How to Coach Yourself and Others How to Influence, Persuade and Motivate | Page 259

1. Deadlines. Give your prospects a deadline or a point of no return.
We all operate on deadlines at home and in our businesses. They
are what cause us to take action. If there is no immediate reason
to take action now, we won't. Many people don't pay their bills
until they have to. Judging by the lines outside the post office at
midnight on April 15th, most of us don't pay our taxes until the
last possible second. No deadline means no action.
2. Limited Space, Numbers, or Access. If your prospect feels like they
are competing for a limited resource, they will be much more
motivated to take action. When people fear they're going to miss
out on a great deal, they feel an urgency to act. Think of shoppers
at closeout sales. They've got to speed over there and check things
out before all the stuff is "picked over." Otherwise, with the
store's limited supplies, they'll miss the deal forever! This limit
can also include access to information. Our response to banned
information is a greater desire to receive that information and a
more favorable outlook toward it than we had before the ban was
set in place.[17]
3. Potential Loss. Prospects must recognize that they might be
limited in their actions if they don't take advantage of your offer.
People will always overvalue the thing you are restricting. Create
a state of emotion in which your prospect fears the loss. This is an
overwhelming feeling they won't be able to ignore. Motivated by
restriction, this prospect becomes an emotionally motivated
buyer. They will not be denied. The more you deny them, the
more energy you give to your cause. You have denied their right
to something, so they'll do anything to have it. I can recall
occasions when I tried to talk people out of purchasing a certain
product because I honestly felt it was not appropriate. The more I
took the product away, the more they wanted it. Think about all
those sweepstakes messages that say, "You may already be a
winner!" They used to say, "You can be a winner!" but the notion
that you may already be a winner spoke even more loudly! Do
you think people can throw away such an envelope without even
opening it just to check and make sure? With the change in
slogan, the sweepstakes company e