"Selling the Dream" - The Difference Between Planting vs Reinforcing

22 replies
I understand that some of you may think I'm splitting hairs or trying to make marketing more complex than it needs to be. I accept that criticism and suggest this concept may not be important to your marketing ... yet.

But I believe there will come a time if you stay with online marketing that you will recognize just how powerful this simple truth really is and begin using it to help bolster your conversions.

Most have heard the phrase "selling the dream" and many successful marketers understand and use the principle daily. "Selling the dream" encompasses a lot of other marketing cliches, if you will, like story telling, selling the sizzle, evangelism, reasons why, sympathizing, sharing the pain, and on and on and on.

Of course the basic idea is to market in a way that helps the prospect see her/himself enjoying the benefits of your product even before they make their purchase. So you show the prospect just how happy, satisfied, fulfilled, beautiful, wealthy, or appealing they will be after the purchase and use of your product.

Selling the dream works. It has been proven time and again. But in my experience, I have found that it works a lot better when the marketer reinforces the dream that the prospect already has opposed to planting the dream in the prospect's mind when it is not there already or when it is sleeping in the subconscious somewhere.

This makes sense, doesn't it? People who are already dreaming about some benefit, IMO, will be anxiously receptive to a well written marketing message that simply reinforces their dream and brings it to the forefront right now with your offer. This same type of anxious reception is not always found in a prospect (for example) that when confronted with your weight loss offer, all of a sudden decides, "yes, I do need to lose some weight ... someday." I contend, the difference between planting the dream initially and reinforcing the dream that's already growing (stoking the fire, if you will) can be quite significant.

The marketing bottom line is this:
  • Look for audiences where you can target prospects who are already dreaming vs those where you must first plant the idea,
  • Focus in your sales offer on throwing wood (or gasoline) on the fire rather than trying to persuade the prospect that he/she really does need your product,
  • Understand the niche market so you can appeal to prospects in unique ways that are not being pushed by your competitors - this can add new life and new features to "the dream" for the prospect and your brand will be associated with this new excitement,
  • Reinforcing is not convincing the prospect that your product is right for him - it's more about showing the prospect that his current dreams are achievable with your offer - and it begins right now!
  • Anyone can use this principle in any market and with any product or service where selling the dream makes sense. Great copywriters can do this for you. New or inexperienced copywriters may not yet understand the principle.
  • Dream reinforcing will increase your conversions because it helps those close to making a purchase decision to go over the edge, take the plunge, or pull the trigger (hit the "buy" button).
  • Dream planting often requires a "growing season" to cultivate and mature the prospect (which can be OK if you plan to nurture the prospect) but it's not the same as helping the prospect pull the trigger on today's offer!
I hope maybe these thoughts will give you some new ideas about how you can market more effectively.

The very best to all of you,

Steve
#difference #planting #reinforcing #selling the dream
  • Profile picture of the author Brent Stangel
    Look for audiences where you can target prospects who are already dreaming vs those where you must first plant the idea,
    That's why I like search engine advertising so much. It's like it was designed to accommodate your above statement.
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  • Profile picture of the author Gary Chapple
    You must have studied John Caples & Gary Halbert actually I thought Joe Karbo was good too, totally agree.
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    • Profile picture of the author myob
      This marketing concept seems to be a lost art among much of the online community. It was (and still is) being used for many decades by insurance, real estate, stock market, automotive sales people, etc. Tapping into the dreams and internal narrative of targeted prospects planted by the competition beats competitors all-to-hell.
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    • Profile picture of the author Steve B
      Originally Posted by Gary Chapple View Post

      You must have studied John Caples & Gary Halbert actually I thought Joe Karbo was good too, totally agree.

      Gary,

      Now you're going really deep into the archives ...

      But you are right. Anyone can profit from studying any or all three of these legends you mentioned. I still have Karbo's little green paperback The Lazy Man's Way to Riches that I bought by mail order because his offer was so reinforcing of my dream to make good money. It's kind of a "hypey" title, but well worth the read for any marketer. You can still find copies (mostly used) of it if you search.

      Thanks for your comment.

      Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author dburk
    Hi Steve,

    You seemed to have come up with a very long-winded way to say:

    It's easier to target existing market demand than to create new market space.
    If that's what you are saying, I agree, this is a well established principle in marketing.

    Cheers.

    p.s. I hope someone was paying you by the word count.
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    • Profile picture of the author Steve B
      Originally Posted by dburk View Post

      You seemed to have come up with a very long-winded way to say ...

      Don,

      Not exactly. As I mentioned in my post, some will think I'm "trying to make marketing more complex than it needs to be." That seems to be your reaction.

      Marketing to demand is kind of a cliche that, while true, doesn't really differentiate prospect readiness for dream realization. Selling the dream through reinforcement falls under the umbrella of marketing to demand certainly, but it is much more specific about how to focus or target your message directly to dreamers sitting on the edge of the "buy" decision. To me, at least, that is a lot more specific than demand marketing.

      Thanks for your comment.

      Steve

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      • Profile picture of the author myob
        Originally Posted by Steve B View Post

        Selling the dream through reinforcement falls under the umbrella of marketing to demand certainly, but it is much more specific about how to focus or target your message directly to dreamers sitting on the edge of the "buy" decision.
        This may indeed seem like a subtle differentiation, but it also just may be the "razor's edge" in some hotly competitive niches.

        Back in the day (long before the internet), salespeople called this "pushing all the right hot buttons". Joe Karbo (author of The Lazy Man's Way to Riches) was an early master of this technique.
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    • Profile picture of the author discrat
      Originally Posted by dburk View Post

      Hi Steve,

      You seemed to have come up with a very long-winded way to say:



      If that's what you are saying, I agree, this is a well established principle in marketing.

      Cheers.

      p.s. I hope someone was paying you by the word count.
      Yes, but remember their have been trailblazers who have come up with markets/niches or solution to problems that people did not even know they had.

      This is not as unusual as some want to let on.

      Of course for many of us we would just soon meet the demands of niches that are already established and a make healthy income that way

      It's all about priorities in your life and what you want out of that life


      - Robert Andrew
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      • Profile picture of the author dburk
        Originally Posted by discrat View Post

        Yes, but remember their have been trailblazers who have come up with markets/niches or solution to problems that people did not even know they had.

        This is not as unusual as some want to let on.

        Of course for many of us we would just soon meet the demands of niches that are already established and a make healthy income that way

        It's all about priorities in your life and what you want out of that life


        - Robert Andrew
        Hi Robert,

        I think I get what you are saying.

        I did not intend to suggest that we shouldn't be innovators. I am all for innovation in products and services, and even in ideas. I was just pointing out that from my perspective it seemed to be a repackaging of a well known principle in marketing.

        It seems to me to be one of the most elemental concepts of marketing: "Speak to the heart of the audience, in the language of the audience, about what matters to the audience."

        Looking at it strictly from a marketing viewpoint, it seemed to me that Steve's post was describing a couple of the most common strategic approaches, marketing to existing demand, verses generating demand. These are not new ideas.

        The two contrasting approaches, as described by Steve, appeared to me to be a repackaging of some well know tenets of marketing. And, I have no problem with the idea of repackaging of well known ideas. I was just pointing out that it seemed, in my opinion, to be very familiar.

        Your reply seems to cross over into the idea of product/service innovation, which is an entirely different topic.

        The basic ideas behind Steve's topic has been central to most marketing approaches for the past 150 years. With many books, and much doctrine, these ideas are well established in the Advertising industry, where these specific tactics are most often implemented.

        I was just pointing out that there is much already written on the topic, including when one approach might work better than the other.

        @Steve B,

        I did not intend to imply that you were "trying to make marketing more complex than it needs to be", marketing is very complex all on it's own.

        I did accuse you of being less succinct than you could have been on this well worn topic. I'm sorry for being critical, I just felt like I had to read quite a lot of words to understand the point that you were trying to make.

        I am certainly not an expert "author", I'm just a lowly advertising copywriter, so I welcome critiques of my ideas and how I express them. It was in this vain that I shared my critique. I guess the idea that there is always room for improvement is ingrained in this business and in my own clumsy way I was trying to point this out. I wouldn't have bothered to mention it to you if I didn't think you were someone capable of doing better. It was meant as a backhanded compliment, which if you knew me, is about as good as it gets from a jaded old fart like me.

