with clients to explain how offers fit niche members' lives & fulfill opportunities & remedy problems. These explanations should uplift without offending.

Customer integration differentiates specialist retailers from competitors.

Customer integration links products, insightful knowledge & methods to reduce customers' cognitive labor. Customers are less frustrated; they have functional hope & don't delay implementation.

People evaluate "information" as troubles build. Theories (other people's ideas) seem risky. Perceived "facts" (familiar, comfortable ideas) might not fit new troubles or remedies. When people reject previous "facts", escalating uncertainties could cause people to suspect other beliefs. Growing doubts tip confident beliefs like domino rows encroaching on & collapsing psychological shelters like houses of cards.

Stresses increase as people's certainty becomes tenuous. People may delusionally claim their preferred "truth" is immutable or become frustrated while accepting negative reality.

Though people debate quote attributions, wisdom is often accepted. Share wisdom, so people willingly (instead of grudgingly) share & accept knowledge.

"Those that won't be counseled can't be helped." Benjamin Franklin

Make your offers advantageous by guiding product & skill tutorial choices. Different perspectives are necessary because one person can't gather & accurately interpret total reality. Describe possible progress from your advantage offers & possible regression without your offers.

(Clayton M. Christensen & colleagues explained interdependencies & modules. I'm extending the concept to implementation practices.)

Even if people are skeptical, persuade them to consider other ideas. Full, long-term remedies & opportunities are available when people step beyond their status quo. People often refer to THE status quo, but people progress by possessing THEIR specific status quo instead of feeling owned by personal circumstances.

Guide customers in crossing self-limiting boundaries to achieve goals by accepting interdependent products & methods. Explain how interdependencies connect customers' life modules to create advanced remedies & opportunities. As a specialist retailer, explain how your insightful knowledge expands customers' advantages.

"The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function." F. Scott Fitzgerald

This can mean reconsidering valid evidence of previous conditions while adjusting to nascent opportunities or problems.

Example: Winter's slow deep decline in temperature & humidity didn't affect building materials like autumn's daily temperature & humidity variations. Though winter feels harsh for humans, objects have different tolerances.

If objects are made for extreme conditions, opposite variations can be worse than extremes. Homeowners should adjust diagnostic practices & preventative maintenance according to changing causes & effects. By updating with interdependencies, some modular products & methods remedy effects of emerging conditions.

Explain how interdependencies empower customers' abilities to build on successful foundations that are modules now.

Though temporary confusion & tension feel dysfunctional, people can create higher functionality by adding interdependencies to modular life factors.

Establish Awareness of better possibilities. Hold Attention with persuasive ideas. Establish Interest with incentives to convert anticipated benefits into advantageous reality. Build Desires by compellingly describing advantages to motivate people's purchasing Actions to claim what you describe. The best compelling descriptions are necessary since people have many options.

To inspire Attention & Interest in your improvement & problem deterrence options, you might need to spark consumers' Awareness of misinformation. You might analogize with examples of accepted "information" becoming misinformation in changing conditions.

Attention costs energy & time, so justify why people should reprioritize & reconsider plans. Interest means reasons to connect Attention to Desire. Motivate purchasing (Action) with descriptive testimonials & case studies about fulfilled opportunities &/or remedied problems. Justify advantage offers as returns-on-investments & specific goal fulfillments.

Offer guidance because knowledge gaps & uncertainty breed procrastination. Doubts may indicate people aren't Aware of or don't accept applicable facts. Are niche members Aware why specific products & retailers are best for goal achievements?

Raise Attention of high-value problem remedies to drive Interest in benefit creations/preservations. In which cases might consumers' low-price Desires override caution & bring frustration with discounter purchases? The AIDA model brings dissatisfaction if Actions don't fulfill Desires.

Satisfy Customers & Earn Referrals!

After receiving your offers, which niche members' Actions are more likely: In-store inquiries/purchases, Request friends' recommendations, or Check websites?

Ask customers to offer helpful digital or printed information to loved ones. This information is useful for customers who aren't articulate or lack time for recommendations. It's important because loved ones can similar troubles, but any perceived small differences & unnoticed symptoms require different approaches. Loved ones can call you, visit your store &/or website.

Offer Example: 'Since (problem) is a local issue, consider the importance of local insightful knowledge. (Store) customers are local, so ask them about their satisfaction. (Store) inventory is chosen for local conditions. Manufacturers provide product specifications & instructions. During (Store) consultations, your concerns will guide product & technique recommendations. Most retailers want you to believe prices matter more than anything else. (Store) is dedicated to long-term high-quality advantages from combined beneficial product & skills.'

Since June 2022, we've avoided human stereotypes by anthropomorphizing bears & salmon while extending Marshall Goldsmith's analogy to avoid success delusion & spawn insights.

Salmon feel compelled to return to natal rivers, swim upstream & spawn. They don't know why. They know how to swim into currents & around obstacles. But rivers are shallower than oceans, so salmon are vulnerable to unfamiliar predators. Nobody warned them, so salmon don't prepare for bears.

When humans are negatively surprised, anxiety &/or anger surge as invading emotions.

Value starts with Awareness of opportunities & needs plus insightful comparison criteria to maximize choices. If consumers are only vaguely Aware, potential risks seem nebulously distant. Attention doesn't seem important if consumers don't perceive value gaps or risks.

If opportunities, problems or offers don't warrant Attention, consumers don't justify Interest, so Desire won't build to motivate Action, because purchases don't seem important. Without AIDA, you won't sell!

People don't buy if they think opportunities are only for others. Compelling opportunity descriptions help niche members realize they deserve & can benefit from acquiring opportunities.

Compelling problem descriptions can be warnings &/or comparisons.

Offer Example: 'You might not notice (problem) as it grows slowly. Instead of passing by, check __. Does it look as it did years ago? Discoloration can indicate trouble. Is it as strong as before? (Store) has checklists & guidance criteria for determining how urgent your concerns are. Your action now can reduce trouble. If you wait, damage will increase & repairs will be more expensive. When you invest in (Store) project kits, you'll have customized remedies from highly-effective & efficient products & methods.'

As people habituate to conditions, emerging problems can go unnoticed or seem normal. People might be comfortable until problem severity increases.

If you habituate to low sales volumes, low profitability may seem normal. You should have a stronger business.

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2024 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

Create Enough Control to Preempt Customers’ Hesitation.

We’ve covered helping customers gain/regain control with advantage offers.

Case studies demonstrate successful methods for incrementally influencing conditions & easing stress, so customers confidently, precisely focus on details.

People are distracted & lose track of details when priorities & stresses pile-up. If efforts & resources are expended on Priority-1, would people lose Priority-2 limited-time opportunities? Would Priority-3 problems become worse?

People don't like settling for less than their aspirations.

Compare case studies of people who: 1) did & didn’t invest in advantages &/or 2) succeeded because they stopped hesitating. Describe everything customers gain from advantage offers, so do-it-yourselfers don’t resist full-service offers.

Offer Example: ‘Though you're rightfully proud of your skills, are you prepared as challenges of (season) approach. As you repair __, can you fully prepare for (opportunity)? If you run out-of-time, anticipation will become stress. (Contractor) can quickly repair __ while you learn about (opportunity) options & enjoy the anticipation. (Contractor) will help you proudly fulfill priorities plus enjoy (opportunity).'

Ask about customers' impressions before & after projects. Testimonials may express, 'Though others enjoyed (advantage), I hesitated after friends failed with cheap products. (Store) consultations showed success comes from (brand) products & planned projects. I can't bring back lost opportunities. I'm glad I have (advantage) now.'

Customer integration advantage offers & in-store experiences can inspire testimonials like that.

To develop offers, answer these:

After discovering opportunities, why do people advance, hesitate, not try or quit? Without insightful knowledge, consumers might have regrets after misunderstanding circumstances & offers. Advantage offers should clarify problem remedies & opportunity maximizing.

For your niche's circumstances, what makes customers' needs/desires urgent? What about that urgency makes your offers essential? If customers don't have money & time for urgent projects, what's the next best occasion & how does it compare to the best?

Limited-time offers are arbitrary. What makes any expiration date better than another? Why did customers perceive your suggested actions as superior to competitors’ offers? What would inspire customers’ self-confidence & confidence in products?

