The Business Of What If
We’ve all been there.
You find the seemingly perfect pair of pants to go with the equally perfect blouse amidst the clearance rack and you’re convinced it’s a match made in heaven. The stars are pointing to this purchase and you can almost feel it in your bones as you caress the fabric and awe at how such a fabulous piece as this could still be on the shelf. After a few bursts of excitement, you gather your giddiness and, like any respectable consumer, go to the dressing room to try them on. What happens next is the stuff of nightmares.
As you undress, eager to see this found masterpiece grace you with all its grandeur, the mirror comes into focus. Suddenly, every indent, scar, wrinkle, under-eye bag, stray hair, muffin bit, jaundice pigment and blemish is in the spotlight of fluorescent horror. But how? I checked before I left the house! I could have sworn I looked alright! Have I gained weight?
Standing there, looking like the frumpiest contestant on Project Runway, you do damage control. Maybe if you bought a cardigan to go over top, the lines would smooth out. Perhaps a colorful necklace to take the attention away from the absurd hemline. Wait! Could you just find it in a different color?
As a copywriter, I’m in the business of selling products. It’s my job to get people interested enough to reach the point of sale. Seems easy enough, right? The funny thing about that is, it’s not.
Our industry is the equivalent of being a psychologist treating a million patients. Figuring out how best to go about “treating” their “needs” is all in a day’s work and has been since the dawn of advertising, but 21st century consumers are smarter. They’ve learned to rationalize their spending.
To put it in perspective, take any one thing you’re interested in purchasing. Could be a hotel getaway, a nice meal at a fancy restaurant or even that designer pair of pants. Chances are it’s too expensive, too far away, or doesn’t come in your size. But does that stop you from thinking about it?
To be a good copywriter, you need to be an expert in manipulating the “what if” mentality. If you can get customers to keep the product in their minds long enough to have them visualize it being even remotely possible to obtain, you’re on the right track. If they end up buying it, go ahead and call yourself Don Draper.
What I mean to say is today’s faulty economy makes it rough for those of us making a living trying to sell. I’ve found the best approach is to really get inside the head of your buyer. Become that psychologist. See your target audiences as human beings and your writing will become more human too. This sort of out-of-the-box, personally relatable content will at least get them thinking. Granted sometimes I do have my reservations about telling people to get drunk and take a road trip, but hey, I have to make money to think about buying things too.