The Facts Are No Longer Enough

The speed of life is shortening the window consumers have for analysis.  Nowadays people are so overloaded with information, resources, and options,  they no longer take the time they once did to evaluate every option – especially online.

People are moving so fast that they really don’t have (say- take) the time to think.  They’re so busy clicking, tweeting, sharing, and liking that they are conditioned to move quickly to the next thing for the slightest reason.

We now consume so much information so quickly that we’ve learned how to make snapshot judgments of even the most important things in our lives.  That’s why most marketing material, most advertisements, and most websites just don’t work.  They’re built with the best of intentions – to give the consumer the facts they need to make a good decision.  But what they overlook is the fact that you have about 6 seconds to capture the attention of your audience or they’re gone.

The natural reaction of marketers is to try and solve the problem by digging their heels even deeper – providing more, better, facts and data which only makes the problem worse.

The good news is that you can actually use this to your advantage.  The trick is changing from facts to feelings.

You’ve heard that a picture is worth a thousand words.  If that is true, which it is, then each word the picture invokes in the mind brings with it a volume of facts, feelings, emotions, and experiences by way of the connotations connected to them.

A glance at a carefully constructed photo, series of photos, or video intro can communicate volumes and invoke feelings that will instantly capture the attention of the viewer and often form an emotional bond with you or your people.

The bottom line is that if you first make them think, you’ve lost them.  If you want someone to act, first you have to make them feel.