Uncertainty seems to justify hesitation. Raise assurance enough to make hesitation unnecessary & counterproductive.

Case studies help consumers relate to customers’ stories plus understand your insightful services bring more benefits than competitors' generic results. By comparing advertising & in-store experiences, consumers will recognize product value increases because of your understanding & desire to learn.

Advantage offers convert customers’ wishful thinking into functional hope. Customer integration practices are bridges bringing customers back for more value.

Use Customer Intimacy & Product Leadership to compete with competitors specializing in Operational Excellence/Leadership.

Progress & Stagnation - Which Brings More Risks?

Whether perceptions are accurate or false, what would indicate consumers should wait for information or stop projects? What would consumers gain &/or avoid losing if they wait or stop?

Issues have multiple factors & actions might affect some factors more than others. Consider positive & negative causes & effects. What if "A" happens, but "B" doesn't happen as expected?

Offer Example: ‘Let’s be realistic. People hesitate because they don’t know how to create & preserve (advantage). They don’t want to fail or lose (advantage) after succeeding. (Store) advantage offers include high-quality products chosen for your goals & circumstances so you succeed. You'll learn preventative maintenance specifically for (advantage) & won't lose enjoyment & fulfilling memories. Instead of thinking about risks of losing (advantage), consider what you’ll lose if you never have (advantage). (Store) is dedicated to functional hope, so avoid wishful thinking & we’ll build functionality.’

“Normal” Normally Isn’t.

We're avoiding human stereotypes by anthropomorphizing bears & salmon while continually expanding Marshall Goldsmith’s analogy to avoid success delusion & spawn insights.

As predators, salmon & piranhas have different tastes & abilities. Piranhas may be satisfied if they eat enough bears. If bears stay away, what will piranhas do? Can salmon better defend against or escape from bears or piranhas?

Bears are major threats, but salmon shouldn’t rush into alternatives without considering potential problems then testing effectiveness & efficiency. Though piranhas bring advantageous relief, disadvantages negate advantages.

Since they don’t always survive bear attacks, salmon don't develop self-defense techniques. Piranhas are unfamiliar with local conditions & to salmon. Species differences bring unpredictability.

When salmon react to unexpected effects, their reactions can cause unexpected effects. Though fish seem familiar & salmons’ circumstances are familiar, it’s important to avoid force-fitting facts & biases. Salmon & piranhas might bond based on similarities, but their mission success could be jeopardized by ignored differences.

Case study similarities might be incompatible with goals. Cold, oxygenated fresh & salt water are good for salmon but not piranhas. After meeting salmon in oceans, piranhas had difficulties switching to swimming upstream in rivers.

Salmon described conditions as normal except for bears, so piranhas thought they’d easily adjust to environmental & work conditions.

Their species might not survive if salmon stop spawning because of bear attacks. Salmon leaders could promise followers safety with a slogan: 'Piranhas will swim with us!' Followers might misunderstand & ask, 'Will bears eat piranhas not us?'

Effective offers require clearly understood advantages.

Be Careful What You Wish For!

Outsiders’ observations & experiences affect perceived logic of people's plans. Others might not notice causes or recognize slowly emerging internal & external effects. Learn about niche members, so you can blend objectivity with their subjective perceptions.

Help customers interpret observations & experiences with insightful knowledge. People might assume correlation is causation or concurrent effects have the same cause.

Many bears switched to other “normal” conditions by moving upstream to shallower water to avoid drowning. Some piranhas claimed success when few bears attacked. Salmon retorted, “Bears weren’t expected to attack YOU!”

It’s vital to define success metrics, expectations & impressions (“normal”).

Fish assumed they’re safe until they couldn’t swim & flee in shallow water. Bears learned to decrease their disadvantages & increase salmons’ & piranhas’ disadvantages. Swimming difficulties impeded almost 100% of their plan.

Commit to Goals, not Methods.

Salmon seem committed to spawning without considering alternative times & locations could better fit their requirements.

Help customers recover from mistakes & avoid risks. Encourage openness to input. Determine project irreversibility points when customers can consider stopping to resell kits.

Sales may be final, but resale & rentals open options when conditions make plans unsustainable. Resale values are lower than retail prices, but when customers invest in top-quality products, some value is retained. Discontinue if rental/resale promotions become unprofitable.

Offer Example: 'Plans go astray when people misinterpret information & observations. Customers take responsibility for consequences & consult with (Store) to reinterpret & replan. Don’t reject negative reality. Report triumphs & tribulations, so we can change methods & resource combinations to decrease negatives & increase positives. Ask for information packets from (Store). If you're serious about creating benefits, let's plan positive steps. (Store) has rental tools & used materials for beginners.'

If customers inquire without buying, offer consulting: 'If you're inquiring because of curiosity, I'll supply information packets. When you’re ready to create (benefits), let me know you're ready to plan.'

People should prepare for more, similar & less stressful conditions to ensure they maintain control. Progress isn't permanent without consistent or adjusted efforts.

Which resources should be reserved for future prevention or repairs? How much control do customers need for being & feeling safe? How much control & risk can they afford? How much & what kinds of controls are practical, attainable & sustainable? How much & what kinds of risks are possible, practical &/or tolerable?

Products May Be Low-Priced or Seem Impressive, But Prices or Impressiveness Don't Solve Problems.

Bears decreased attacks when piranhas were present, so hungry piranhas blamed & attacked salmon. The next attempt was piranhas wearing salmon costumes to fool bears. What could go wrong?

That's a discounter question. Instead of real remedies, discounters try imitations.

Piranhas couldn't fight in costumes & were vulnerable because of trouble removing costumes during attacks. Hungry bears eat whichever fish are vulnerable. Hungry, costumed piranhas fooled & bit salmon. Some salmon tried piranha costumes but were attacked by salmon gangs. Bears swarmed in while fish were fighting.

Remote-controlled piranha drones didn't work for thumb-less salmon.

Discounters advertised preprogrammed Piranha Drone-Amatics. Those drones had impressive names & scary appearances, but bears weren't impressed or scared.

Real problems are like that. No matter how cheap discount products are, problems aren't impressed. Problems grow despite or because of cheap products. Low-prices bring instant gratification, so explain why advantage offers establish long-term gratification of functional hope.

Product prices & appearances don't increase functionality. Functional hope brings personal benefits when functionality increases opportunities &/or decreases troubles.

Cheap prices let people keep money, but are they comfortable with incomplete remedies? How much & what kinds of functionality bring hope? It's important to know what went wrong & could fail without full remedies.

When they haven't fully defined problems, consumers don't fully understand necessary functionality. Differentiate your store by explaining how to create functionality in specific circumstances to increase customers’ understanding & functional hope.

As a specialist retailer, increase customers’ satisfaction by helping with cognitive labor.

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2024 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

Don’t Let Customers Suffer Problems & Lost Opportunities.

Customer integration blazes trails through complexities so customers optimize experiences instead of just wishing for something better. If people lack resources & are frustrated by obstacles, they might dismiss your offers as unworkable.

Skeptics think ‘That’d be good, but if you knew my conditions, you’d know it won’t happen.’ Explain how your product & local knowledge make your offers work for specific benefits. Convince people they can achieve results with specialized knowledge & products.

Analogy: Frustrated people believe ‘optimal experiences – our conditions = aggravation’. After you help people clearly define optimal experiences, their conditions & your offers, you can show their conditions + your offers = optimal experiences. Everything you add to the equation changes the total.

What can you add to conditions to reduce gaps between current conditions & desired, optimal experiences? You need to convince specific people your offers can create special transformations by adding your insights to their information.

Aggravation dampens desires & can lead to negative mental chains: overwhelmed; self-doubt; hesitation about specific solutions; uncertainty about anything working; general hopelessness; etc. Provide hope with knowledge of effective methods for using new products.

Emphasize results are based on the strength of multiple factors, so benefits don’t seem tenuous because projects don’t rely on one product or method.

Since you won’t differentiate based on prices or volume, you need to know your market niche's most significant life differences. Why do niche members have certain needs compared to people’s general needs? How would your offers specifically fulfill certain needs more effectively & efficiently? How should customers define effectiveness & efficiency of solutions they need?

If you don’t offer all essential products & knowledge, you can be a hub for other stores, so value revolves around you.