        Don Burk
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  • Profile picture of the author Haider45
    Banned
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  • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
    Although Robert Collier is a bit of a hero with the woo-woo crowd, he did come up with a classic quote that many marketers and advertising gurus are fond of citing: "Always enter the conversation already taking place in the customer's mind."

    This approach is more subtle than simply targeting existing demand - it's more like helping the prospect make the decision.

    Steve lists some good, practical suggestions for doing that.
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  • Profile picture of the author DWolfe
    Here is a download to the original The Lazy Man's Way to Riches - http://www.what-is-coaching.com/supp...way2riches.pdf

    I stumble apron this version on google looking for the book to see what it costs. Their is an update version on Amazon via Dr. Nixon but have no idea if the update is any good.

    Great Post Steve
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    • Profile picture of the author myob
      Originally Posted by DWolfe View Post

      Here is a download to the original The Lazy Man's Way to Riches - http://www.what-is-coaching.com/supp...way2riches.pdf

      I stumble apron this version on google looking for the book to see what it costs. Their is an update version on Amazon via Dr. Nixon but have no idea if the update is any good.

      Great Post Steve
      I highly recommend getting the updated version - available on Amazon Kindle. Also, get "The Robert Collier Letter Book". Much of Robert Collier's work was behind the inspiration for Karbo's classic.

      This combination contains time-proven principles of powerful advertising and will provide a deeper practical insight into writing ad copy and other content which tugs on heartstrings.
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  • Profile picture of the author Sid Hale
    This was GREAT, Steve.

    While I know all of this... I find it difficult to put into practice (I'm definitely NOT a copywriter).

    If it's OK with you, I'm going to copy/paste this into a document somewhere on my hard drive, so I can pull it up easily every time I find myself writing copy.

    My only critique (FWIW) is that this point might have been given more emphasis.

    Focus in your sales offer on throwing wood (or gasoline) on the fire rather than trying to persuade the prospect that he/she really does need your product

    To that end, I re-wrote it as follows:

    Focus in your sales offer on throwing wood (or gasoline) on the fire rather than trying to light a campfire with wet kindling, on a cold night, in the pouring rain


    Thanks much!
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  • Profile picture of the author Rory Singh
    Focus in your sales offer on throwing wood (or gasoline) on the fire rather than trying to persuade the prospect that he/she really does need your product
    I never persuade anyone to buy anything no matter how good I feel my product is. I actually put content out daily in a certain way that gives people some form of value. Some folks resonate with something I said (or how I said it) and my sales are usually made before someone hits my sales video.

    Note I am not saying that everyone who sees my stuff online buys but X amount of them do.

    And doing things this way (for me personally) has increased conversions with less traffic and leads.

    Very thought provoking post Steve. Thanks for sharing.
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  • Profile picture of the author WordpressArmy
    Makes a lot of sense... our audiences are comprised of people with different interests, motivations, likes and dislikes.

    The results to our marketing efforts would definitely be a lot more if we could correctly define this audience and motivate them to spend their money NOW!
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  • Profile picture of the author DURABLEOILCOM
    Steve thank you for taking the time and effort to share your words of wisdom. Selling is an art form that takes mastery to perfect.
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  • Profile picture of the author Pat H
    Nice discussion on the distinction between planting and reinforcing dreams - makes sense. Thanks!
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  • Profile picture of the author MortonHill
    Stevs thoughts definitely makes a lot of sense! It is important to realize that there is a great difference between reinforcing dreams and actually planting them.
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  • Profile picture of the author Joyce Birmingham
    It's usually said that we need to find a hungry market...
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  • Profile picture of the author Andrew Hurst
    Interesting read. I've spent much time considering dreamonomics.
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  • Profile picture of the author stephenm44
    Useful reflections - makes sense. Thanks for that.
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  • Profile picture of the author ZachMiller
    Great thread.. it's true..

    You have to focus on the client/customer that wants & desires your services and what you offer..

    When you find people who have a need, and you can fill it.. you'll always have business..
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