People are procrastinators. That’s why the limited-time offer remains one of the most effective direct marketing techniques in the known universe.

It’s not an insult to call your prospects and customers procrastinators. It’s just true. I readily admit that I procrastinate. And I’ll bet you do too.

After all, making decisions takes effort. And every day forces us to make an endless series of decisions. What will we wear? What will we eat? What will we buy for that birthday? Will we go to the beach or the mountains for vacation? Which school will our kids attend? Will we say yes to the party invitation? Should we apply for that new job? Can we afford the new car?

Your customers live busy lives. They’re stressed and tired. And they don’t want to put any more effort into making a decision about your product or service than they have to. If they can put it off, they will. And that means a lost opportunity for them and a lost sale for you.

The limited-time offer provides the perfect solution. Psychologists and sales people know that if you give people a yes or no decision to make, it’s more likely to turn out in your favor if it’s made quickly. And the best way to force a quick decision is to limit the time available.

In addition, people don’t like to miss out on a good thing. They’re hardwired to avoid loss, even if it’s just the loss of an opportunity to get a great deal.

So, while “Save 25%” is an attractive offer, “Save 25% — Offer ends Tuesday” is more likely to prompt a purchase.

Assuming I’ve convinced you that limited-time offers are a good thing, here are three tips for getting the most from this technique:

Highlight the end date. Don’t hide the date in tiny legal mumbo jumbo. Make sure people see it. Call attention to it with bold text, a bright color, an underline, or box. A time limit only works if people know about it, so you can’t be subtle about how it appears in your ads.

Use command language. Never be shy about telling people what you want them to do. Tell them to “call today,” “reply now,” “order immediately,” or “register online.” This is sometimes referred to as the “call to action” and helps emphasize the urgency of your time limit.

You might even add the word “hurry” to help connect the end date with the call to action. “Hurry! Call today. This offer ends on March 15.”

Stick to it. If you say that your offer ends on July 7, mean it. When July 8 rolls around, it’s over. If customers learn that your offers don’t really end on the specified date, they’ll stop responding.

For example, I’ve purchased several audio products from a company that incessantly offers deep discounts. Their ads and catalogs scream a time limit to these offers, but when the time expires I know I can still get the deal on their website. Or I can just wait to hear from them again, because I’ve learned they’ll just extend the deadline.

Do I still order their products? Yes, but not as often. Why should I respond now when I know I can place an order anytime and get the special deal?

If you’re looking for a way to improve the response to your ads, try a time limit. It costs you nothing and it’s proven to work.

I’m not a big sports fan.

However, my wife decided to invite her family over for dinner, totaling 12 adults, 2 babies, a 5-year-old, and a clowder of cats.

So, around day 3, after one of the babies peed on our new sofa, the refrigerator broke down, and every square inch of our house was covered with food, diapers, and suitcases, I suddenly became interested in getting out of the house to see a hockey game.

Go figure.

Along with another family member who needed to escape for a few hours, I drove down to see the local minor league hockey team play a regional rival.

The first two periods saw our team down by three points. Then, in the third period, in
a burst of explosive energy, our boys started fighting their way back.

The crowd began screaming. Clapping their hands. Stomping their feet. Taunting the opposing team’s goalie. Thousands of people were suddenly functioning as one. And oddly enough, though I’m generally not given to such displays, I found myself screaming and clapping and stomping right along with everyone else.

What happened?

The Rule of Social Proof

Why did I begin acting that way when it’s very clearly not in my nature to do so? Simple. Because everyone else was doing it. So many others were doing it, in fact, and doing it so loudly, I found it impossible to just sit there.

And that’s the Rule of Social Proof in a nutshell.

All of us look to others to help us decide how to act, to guide our behavior, to determine whether something is right or wrong. The more people doing it, the more correct it seems.

We do it on the highway. We merge right when we see cars ahead of us merging right.

We do it at the office. We use the same inane jargon and laugh at the same lame jokes.

We do it at parties. We dress like everyone else and have a drink in hand if others do.

We’re all driven in so many ways to conform. But, as with all the principles of influence, this isn’t a bad thing, because as a smart marketer, you can use this knowledge to your advantage.

After all, why do you think bartenders salt their tip jar? Telethon hosts read the names of those who call in a pledge? Bar owners keep people waiting in long lines outside?

Because of the Rule of Social Proof. If others are doing it, it must be the right thing to do. And because it works!

Why does Social Proof work like this? Because Social Proof is what psychologists call a “decision heuristic,” a shortcut for making decisions. Life is too complicated to carefully evaluate every element of every situation, so we learn to take shortcuts to help us make what are usually reasonable and reliable decisions.