If desires & problems are predictable, preempt people’s frustrations with explanations of dealing with current & impending obstacles. With consultations, you can understand obstacles & customers’ goals, so remedies fit approaching trouble plus current & desired conditions.

Product & Price List Offers Aren’t Enough.

Think about your main concerns & what would indicate somebody has ideal preventions or solutions?

Back pain & headaches are common, so you might dread those when you wake up any morning. As you prepare for another day, consider the appeal of these offers: ‘Aspirin $4’ OR

‘Back pain is commonly caused by injuries & physical positions aggravating injuries. As you get distracted each day, you probably forget about your posture. StimApp will ping your phone at intervals you set & remind you to check your position. StimPad is a handheld unit with pads to put on your most tense spots. Pads are like medical patches to keep on sensitive spots for hours. When you take breaks, reconnect the pads to the unit & start massages exactly where you need them. When you interrupt back muscle tension, you’ll keep that tension from transferring up through your neck to your head. Your $XY investment in StimKit will disrupt tension that would otherwise disrupt another day of your life.’

Notice the empathetic information showing an advertiser understands customers’ problems. If StimKit would exist, it would be integrated into people’s lives because the advertiser knows how to reduce customers’ problems. It’s like saying ‘I know causes & effects of these problems. Even if we can’t eliminate these causes, let’s work together to reduce these effects.’

Show how to convert hopes into functional desires & avoid frustrations. In sales, friction is defined differently. Let’s think of friction as marketing & life hassles that wear people out. Identify frictions of preventing & solving high priority problems.

When marketing friction comes from a lack of facts, fill those gaps. Do people understand how project kits improve conditions? Are products &/or tasks unfamiliar? If inconvenience is the friction, develop easier processes. Do people need exact products & learn complex methods or could basic products & easy-to-learn methods fulfill goals?

Division of Labor

People, who acknowledge specialized knowledge & skills are important, delegate work based on abilities. Customer integration makes delegation part of retailing. It includes cognitive labor since specialized thinking can improve results.

Ads should explain how offers reduce or end problems plus make solution implementations easier than competitors’ options.

Even if you’re comfortable with products & methods, customers might experience unfamiliar projects as minor friction or risky trail blazing. Offers should include making projects feel less threatening than problems, so people realize real risks of problems & reevaluate perceived risks.

If you can't make products more powerful, make solution implementations easier & more effective. Reduce risks of mistakes & threats.

Even if you accurately describe problems as big threats, people might disagree. Combine emotions of dealing with logical effects.

Basic Offer: ‘If you (want experience/anticipate problem), it’s easy to wonder what you’ll do if you can’t escape from (daily stress/problem). Have you wondered how similar people can afford to enjoy (activities)/solve (problems), while you struggle? People enjoy (activities)/solve (problems) regularly because they have (product) & can (method). (Kit) provides (products) with instructions specifically for (creating experience/solving problem) & during (Store) consultations, we’ll customize methods according to your goal.’

Too many retailers follow leaders (big retailers), but since leaders get to consumers first, leaders get top prizes. Also-rans get whatever might be left over. It isn’t a matter of being risk-taking pioneers; it’s the importance of the most relevant offers for people’s current needs & desires. Emphasize high quality products & optimal methods for reducing short- & long-term risks.

Explain how cheap products & suboptimal techniques can increase risks because benefits might be late &/or inadequate.

Example: 'Don't struggle through choosing products & hoping for adequate quality. Don’t be stressed with planning techniques & projects. (Store) consultations identify risks & define benefits while planning projects.'

Are People Wandering Because They Wonder How To Create Opportunities?

Sometimes people say they’d feel lost without __. What would customers feel lost without? What does lost mean in their context? Maybe it’s only a perceived/potential loss because they haven’t clearly defined it. If you help them find words to describe it, you can determine what to protect or regain.

Does lost mean people are disoriented (not sure how to proceed)? Are people unsure if their knowledge would apply to upgraded products? Which established benefits are they losing? Which partially established benefits are at risk? Which opportunities might people miss? Which abilities/skills do they lack? Do they quantify losses as totals or percentages?

If it’s totally or almost lost, do they want exact replacements or upgrades? Is it too late to learn to avoid losses? Do they need to learn about upgrades?

If people are ready to live differently or try different directions, should replacements be similar to originals or different?

Failures or Opportunities to Restart

Optimists think failures & losses are opportunities to restart with new information & experiences. Are there opportunities in customers’ losses?

Realists think salvageable resources should be used to optimize relaunches & avoid waste. Are goals still achievable & are results still the highest & best use options with those resources?

Review previous efforts & conditions to determine what can fulfill new or future goals. Efforts & goals can be adjusted based on what worked before & what’s reliable now plus in the future. Which current/salvaged resources are still available?

What could augment or restore resources to make them fully applicable? Would augmentation &/or restoration require too many new resources? Would new results be easier to maintain?

Even if physical property is available or applicable, what was/can be learned? Are experiments possible using what might deteriorate?

Pessimists think (CENSORED). You can’t turn everything around or inspire everybody to accept improvements.

Are positive or negative causes & effects overestimated? Do different interpretations fit those perceptions? What’s been misinterpreted? What can be changed to augment &/or preserve positives? What can be changed to eliminate or decrease negatives? If negatives can’t be eliminated or decreased, what can be changed to halt problems & prevent more deterioration? What are the risks? What causes those risks? What could eliminate or decrease risks?

Retaining & regaining control can depend on multiple factors, so which factors can customers currently manage? Which factors can be turned around? Which factors are too deteriorated to save? Could customers retain or regain control if they recognize current resources & learn to salvage & use those?

Though customers might know how to use resources for other issues, condition changes might make different methods necessary to optimally fix current factors.

After confronting problems, people might have comfortable, but less than optimal approaches. Criteria can help people accurately recognize problems & determine if approaches & solutions are compatible & complete.

Problems can seem familiar until people learn about unfamiliar symptoms & change diagnoses. When they learn about unfamiliar, unrecognized symptoms, it’s easier to accept unsuccessful results without hurt pride.

Offer Example: ‘When you know what’s wrong, you can learn which products & methods you need. (Store) is dedicated to more than product sales, so you get complete kits & results.’

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2021 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

Your Advantages Should Include Reexamining Customers’ Conditions

Reexaminations can bring & protect benefits by uncovering what novices might not realize. It isn’t only obvious things that interfere with benefits.

You can differentiate yourself from competitors by finding opportunities & eliminating obstacles. If people don’t identify obstacles, resources might be wasted by compensating later for what should’ve been removed before finishing projects.

Discounters push popular products without helping people understand how to create benefits. Your customer value perspective & knowledge can create benefits with products & methods for customers beyond saving a few dollars.

Fine-tune Project Kits

What could connect current circumstances to a beneficial future & make goals easier to achieve? Which other resources are necessary? How should new resources be connected to each other plus established results? How can people benefit more from what they own? Example: Customers might have patios with retractable awnings but not enough lawn space for regular gardens. People can grow compact plants in pots & planters which can be repositioned to clear space for barbecues. Spices & herbs could be grown & harvested as desired while barbecuing.

Optimize Cognitive Labor with Questions & Answers

Before customers finalize plans & purchases, reexamining conditions can ensure clarity & reduce mistakes. Compare plans while reexamining problems & resources to expand knowledge of what’s wrong plus optimize abilities to make things right.

Customers should choose options based on criteria developed from full knowledge. Though the internet & libraries hold information, you can connect product purchases with local knowledge & other facts relating to customers’ needs & goals.

Since knowledge is NOT power without implementation, people need insights to use information to optimize products & methods. You can offer adjustments when you know about people’s usual products & methods.

Offer Example: ‘Though it’s common to settle for (basic result), you don’t have to miss out on (benefit category). (Store) consultations can guide you to increase opportunities. You’ll enjoy (specific benefits) by adding (products & methods). You’ll be advised in choosing product versions & using customized methods to develop life-specific benefits instead of less interesting generic results. Do you want whatever discount stores push? Or do you want special advantages you deserve from (Store).’

That’s a Benefit for You Because

People want to know WIIFM ‘What’s in it for me?’ It’s a valid question, but not a rich question. The rich version is: ‘I have (problem), so why should I buy this from YOU?’

You should offer integrated advantages because many products are easy to find & some retailers only recommend general product benefits. Customer integrators explain advantages of integrating products & methods to optimize benefits. If you don’t offer those advantages, why do you expect people to buy from you?

