I’m walking through Wal-Mart, and something catches my eye.
It’s a CD, the latest release from a favorite artist of mine (heavy rock, thank you very much). The slipcover is cool, the artist’s picture draws me, and I pick up the case, flipping it over to scan the titles quickly.
Five minutes later, and I’m forking over a fast twenty bucks for a CD I don’t need and didn’t come to the store to buy in the first place.
But that’s okay. I’m not buying a CD – not really. I’m buying a cool moment in the car, all by myself, with nothing but the open road ahead of me and full control of the stereo system. I’m buying a half hour or so of peace. (Alright, well, not really peace. It’s more like heavy, thumping music and guitar licks to die for while the singer blasts me with a growling voice.)
I’m buying freedom, that feeling of being a rebel for just a little while. I’m buying an emotion, not a music CD.
So the next time you start negotiating with a buyer for your work, ask yourself what he’s really buying.
Trust me, it isn’t your content.
I don’t count myself out of consumers. But even if is that so ”I DO NOT BEHAVE LIKE ANY OTHER CONSUMER, BELIEVE ME”. I grew up in an environment where by I had to clean my eyes&ears before having my choice
I’m not worth what other people price me for. I’ve my value&cost if I want to stage in the market. Being caught up between your appreciation and the real cost of the items that you liked that is another business between you and the sells man.
Ntarugera François
This is all fine and dandy for those with disposable income, who can afford to let emotions rule their decisions and their pocketbooks. But for those of us who meticulously and carefully brood over every dollar like an over-protective mother; who can barely afford the basic needs of living in this overpriced, commercialized, insincere capitalistic world, let alone the creature comforts of “discretionary spending” or “leisure” – we will continue to view marketing with our detached, cynical eye, much as we view political wrangling or pop culture entertainment; sometimes amusing; often bland, and always from another world; disconnected from the reality of our lives.
Spot on, James. It’s not really about features. It’s all about benefits. It’s the “what’s in it for me,” thing on an emotional and/or primal level.
I was just reading an article by David Parrish on GraphicDefine.org about this. He wrote:
“Tom Peters quotes the Harley Davidson executive who said: ‘What we sell is the ability for a 43 year old accountant to dress in black leather, ride through small towns and have people be afraid of him.’ A naive observer might think they sell motorbikes.”
To jlb:
I believe what James was trying to get across is similar to the above. Whether it’s a necessary item or a decadent creature comfort, we buy based on what something provides us. It might be as basic as nourishment or as lofty as prestige or power. The priciple is the same.