It’s a sound, logical adaptive behavior, after all. It’s mathematically justified: The more people who do something, the more likely it is correct, or at least relatively safe. Not always, but for most things it works with a high degree of reliability.

And when you understand the rule, you can trigger it at will to generate a “Yes” response to your marketing offers and calls to action.

Putting Social Proof to Work

Now for the nuts and bolts. To put the rule to work for you, just follow this logic: Most people are imitators. So, if you want someone to do something, show others doing it.

Here are a few specific applications of this idea:

• List testimonials of satisfied customers and clients. (Tried and true.)
• Feature testimonials by those who have been “converted” from another product or service. (Converts are always more believable than typical customers.)
• Show pictures of people using your product or service. (Seeing is believing.)
• Relay case histories of some of your best customers or clients. (Studies show that tangible case histories can be more effective than impressive statistics.)
• Show people similar to your prospect using your product or service. (The more similar the more effective.)
• Show the general excitement of others who have discovered your product or service. (Popularity and enthusiasm: an unbeatable emotional wallop.)
• Mention how long your company has been around. (A subtle indication of popularity.)
• Tout the number of products sold. (Ditto.)
• Display the number of customers or clients you serve. (McDonald’s built an empire by displaying on their signs a running count of customers served.)
• Warn customers about limited product due to demand. (Popularity plus scarcity, another principle we’ll discuss.)
• Announce the speed of your sales due to demand. (Adds urgency.)
• Say how long your product or service has been a best-seller. (Says popularity and quality.)
• Cite information on your market leadership. (Being first or tops in your market is unbeatable.)
• Indicate the seasonal demand of your product or service. (Encourages early orders.)
• Show important or well-known people using your product or service. (Invokes the “halo” effect, adding the good feeling people have toward the celebrity to your offer.)
• Display a seal of approval by a rating organization. (Puts an official stamp on public approval.)
• Cite favorable reviews. (Third-party information is always powerful.)
• Cite mentions in the media. (Newsworthy products and services are more trusted.)
• Associate your product or service with respected magazines: “As seen in XYZ Magazine.” (A very public approval of your product or service.)
• Associate your product or service with respected media: “As seen on TV.” (Ditto.)

You don’t have to memorize a list like this. Just remember to ask yourself, “What is the most tangible and relevant way to show how my product or service is popular?”

You’ve probably heard the expression, “People don’t want drills. They want holes.”

This is a reminder that benefits outweigh features. While this is good advice for creating more effective advertising and marketing messages, it’s not the whole story.

Top advertising and marketing pros have long known that people are less interested in having possessions than they are in having the benefits of possessions.

But the word “benefits” implies a utilitarian approach to buying things. It sounds as if people are always on the lookout for practical ways to solve problems.

Unfortunately, people just aren’t that rational. Apart from basic necessities, most purchases are discretionary. We buy things we want, but don’t necessarily need.

I’ve written about the motivations for buying, but an article at Psyblog got me thinking about this in a new and simpler way.

The article cites research that shows buying experiences make people happier than buying possessions. The author gives three reasons for this:

1. Experiences improve with time (possessions don’t).
When you buy a pair of shoes, all you have is a pair of shoes. But when you buy a Caribbean cruise, you have a memory that gets more pleasant every time you think or talk about it. The cruise is abstract and can take on symbolic meaning.

2. Experiences are resistant to unfavorable comparisons.
If you buy a big screen TV and later learn that your neighbor has an even bigger screen TV, you can easily become unhappy with your purchase. But it’s much more difficult to compare the joy you get from woodworking to your neighbor’s joy. Experiences are unique in a way that possessions are not.

3. Experiences have more social value.
Experiences tend to increase social relationships, which are related to happiness. They are also more acceptable topics of conversation. Others want to hear about your cruise, but aren’t as thrilled when you prattle on about everything you buy.

What this research suggests is that experience trumps things on the happiness scale. But I would modify this a bit and say that it’s not only activities, such as cruises or having dinner out, that makes people happy. It’s about experiences of all kinds.

In other words, I think that people are looking for an “experience” even when they’re buying “things.” Things may be more likely to disappoint, but it’s the experience we’re after when we buy a new pair of shoes or a novel.

The shoes aren’t just footwear, they’re a token that lets us become a new person and feel successful, sporty, or beautiful. The novel isn’t just a book, it’s an escape into a world of adventure, thrills, and drama.

Why are novels arranged by genre in book stores? Because we seek out particular experiences, rather than particular books.

The lesson here is that when you’re crafting an advertising or marketing message, you should understand the experience your customers seek and position your product or service to deliver that experience. Sell an experience, not a thing.