People need guidance to find & sort through relevant facts plus understand how to apply facts in choosing products & methods to create results.

It’s important to be careful about advice based on other people’s comparable needs, conditions & results. People could have short-term satisfaction by imitating similar people’s methods using similar products to remedy similar problems. Slight neglected differences could combine into long-term project failures. Any differences, especially multiple differences, can cause problems instead of bring solutions.

Help customers learn which information is relevant & enough, so they don't delay projects & increase costs by creating unnecessary results or pursuing unattainable benefits.

People might conclude something doesn’t work because they tried the best plan without adequate knowledge, skills & products. People can feel betrayed if they thoroughly fulfill product instructions to achieve short-term results & projects fail later. Ask if customers expect temporary patches or full solutions, so expenses & efforts are worthwhile.

People might check with you but buy from discounters. It’s a reason to differentiate your quality from discount offers.

Analogy: If total results quality & long-term success would be 100 points, five perfect materials could supply 50 points. Even if perfect methods contribute 50 full points, poor quality materials might trickle in 20 points. Since results depend on each material, that project would fail eventually despite apparent short-term achievement. It’s because 100-point success would be difficult without consultations focused on fully defining & resolving specific conditions with the right methods & products.

Consider Long-term Results

Diagnoses might be incomplete or inaccurate when more problem symptoms are discovered after projects start. Plans should include alternative steps &/or reexaminations if changes become necessary.

Products & plans can seem to fail because people rush in without considering possible misperceptions.

Example: Wisconsin conditions are hard for vehicles. I didn’t know how long my old car would last, but I needed to replace a loud, rusted exhaust system. I chose products that might last as long as my car. After a repair, my car wasn’t as quiet as I expected because of my cheap muffler choice. The installation was good but products were only adequate. I bought a modicum of certainty without total comfort.

People might demand certainty, control & comfort without defining expectations. Do people expect to banish all doubt or just confirm specific facts?

Does control mean preventing symptoms or reducing severity? Does comfort mean preventing all pain or achieving refreshing sleep?

Consultation Example: ‘If you can create ABC but not XYZ, would this project be successful? How long should ABC last? If (material) needs 8 hours to dry, would that interfere with your schedule? If we add (product) to the kit & you do (method), you can create (result). Do you want that added benefit though it would cost $__ more & add 2 hours of labor? When you think about your budget & available time, is there a higher priority result we should fulfill?’

Trial & Learning

Trial & error processes imply ending with errors which can cause more problems & delay solutions. When customers choose options from case studies of lessons learned, quicker solutions can reduce damage.

Limited time pushes people to quickly learn skills to use unfamiliar products in time to avoid urgent damage. Pre-assembled materials in kits can reduce that pressure.

Questions & answers guide people in the logic of unfamiliar projects. What firmly indicates whether projects succeed or fail? What constitutes full trials in forming reliable conclusions? Is it a number of steps or length of time? Is it a product or method? If preliminary results are unexpected, would it be justified to stop or change projects? Would it be practical to restart some steps or is it unsalvageable?

Which case studies of comparable conditions could indicate potential missing or excessive elements? Did anything reveal potential disruptions? What started preventing, ending &/or relieving disruptions? As projects started, progressed & ended, which transitions were positive or negative? Did unexpected symptoms emerge?

Trial & error can produce waste, but trial & learning can bring value. With proper guidance, processes can be trial & learning if people know how to compare expectations with emerging results.

Try to qualify & quantify differences between pre-action conditions, planned results & actual project effects. If conditions were different than previously thought, did that difference disrupt the project? Which facts could indicate different products &/or methods are necessary?

Help customers with checklists in case preliminary diagnoses give way to new discoveries or if results don’t fit expectations. Whole projects don’t have to go totally astray, if salvage steps are possible.

Project kits should include mid-project guidance so customers can change course based on changing needs &/or if preliminary results don’t fit expectations.

People might wonder about results of buying products from you after purchases from other stores. If you don’t have access to specifications of products from other stores, you can offer general reviews of what could/should be possible based on conditions.

People might wonder if project benefits would be worth their total monetary, energy & time costs. It can be hard to discern how things might add up. If you have detailed case studies, you can compare those pre-project conditions with customers’ conditions.

If goals in case studies match customers’ goals, those can be like answers of equations. If A + B + C + D = 20 (goal); A could = conditions to be changed. B + C + D = necessary inputs to fill gaps between A & 20. B could = materials. C could = tools made necessary by conditions & materials. D could = methods made necessary by tools, conditions & materials. Since using certain materials & tools make certain skills necessary, do customers need to learn those skills or choose other materials & tools? In other words, changing B &/or C can make it necessary to change D to get 20.

While comparing customers’ goals with case studies, explain how inputs fit conditions & goals, plus ways inputs synergistically work together for specific results. Example: In that case study, people noticed (problem) & decided to achieve (goal). They used (method) to create (result) with (product).

If preliminary results turn in unintended directions, what could’ve caused that or taken away what’s desired? What could be added or taken out now to get projects on track?

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2021 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

Customers’ Success Depends On You Maximizing Their Work

Help customers identify necessary labor to produce benefits & organize necessary resources. Customers need your product knowledge, local conditions information & leadership to make tasks & thoughts more productive.

It can seem strange to lead people to achieve their goals because motivation should be built in. After being discouraged by conditional setbacks &/or poor product quality, people might not challenge generalized thoughts leading to negative beliefs.

‘Nobody ever made that kind of scheme work’ & other generalized thoughts can be countered with specific ideas. Focus on what local people need so they realize you offer high quality products that work in planned projects.

Though people seem to never have enough time, better time management & cheap products won’t create great results. Explain why project kits are necessary for faster, better quality results.

Offer Example: ‘(Store) has project kits for (results). There are specific reasons projects will or won’t work. When positive & negative reasons are identified, projects can be customized to maximize positives & reduce negatives. At (Store), let’s review specialized information to learn about specific obstacles & opportunities for designing projects to create benefits & reduce frustrations. When you need (results), it’s hard to start projects because of demands on your time & energy. It’s time to invest in project kit advantages from (Store). After buying what other stores push, you’ll be relieved by investing in customized benefits from (Store).’

Why Should Customers Invest In Results of Your Leadership?

Customer integration requires collaborative leadership to ask & answer questions.

Before guiding people through transitions, be sure you & they understand starting points plus obstacles to desired results. Whether results should be temporary or maintained, people need instructions, so expectations are fulfilled & investments are preserved.

Since people have imperfect perceptions & knowledge, they might resist positive changes to predictable life routines. If people don't realize how disruptive problems will be, they might not know changes are necessary or understand how your offers make changes easier. Help identify & prioritize problems so people optimally invest time, energy & money.

Explain offers so people understand value they can receive & how to avoid consequences of unsolved problems.

Since imperfect lives can be series of obstacles, offer preparation resources to mitigate what's unavoidable. Consultations can help you understand people’s rough spots, their current resources plus successful & unsuccessful efforts. Consultations are also for guiding product choices & planning methods.

Though affluent people hire professionals, middle-income customers might need guidance to do or outsource any steps.

How can you help people through processes from problem discovery to solution maintenance? Identify existing & emerging problems. Compare products. Plan how to use unfamiliar products for creating & maintaining benefits.

When you write offers & do consultations, consider questions like these examples: Which causes & effects can & should consumers take on or outsource? If causes end, how long will effects last? Will effects cause further problems or is damage limited?

Cognitive Labor is a Legitimate Customer Workload

Even if potential thoughts are infinite, daily time & energy are finite. Though people have many needs & desires plus inspirational & aspirational ideas, follow-through is limited by knowledge, time & energy. When you help customers integrate needs, desires & ideas with your resources, you work together to turn potential into reality.

Offer Example: ‘When people need to prevent & solve problems, some stores offer barely adequate products. It’s like throwing lumber to stranded swimmers who need boats. (Store) offers consultations to guide you to find & use resources to fulfill goals. Let’s work together to combine the right resources to convert your needs, desires & ideas into reality.’

Allison Daminger wrote the article “How Couples Share ‘Cognitive Labor’ and Why it Matters”. Here are my interpretations of some of Allison Daminger's ideas plus my extrapolations:

Cognitive Labor includes thinking, planning, deciding & problem-solving. These mental tasks include anticipating needs, identifying options for filling needs, deciding among options & monitoring results.

