How to sell your Mafia Offer - Part 1

Part 1: Some background

Which magazine do you think men are more likely to buy:

a men’s health magazine with the cover, “Lose Your Gut Fast” or
a similar magazine with the cover, “Get Six Pack Abs”?

One study showed that over 80% of men chose the first cover – “Lose Your Gut Fast.” Why?
People are more interested in avoiding (or reducing) pain than they are in increasing pleasure.

The Austrian economist, Ludwig von Mises, once said that three requirements must be present for an individual to change:

• The individual must be dissatisfied with the current state of affairs.
  
• They must see a better state.
  
• They must believe that they can reach that better state.

That last point is critical as it relates to the “gut” issue. When someone is 20 pounds overweight, as many Americans are, six pack abs may be desirable but seem inconceivable. I sometimes joke that I would be happy with a “two-pack.” Only when your gut is gone will the idea of six pack abs seem like a possibility.

{The above is part of an article from Stephen Shapiro’s August 7, 2007 newsletter titled "How to Change Your Results by Changing Your Language" and is a nice summary of the data in this field of study -- Framing.)

In Part 2, we will discuss how this has influenced how we present or frame our mafia offer using the Solution for Sales technique.

Here's to Maximizing YOUR Profits!

Dr Lisa Lang