[A monthly article written
to help you get more people to buy—or buy in.]Closely related to
reputation, credibility is at the heart of business success. As well as
a great product or service, you have to be credible. So when you say
"money-back guarantee" or "we have the best customer service," you will
be believed.
This issue came to mind when I received a newsletter from a potential
supplier recently. It contained a statistic that I made me stop and
wonder.
The newsletter stated—with some authority, I might add—that "the
40/40/20 rule of direct-response marketing says that the success of a
campaign is based 40 percent on targeting the right audience, 40 percent
on the offer you make, and 20 percent on your creative execution."
On the surface, that sounds reasonable, but being a writer of direct
response marketing, I was surprised that I had never heard of this
"rule."
I queried the author who told me that many years ago, a fellow named
Ed Mayer came up with it. She called Mr. Mayer a "leading authority."
As it turns out, his 40/40/20 "rule" was actually a theory. In other
words, he thought it to be true but had no hard facts or research to
back it up.
So, in fact, there is no such "rule," despite what the supplier
stated in her newsletter.
Another example: A book on marketing
recently stated that a customer will tell friends and family about a bad
experience at least 15 times. It also stated that it's fives time more
expensive to find a new client than it is to keep one.
Again,
these likely have some truth in them. However, when the author was
queried, she stated, "I've seen/heard/read these two nuggets more times
than I can count. I consider them to be akin to the tablets Moses
brought down the mountain. I have accepted them as legitimate and have
adopted them as truth."
Many people believe in urban myths, too.
It doesn't make them true.
So, what's the big deal? Well, it's discomforting to know that she
depends on that kind of junk science to make business decisions or
recommendations to clients.
Now I find myself questioning everything she says because her
credibility—and her reputation—is now suspect. Worse? It may have cost
her a potential client.
Does your marketing material contain junk science?