For some issues, Cognitive Labor requires knowing, interpreting & applying limits.

Example: People are frustrated because they don’t know why plants aren’t healthy. Watering plants can be more complicated than gardeners anticipate. Some plants need some acid in soil, if water is acidic, it could be good for some plants & hurt others. Too much water can dilute acid & minerals in soil. Soil composition, heat, humidity & light affect how much water plants can tolerate. Gardeners can solve problems & cause others because things that help plants can also help harmful organisms. Gardeners need to do just enough to bring benefits.

People’s preparations for decisions are invisible, but significant & can be onerous.

Cognitive Labor Can Distract People From Other Tasks.

Anticipation is mostly in one person’s mind & can interfere with other activities because people have limited mental bandwidth.

Some decisions are spontaneous. High stakes decision-making is often done in a longer period, frequently involves conversations & is possibly postponed until convenient times.

Cognitive labor can lead to anxiety: People wonder if they’re forgetting anything. As conditions change & technology advances, people realize they don’t know valuable things. That knowledge gap means people won’t recognize emerging problems & don’t have resources for preventing or solving unrecognized problems.

Which needs have people failed to anticipate? What schedule conflicts have they not foreseen? Which ongoing home project might people have lost track of along the way? Should they keep searching for better solutions or consider problems solved?

People need to be satisfied with information, insights & practices to achieve comfortable closure. Even if they know they’ll reopen issues/projects when new information is available or conditions change, people want to be sure they’ve done all they could currently.

After people feel they’ve settled issues, they might believe they’re protected & ignore those issues. When protection isn’t permanent, it’s important to understand what’s possible & determine if preliminary answers can guide people to significant progress.

If the best time for action is unknown, somebody needs to determine whether to risk starting too early or late. Is there enough time to establish full assurance (about best practices) before implementing preventative action?

You can lead people through consultations even if you don’t have all pertinent answers yet, because you can check which questions apply to customers’ conditions.

After finding applicable questions, you can search for answers. With answers about what’s apt to happen & potential results, you can work on options. If customers are comfortable with options, they can commit to using products & methods. That commitment is important, so people don’t give up without allowing enough time for full effects.

During consultations, you can determine what people need for producing & maintaining full results, so customers are assured. Part of assurance is sharing common term definitions because misunderstandings can lead to problems & mistrust.

It’s important to agree what words mean so people can set realistic goals. People might not know they’ve made mistakes when expectations aren’t accurate.

Share the Cognitive Labor

Do some of the heavy mental lifting to streamline processes, optimize results & reduce risks. It takes more than strength for physical lifting; strong lifters also need correct techniques.

Effective, efficient decision-makers know what & how to think. As a retailer & consultant, you should know how to evaluate conditions & know which facts are necessary.

It’s important for you to know the cognitive labor load of processes from identifying vulnerabilities & problems to eliminating or reducing those. Consider which options could make budgeting & financing less stressful.

Marketing can include reminding customers about seasonal preparation or it’s time to check for problems. People will be relieved to outsource that anticipation work to you.

There’s an overwhelming span of problems from potentials to what’s probable plus emerging or current trouble. There’s an overwhelming span of solutions from potentially effective to what’s likely to work & what’s currently working.

Among emerging & current problems, which are threats or nuisances? Can problems be solved, prevented, or just mitigated? If somebody buys unreliable products, there’ll be less money, time & energy to restart with effective resources.

Which efforts can customers do with current resources? If people can’t afford money or storage space for materials or tools, you might need to adjust your business. If products are packaged in bigger amounts than people need, do you justify small purchases? If people need tools for short times & can’t afford money or space for purchases, will you offer rentals?

Help people determine how much of each resource they can afford to invest in for results. If people end up buying tools they’ll use once, their money will be tied up until they sell or trade tools. If you have tool rentals, people can rent what they need & move on.

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2021 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

Necessity is More Important than Store Locations

Your store location won’t matter to people until your offers fit people’s goals. As you add value to consumers’ results, they depend on your inputs to maximize & maintain outcomes.

Customer Intimacy strengthens relationships by offering the most comprehensive, customized preventions & solutions customers can afford. Divorce can end intimacy when people feel disappointed, especially when they find better offers.

Customer Integrators go further with interdependent consultations about customers’ conditions & goals for systematic results. During interdependent consultations, retailers & customers learn from each other with questions & answers to increase understanding & benefits for others also.

Optimal products & information make stores necessary for creating & maintaining reliable, predictable results inspiring customers’ full confidence. Doubt about results brings stress which reduces life quality & could cause future indecisiveness.

Feelings (pride or regret) about results can cause positive or negative feelings about product manufacturers & retailers.

Reduce customers' doubt & regret by providing information to help them understand & evaluate conditions & options. Your efforts show dedication to consumers instead of greed.

Use information from suppliers, government agencies & educators to help customers make optimal decisions along all stages from planning to preserving & adjusting benefits.

Leadership & Cognitive Labor

Leadership includes optimizing mental efforts of identifying & using valuable resources.

Decisions & thinking require energy. Stress reduces energy. Tired people become more stressed when they have more decisions to make. Outline thought processes & planning, so people are less stressed & more productive.

Example: ‘The issue is __. Causes are __. Effects are __. If your conditions are __, options for reducing causes are __. Control of those causes brings these options for fixing the effects: __. Of these options, the best local option is __. The steps are __. These (products & methods) are effective & efficient because __.’

Offer Example: ‘Whether you think multi-tasking is productive, you’ll be more productive when you’re not distracted by multiple problems. Progress is limited each time you use physical &/or mental energy to pay attention to things that should be resolved already. With consultations & complete kits from (Store), you can be sure problems are practically settled, so you can focus on other priorities. (Store) has the right quality products & plans you need for confidence to conquer problems & move on. Let’s reduce your stress by solving & preventing problems.’

Explain Why Your Store is Necessary for Stress Relief.

Even if customers don’t expect total protection against problems, there's value in reducing risks. Example: Infested trees can fall & cause injuries & damage, so people remove blighted trees. Others preserve trees & reduce blight by killing insects & fungi, so it's important to know whether trees can be saved, possibly including branch removal. Those temporary treatments seem less drastic than felling trees.

Smooth flowing information & material resources make your store necessary by reducing customers' distress. When people feel uncertain or are sure negative things will happen, stress increases until people find relief.

Make specific offers based on how products & methods create integrated customized results to relieve & prevent problems. Price list ads don’t offer specific relief.

Offer consultations to discuss details, so you can integrate customized results into people’s immediate expectations & long-term lives. Example: Tree planting & trimming advice can save awnings from damage as trees & branches grow taller & wider. People can enjoy awnings & trees unless growth & rough weather overwhelm them.

When you offer definitively chosen products for prevention or solution projects, include timely information to raise awareness of problems. You shouldn’t assume people already know why your offers are valuable.

There’s value in helping people understand threats & optimal remedies. Definitive remedies are based on defining what went wrong & why, so customers stop causes plus mitigate effects.

After customers are reassured about remedies, their hope makes it easier to focus on creating optimal results. Like any pain, stress seems to push people toward quick liberation, like pain killing pills instead of cures.

When you liberate people from stress, they can focus on long-term relief. That’s why you should promote value beyond products & prices. Even if other retailers promote product benefits, consumers need methods for using products to create & maintain benefits. People need information to evaluate plans & results to avoid incomplete or ill-advised results.

Offer Example: ‘Some retailers brag about prices or product selection. (Store) offers consultations about conditions & results to recommend project kits for establishing specific benefits. Let’s review what’s possible if you need something quick plus determine what’s optimal for establishing long benefits. Benefit establishment requires the product quality plus optimal methods (Store) offers.’

Instructional Testimonials

Customer Integration inspires testimonials by showing you give advice for optimal customers’ results instead of just pushing products. Ask how customers created benefits to clarify how to write instructions & confirm what works.

Instructional testimonials can encourage customers with contextual insights.

Example: ‘I chose (product) because I could use it to __. It made a difference because in our area, (problem) starts each year unless we eliminate (precursors). After I removed (precursors) with (product 1 & method 1), it was easier to install (materials). Now I can maintain it with (product 2 & method 2). If I notice (symptom), it indicates I need to use (product 3 & method 3).’