This is a short excerpt from an upcoming white paper called “Getting Response in a Down Economy.” I’ll announce it in my newsletter first. Click here or use the yellow box at the top right of this blog to subscribe.

There’s no doubt about it. Business is tough out there. Every day brings more unsettling economic news.

But have things changed as much as some people claim? Has the recession completely changed buyer behavior?

In my opinion, no. Buyer behavior in this recession is very similar to buyer behavior at any other time, but with this important caveat: While people may be buying, they’re being far more cautious and making decisions far more slowly. So it’s harder to sell to them. Harder, not impossible.

Your customers are uncertain and afraid, but they are still essentially the same customers you’ve always had. All the same psychological principles apply, though some are now playing a more prominent roll.

By understanding this and allowing this knowledge to guide your selling strategy, you can give yourself a powerful advantage now and in the boom years to come.

Six things that are particularly important to remember now:

• People love to buy. They love to discover wonderful new products and experiences. In America, and increasingly around the world, people see commerce as a natural and appealing activity.

• People make buying decisions emotionally. They decide based on a feeling, need, or emotion. That’s why intangible benefits are generally the key to persuasion. For any given promotion, you should ask yourself, “What is the emotional hot button here?”

• People need to justify decisions logically. While people make emotional decisions, they justify those decisions with logic and facts. You should always give people the appropriate justification for making a purchase.

• People want to avoid risk. People pursue gain, but the urge to avoid loss is more powerful because it works on a more basic level. In direct marketing, people usually can’t see you or the thing you’re promoting before they part with their money. So there is always a level of distrust and suspicion you must overcome.

• People seek value. Value is not a fixed number. It is a subjective relationship between the thing you are selling and what people perceive its worth to be. The greater the value relative to the price, the more likely people will respond to your offer.

• People buy direct because of convenience and exclusivity. Don’t fool yourself. If your customers could easily find the things you offer at a nearby store, that’s probably where most would buy them because the perceived risk is lower.

These are not foreign concepts. They are always important. But now they are more important than when the market was flush with cash.

While a well-written headline and eye-catching photo can still make someone want what you’re offering, your customer’s fear and logic circuits are now operating on overdrive.

They need stronger justification and greater value than ever before. They also need more assurance that their financial risk is minimal or even that the purchase will save them money.

I’ve been busy recently writing articles for everything other than this blog. So here’s a short reading list for a little direct marketing extra credit.

First, Melissa Data recently published The Ultimate Marketing Survival Guide for 2009. I wrote the lead article, “Direct mail remains the king of direct marketing.” Just in case you thought direct mail was dead or that tweeting is better than mailing, this article will disabuse you of that faulty assumption.

Next, there’s a fun little article over at Copyblogger titled The 3 Secret Persuasion Techniques Every Kid Knows. You parents will relate to this one. I don’t have children, but I know they’re often tuned into persuasion better than many adults.

Feeling a little burned out? Mary Jaksch asked me to submit some tips for Write to Done in a post titled 7 Easy Ways to Energize Your Creative Powers. If you’re a professional writer, you can’t just wait for the muse to drop by. You need a few techniques for flipping the switch on creativity when you need it.

Finally, there’s one of my regular columns for DM News, one of the most recent is Problem Solver: Is it smart for an online business to use direct mail? I discuss how you can’t let a particular medium dictate your marketing strategy and ways to use direct mail to build your online business.

This should keep you busy for a while.

Capitalizing on current events has always been a good way to boost sales. Obama’s inauguration is the most recent example.

Everywhere you look there’s an Obama product. I’ve seen Obama coins selling on TV and Obama shirts on CafePress and other sites. I even saw a barber shop that changed its name to “Obama’s.” They claim the new name has dramatically boosted profits.

Advertising Age is reporting that Obama mania is “staggering.”

From the article:

Inaugural tchotchkes are a given, but the breadth and depth of Obama merchandise available is staggering. For infants, there are onesies. For the tech-savvy, there’s an iPhone case. Coming is a Barack Obama Chia Pet. And for those who want to size up the president-elect, there’s a life-size cutout.

But it doesn’t stop there. Retailers are also using the inauguration as an excuse to promote big-screen TVs, digital recorders and patriotic party favors. Amazon last week launched its first Inauguration Store, featuring “everything customers need to get ready to attend the event, host an inauguration party or watch from home.”

This shouldn’t come as any surprise. Americans are idol worshipers. They love to associate themselves with famous people. All it takes is for a rap star or sports icon to be seen with a particular pair of tennis shoes and sales will skyrocket.

If you’re jaded, you’ll see America as a nation of sheep. If you’re a marketer, you’ll see America as a nation of opportunity. Take your pick. Either way, there’s a marketing lesson here.