Customer Integration fulfills expectations & needs/desires for lasting value. People might gain short-term results from discounters’ stuff because of poor quality & no consultations.

Brand reputations make purchase decisions easier but to increase sales, manufacturers give into discount retailers’ demands. Consumers’ expectations are apt to be based on earlier reputations.

Some manufacturers sacrifice reputations by reducing quality of materials & labor to comply with discounters’ pressure to cut prices. There are limits to how much costs can be cut by off-shoring & economies of scale.

People hope reputations are still valid & believe lower prices bring more value. Strong reputations seem to indicate poor results are from bad luck instead of bad quality. How would people know if failure is due to misinterpreting conditions, poor products or bad methods?

Some manufacturers don't tolerate higher costs of changing product runs to include better materials. You should be aware - you could get discount product versions. Some cheap products aren’t made for preventative maintenance or repairs, so failure is likely & necessitates full replacements.

If you don’t have access to high quality products, how can you help customers work around or overcome product quality gaps? Is there information you can convert into methods for preparing for projects or adapting results?

Discounters can force manufacturers to absorb costs of product returns, so consumers spend time & energy returning products instead of finishing projects. Their customers might still return often, so discount retailing is a hard business model to compete against.

Despite discounters’ claims, their reputation is the opposite of building dependable value by integrating high quality products, methods & information.

Without better offers from local retailers, discount customers can think they have little to win, but nothing to lose. Explain the importance of investing in high quality results. When prices seem to be the main value criterion, people don't think about how long they need results to last.

Explain why durability is important for specific purposes. Define durability & what's required to optimize specific conditions. Explain how your offer fulfills those purposes, requirements & definitions.

If you set people’s result quality expectations & guide preliminary planning, people will know what’s possible through integration with your store.

After basic projects fulfill purposes, people can maintain foundational results, plus upgrade aspects to increase satisfaction.

Offer Example: ‘During any __ project, whatever can go wrong could go wrong at the worst times. It isn’t just a matter of bad luck because discount stores push shoddy products. You can create good luck with projects designed for your conditions. (Store) has information to design projects, choose products & plan methods, so you’ll know which causes you need to change & which effects you need to create. Discount retailers expect you to settle for commodity products. Without customized planning, you’re stuck with commoditized methods & results that are like cheap clothes adequate enough to cover you, but uncomfortable. When needs aren’t fulfilled, cheap products could cause more problems than they prevent. When manufacturers sacrifice their reputations & discount product quality doesn't match your expectations, you need consultations to evaluate your conditions & products. (Store) consultations help you invest your time & energy in creating dependable results. You can achieve goals while others wait in discount store lines to buy & return defective products.’

You can avoid disappointing customers by helping them compare expectations with conditions, product specifications & method effectiveness.

Consultation Example: ‘Based on what happened & how conditions change, let’s consider available products & tasks you’re willing to do, so you’ll know what to expect. You can have maximum effectiveness with this kit because (products & methods) make (result) a long-term benefit by preventing (problems).’

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2021 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

People Often Need Leaders to Create & Maintain Benefits.

In previous posts, I emphasized using your ability to optimize benefits as inspiration for people to accept your leadership. Your leadership should include guidance & influencing perceptions, not just stocking shelves.

Show how people create more advantages by integrating your store into their lives. Interactions & transactions often seem to be more beneficial for leaders & business owners than followers & consumers.

Since customers compare competitive offers, use ads & consultations to describe how you help people create specific optimal value. Help people recognize value, so they can justify purchases. It’s harder for people to justify purchasing if they benefit too little & retailers seem to benefit too much.

Analogy: Think of consumers’ conditions as balance scales. Disadvantages, problems & risks are heavy enough to outweigh consumers’ current resources & efforts. Imagine you’re on a third arm & your profits tip the balance closer to your advantage.

Though your profits come from helping consumers, it can seem like the balance tips more in your favor without enough value for consumers. Your profits might seem to reduce consumers’ resources without proportionately reducing heavy problems.

To justify costs of your leadership, help consumers perceive value of reducing or eliminating negative conditions. Explain value to customers so they perceive how you tip that 3-arm scale for them & reduce the load of problems.

Example: ‘When you use (products) & this plan to (create result), you’ll benefit because __. Will (result) fulfill your goal, or should we explore something else?’

Define Full Prevention & Solutions

Checklists show what’s needed & guide planning by helping customers perceive total problems.

Describe effects of kits compared to untreated or insufficiently treated damage.

Example: ‘Damage you’ve described will cost $XYZ to repair. If you delay full repairs, the damage will become worse & more expensive to fix because __. Though other stores offer some products, let’s work together on achieving your goal by coordinating a plan with the right products.’

People recognize leaders as having access to resources including knowledge needed to plan methods for using resources. You produce value by determining the best plan, methods & resources to achieve goals.

Since people have different perceptive abilities, customers might misinterpret how conditions change. Explain how to find answers for your questions, so you can deduce what’s wrong & plan to make it right.

Consultation Example: ‘We’ll review your answers & checklist results to determine your ability to achieve your goal & your comfort with a plan. We'll create your kit as you agree to the feasibility of each part & step. Here’s the information checklist we’ll use to choose products & plan methods.’

This customer service structure is your basis for offering competitive value.

Offer Example: ‘In today’s complicated world, causes bring effects & those effects cause other problems. Discount stores sell products based on profitability. (Store) offers reliability, so you get information about specific causes & effects before product suggestions. Since reliability brings satisfaction & your goals define your satisfaction, let’s evaluate what happened & what you need. When we define reliability for your circumstances, we can be sure our planned methods & products fit specific results. Even if discount stores let you return unsatisfactory products, they aren’t helping you achieve goals. Since you need successful projects, you don’t have time for exchanging products & getting refunds. Let’s start your successful project while you’re in (Store), so you’ll have everything from planning to completion.’

Since people hesitate when they aren’t sure what to choose & how to do projects, you should lead customers so they don’t miss out. Project success depends on knowing which causes are starting, fully happening or ending.

Checklists help in confirming causes are over so customers can start repairing effects. Success requires knowing which causes bring which effects & possibly prioritizing major problems when resources are limited.

Offer Example: ‘Since people have multiple challenges, bring your concerns to (Store) to be sure you solve the highest priority problems. Though it’ll still be an imperfect world, (Store) offers checklists to find & reduce imperfections.’

Prioritization might be based on inaccurate & incomplete information. Since it’s an imperfect world, people decide based on incomplete perceptions. Also people disregard what doesn’t fit their paradigms.

Leaders help people adjust thoughts & feelings. People feel X when they experience Y, so they think Z. When people think better experiences are possible & feel those experiences have important benefits, they think of ways to gain those benefits.

You can guide their thoughts by offering results from effective, efficient processes, so people believe results are possible.

When you have descriptive case studies/testimonials, you can introduce options so customers can imagine benefits.

Consultation Example: ‘A customer was frustrated because __. Let’s review this case study about how (products) were used with specific methods & to create (result). Did this case start like yours? Since (product) specifications fit the solution you need, let’s check how comfortable you are with the instructions. We can adjust ways to use (products), so your benefits will be __ & is compatible with __. In X years, it’ll be time for a maintenance kit. Are we both understanding how you can use (products) with these methods & get the right result?’

Connect Customers’ Thoughts & Perceptions to Value

When you help customers' integrate thoughts & perceptions with new information, they'll recognize value of your offers.

Which information can connect people to what they need &want? It’s a matter of connecting customers’ thoughts & perceptions to what will bring fulfilling options.

Consultation Example: ‘Based on your answers, this information will help you understand how these products & this plan fit your repair & prevention needs. When you finish your project, your confidence will reduce your stress.’

Lead people to turn wishes into desires & plans. Goals can feel out of reach because people don’t have accurate plans. Accurate plans are based on what’s possible with available resources.

Desires are demoted to wishes after disappointments. If people overestimate resources &/or misinterpret conditions, desired results could be unrealistic or achieved results could be impractical.

Offer Example: ‘Since discount store shoppers don’t get any guidance, it’s possible to buy products & create results that don’t prevent or solve problems. Each person specializes in something & some problems don’t fit your specialty. (Store) specializes in (results). Everybody needs a team. It’s time to prevent/solve (problem) with a team effort at (Store). Since team efforts require resources & plans, that’s what (Store) offers you to prevent/solve (problem).’

Leaders Clarify Perceptions & Challenge Thoughts

Based on your product knowledge & conditions awareness, you can help people sort through facts to find what didn’t work & why.

Misunderstood perceptions & unchallenged thoughts can become beliefs. Clarification can renew confidence.

Consultation Example: ‘Though (product A) can be adequate for similar conditions, (product B) is better for us locally. Though you used the right techniques when (product A) failed, it was like a domino that knocked the rest down. (Product B) is effective with different techniques, so let’s form another plan based on current information.’

Provide information for each step including evaluating preliminary & final results plus determining which maintenance practices are necessary & when.

Since some decisions require unfamiliar research & comparisons, people should use processes for finding necessary information & determining which sources & facts are pertinent.

Easily obtainable resources can seem sufficient to people who don’t know total possibilities.

When you help people find new resources, help them recreate conditions. Nudge people with new beginnings & different (well-chosen) resources.

Offer Example: ‘(Store) project kits are made for local conditions & customizable for your needs & desires. With new products, methods & information, you’ll create more comfort. During our consultation, we’ll identify what you need for success & make a kit for your personal project. You’ll have less stress & more success when you start your project confidently.’

Until people know consequences of actions, they won’t know what to do. After people learn about methods, they need to learn about products or vice versa. Since they might need to iterate between choosing products & planning compatible methods, people should have processes.

Comprehensive plans leave very little or nothing to chance, so people are confident enough to strive for progress. Hesitation prevents their benefits & your sales.

Since anybody is apt to make mistakes, the confidence you inspire can bring people back because they want to reduce costs & avoid costly mistakes. Even after mastering some skills, customers might hesitate about unfamiliar activities. When you & other customers show how to create results that fit needs & desires, potential benefits outweigh people’s perceived risks.

Customer integration includes helping people make optimal decisions, so they can optimize results. Stress relief begins when you help people feel comfortable because they know they have essential information.

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2021 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

Help Customers Avoid Disappointments By Managing Expectations & Results.

People might try what seemed to work well for others. It’s important to define what ‘work well’ means for people & their conditions.

Consultation Example: ‘I understand why you want similar results. Since neighbors have different factors each year, you might get different results even with the same products & methods. Let’s avoid disappointments by reviewing possible differences in your conditions & goals. Let's determine how long- & short-term results are affected by current & foreseeable positive & negative factors. After studying results & factors, we can pick products & plan methods to optimize positives & reduce negatives. When you’re confident about what to expect, you can schedule your project.’

Explain how your responsibility includes asking questions to ensure good results. When short-term results can be different than long-term results, it’s important to know which deteriorations require repairs or just mitigation. Which changes warrant corrective action & should be prioritized? Would problem preventions or solutions synergize or interfere with other efforts?

Example: Should tires be replaced individually, in pairs or all four? Brake pad replacements wouldn’t make up for worn tires not gripping pavement.

Compare goals & problems to help customers prioritize.

Since preparation is vital, there can be risks in not anticipating probable problems & opportunities.

Offer Example: ‘Though we don’t know how intense (problem) will be this year, we know it always happens, so now it’s time for planning. (Store) has what you need to prepare, so get checklists from (Store) & you’ll know which preparations are necessary & enough. Avoid wasting resources in the wrong or inadequate preparations. Based on the past, we know what doesn’t work. Be sure you use the necessary high quality products & methods, so your efforts will be enough to protect your investment in your home.’

Guidance or Advice

Even if you hesitate about giving advice, you can supply insights. You can ask questions to help individuals, plus you’ll learn for helping future customers.

Example: ‘Since you know you need a solution, what do you need to know about your options? What are your criteria for choosing your best option? These product specifications seem to indicate this is your best choice because __. Does this fit your understanding?’

When you monitor information resources, you can recommend & explain them based on customers’ criteria plus how they explain their needs. People’s explanations reveal what they need to know about problems & how to shape their perceptions.

Example: ‘Dark spots could be dirt or mold. If it’s mold you’ll find __.’

People perceive conditions based on knowledge & priorities. Knowledge influences beliefs about possibilities & priorities influence beliefs about what’s necessary.

Example: ‘Dirt is inconvenient but mold could be hazardous. If it’s mold you need to__.’

To influence what people buy, you need to influence their knowledge & priorities. Influence their knowledge by comparing conditions before & after projects. Explain why results are important, so people adjust priorities.

There’s a difference between offering products & possibilities. Important basic questions are about who, what, why, when, where & how. Products partially answer ‘What’. Possibilities involve WHY people (WHO) want/need WHAT kind of results at locations (WHERE) at particular times (WHEN) & are created with methods (HOW).

Projects can be planned after studying possibilities.

When you consult with customers, your store is integrated into their results. You need reliable product & information suppliers with compatible resources, so you can merge facts about products & conditions.

You can combine customers’ insights from consultations with information from trade groups & manufacturers.

Consultation Example: ‘Based on your answers for the question checklist, your case is like these clients’ cases. They used this information package to decide on this project. This information has insights expressing pros & cons, so you can determine what current & emerging conditions indicate about your options.’

Experiences from Effective Results

Robert Frost wrote, “Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length.”

Though duration is important, what counts more is compatibility of experiences with goals & personalities.

Try to help customers identify peak experience elements plus ways to make element combinations fit time & financial constraints. When experience goals are established, determine how much length & money would be required, so elements can be prioritized.

Consultation Example: ‘Since you have $__ & __ hours available, you need to reduce something because combining options A, B & C would cost __ & take about __ hours. Which option is like a foundation that gives your experience the most value? Should we try to keep the other options by adjusting this foundation to cost less & require less time? Would you prefer to keep this full foundation & split the other options or elements into other experiences for other times?’

Since happy experiences don’t last (except in memories), ask questions to determine what made past experiences great & what can be added.

Consultation Example: ‘Do you want to learn about creating new experiences or quickly start something that builds on what’s familiar? Are there good things you want to upgrade or replace with great things? What was barely satisfying before? What was so special you want it again? When you remember things you’ve heard or read, what would fit your goal? That can be done with (product & method). What would add sensory stimuli? What would add value to your experience & be something you’d save as a reminder or souvenir for future enjoyment? We can add __ because it’s similar to what you enjoyed & enhances __. As we check each option, we can customize benefits. You can increase your skills &/or add products. Since learning requires time, you’d need to plan a month ahead. Based on your budget & desires, do you want to boost your enjoyment a little each time or maximize it now? Based on your budget & available time, let’s plan your experience.’

Isn’t That Special?

After people define what’s special, help them define what increases satisfaction. Is it a product amount or size? Do they want certain duration of continuous experience or ability to easily restart? How do people evaluate or measure satisfaction? Can they apply that standard before implementation, so plans can be adjusted?

Offer Example: ‘Whether you're planning your vacation or a weekend, make it special. (Store) is here to help you use memories & imagination. Let’s combine great experiences in your past with new ideas. What would make your camping experiences more fulfilling? Do you want to be like frontier pioneers or space pioneers? (Store) has planning templates to guide you to include special things & eliminate disappointments. Fill in the template blanks, so (Store) can fill experiential blanks. Here are some samples: When I planned camping trips, I expected __. As experiences ended, I thought if __ happened this would’ve been the best ever. Those were the good old days because __. At (Store), let’s create your outstanding personal events by exploring what your reality is & what you want reality to be.’

Good Plans Are Better Than Great Intentions.

Consumers might only intend to do projects until they’re convinced they can do what’s necessary & beneficial.

Retailers might have great intentions when their ads are only product names with pictures & prices. Retailers & consumers don’t profit from intentions or names.

Since people want beneficial results, they need plans for using products. Since people want happy lives, offers should include planned ways to integrate products into lives to increase happiness &/or decrease unhappiness.

Compelling offers promise specific benefits with reasons to justify purchasing. People rate desirability & value of benefit descriptions in compelling offers.

Provide enough help to shape products & methods into customizable benefits.

Consultation Example: ‘We can plan a project to convert desires into benefits. To create (benefit A), we’ll use (product 1) to __. Your benefit will last longer when you maintain it with (product 2). When that’s established you’ll be ready for setting up (benefit B) with (product 3). Let’s put these product instructions together into a plan.’

It can be done with services also. Some travelers plan itineraries & others choose to be guided through fully inclusive packages. Whether people travel or create benefits at home, they venture into unfamiliar territory. Anything unfamiliar can feel threatening & unfamiliar solutions can seem more threatening than problems.

Build familiarity & value of benefits by explaining how problems cause stress & solutions bring relief.

Offer Example: ‘As (problem) increases, you’ll notice (symptoms). (Problem) affects life quality by __. Cheap products can reduce (symptoms) without solving the whole problem. (Store) has kits for you to stop & prevent (problem) instead of struggling to reduce (symptoms) month after month. These kits are for eliminating problems & reducing your stress. When problems are gone, you can protect your health plus invest time, energy & money in things you enjoy.’

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2021 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/

Make Your Business the Definitive Source for Certain Results

Analogy: Since fuel is necessary for progress to destinations, gas stations are common along highways. Consider your inventory & information as fuel & roads for clients’ progress in achieving goals.

Customer integration focuses on what people need to complete their current stages, prepare for future stages &/or avoid losing progress.

Service stations were common & offered fuel, maintenance checks, repairs, snacks & beverages, so people could travel with minimal disruptions. People were confident they wouldn’t be stranded.

Now since vehicles are less apt to require emergency repairs during trips, full service stations are less common. Convenience stores & automotive technicians (in separate businesses) have replaced most service stations & mechanics.

Have you adjusted your business model & marketing based on current consumers’ needs & desires? How do you assure people they can pursue happiness goals without feeling stranded? How do you help people avoid disruptions?

How Much Certainty Can You Create or Restore?

Since it’s hard for overwhelmed people to think of whole processes, they focus on individual steps. Without deep knowledge of conditions & products, people might not know how to integrate all project steps for full benefits.

Though integration is their responsibility, your job includes helping customers coordinate integration.

When you show you understand people’s stress from internal & external needs, it’s easier to believe you have solutions. People want benefits (stress relief) & ignore ads that just push products.

Think about what causes stress & compare two approaches. 1) ‘I understand you’re stressed because __. My offer relieves it by (explanation).’ 2) ‘Aspirin $4 per bottle’

Offer Benefits Including Certainty

Successful marketing can depend on determining reasons for stress. Since uncertainty can feel like being stranded, it brings stress.

Develop empathetic offers for levels of uncertainty: 1) People think something is wrong but don’t have enough information. 2) They found symptoms but haven’t diagnosed problems. 3) They identified problems, but don’t know how to eliminate & prevent causes. 4) They’re aware of various products, but don’t know how to choose or use the best options. 5) With limited money & multiple problems, people need to prioritize & solve the most urgent problem.

Explain causes & effects plus whether effects cause secondary problems since those could warrant high priority.

Since problem categories have ranges of specific problems, offer diagnostics to ease customers’ uncertainty, so they can think clearly about options.

If people are confused about problems, they’ll be less confident about potential solutions. If there are multiple potential solutions, match options with people’s desires.

Since people have personal reasons for wanting results, your offers should help people fulfill physical & psychological goals. Assure customers they can finish projects without feeling stuck (stranded) at any step.

Example: ‘Plants are great for many reasons, so (Store) has a variety & offers guidance to pick the right plants for the right places & great effects. Let’s consult about your needs & desires. Let’s review which plants & support products will give you natural benefits & bring you joy. (Store) has guidelines & checklists to help you evaluate soil, sunlight, square footage, water requirements, plus important factors many people don’t know. Ask for a checklist, so you can start in May.’

Since it seems anything can go wrong at any time, full preparedness seems impossible. When people are barely juggling issues, another issue causes others to crash.

Since people can’t prepare for every unexpected problem, help reduce current & imminent problems, so unexpected problems won’t be as disruptive.

If you can’t block future issues, help people stay in control by offering maintenance. Example: ‘Since another problem seems too much, (Store) offers (product) to keep (machine) in top condition. Be ready for winter weather.’

When you know about local conditions & product durability, you can assure customers about solutions.

Offer Example: ‘Be sure you use the best products for the best results by combining your knowledge of your goals & conditions with product knowledge at (Store). Don’t let winter weather prevent (benefit). Get the service & product quality you deserve at (Store) instead of being ignored at discount stores. Confidence in results starts with confidence in products from (Store).’

Confidence in Results plus Self-confidence

Since problem solving is a general goal, it’s important to help people form practical desires. People might be unsure what they want because they don’t know what they can do.

Review options with materials & information (including tutorials) to find people’s comfort levels. After asking what people are comfortable with, introduce unfamiliar products & methods while explaining benefits plus providing instructions.

When people refine & match comfort levels & desires, they can choose project results they can create.

Learn from customers how to help people maintain comfort at each step. Ask how customers managed comfort & discomfort levels through all project steps including planning. What inspired their comfort & confidence? What caused discomfort & uncertainty? What decreased discomfort & uncertainty?

Since people want to avoid mistakes, ask about misunderstandings & what went wrong.

Since people don’t want to waste time, ask what they would consider a waste time. Example: If total solutions aren't practical, how much problem reduction can you offer? Would customers consider that reduction level be worth the price?

If people aren’t sure what would increase their confidence, suggest examples: Tutorials & in-person lessons can make products & methods more familiar. Are there hobby groups (like master gardeners) who help each other?

Some steps don’t seem hard until people start. Encourage people to ask for help whenever necessary because instructions might seem clear until people start implementation. ‘Anytime you feel stuck, call for clarification.’

Ask how much challenge people want. If people just want results without challenges, project kits can have some assemblies completed. Reduce pressure for perfection, so novices will be comfortable.

Win Formation & Information

Winning requires preventing & mitigating problems, plus reducing risks. Realistic people aren’t pessimists because it’s important to consider potential problems.

Offer Example: ‘Boating is very popular now, so (store) has (equipment) plus instructions for safe transportation & fun. (Store) supports enthusiasm & encourages safety. Whether you go out cruising, fishing or for other purposes, (store) has dependable equipment plus information & products to be sure your equipment will be dependable for years.’

Even when people know problems are happening or will happen, some procrastinate because they don’t know how to prioritize or how to do the right things.

Analogy: Problems can feel like swamps full of alligators. Britt's problem is crossing a swamp (obstacle), where alligators (risks) live. Britt needs a safe way to get something from the other side. Britt is vulnerable in a low, slow row boat.

Air boats don’t have underwater parts & are faster than alligators. Motor boats can get stuck. Air boats reduce exposures but don’t eliminate risks.

As a full service retailer, fulfill customers' desires & needs by eliminating problems or reducing exposures. Evaluate conditions to find obstacles & risks.

After asking about customers’ perceived vulnerabilities, obstacles & risks, research what did & could interfere with effectiveness & efficiency of solutions.

Consultation Example: ‘Current conditions are __, so you need __. As conditions change, you’ll need __. At minimum, you need (Product A) because you said __. (Product B) is ideal because you’ll need to prevent __. Product instructions provide good methods; let’s combine those methods into a plan.’

Help Customers Build Self-Confidence

Remember how confident you feel about mentors who help you build self-confidence? You can be a mentor for projects or long-term. Inspire people’s confidence in you by offering improved results.

Offer Example: ‘Discount store products produce temporary results. (Store) will save you energy, time & money with long-term results. Project kits reduce frustration because you’ll know what to do & expect step-by-step. With an hour in (Store), you’ll have what you need instead of starting & stopping your project to shop for supplies for each step. Before you begin, let’s review project instructions, so you’ll know which skills you need to learn without any obligation to buy kits.’

People might need to progress incrementally because of financial, time &/or skill limits. You can help people develop practical projects based on needs & limits, so people only start what they can finish quickly.

What has shaken customers’ confidence? Were they just gaining some control when something went wrong? Do people think control of certain causes & effects is always out of reach? Do they define control as mitigating problems or total elimination?

You need to know what people believe when you offer solutions. Do people think they can manage & mitigate problems? Do they believe causes &/or effects can be eliminated?

To influence people’s intentions, you need to lead people’s beliefs. Would a trial offer be enough for noticeable preliminary benefits? Would trial offer preliminary benefits inspire confidence? Do you have testimonials & case studies to use as social proof plus tutorials?

Confidence in results is important after purchases, so people return to you for more confidence when they need future results.

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2021 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.

When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here- https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/