Ever stepped foot into a casino?

What would you be more likely to choose, a game that stated that you had a 50% chance of winning or one that stated you had a 50% chance of losing.  The term "winning" has a natural effect in our line of thinking that dates back to the early days of humanity.  We are competitors at heart and our brains calculate losses as "risk".

Take this one step further...

What about the stock market?  Would you choose a stock that had a 90% chance of gaining 10% or choose a stock with a 10% chance of gaining 90%?

People tend to choose the safe bet.  The one that is risk adverse and will lead to a safe (and likely gain).

What am I getting at here?

Well, the same principles apply to online marketing.  People would prefer not to gamble their money when buying something, they would prefer to take the safe bet.  They would rather choose that product that does not carry high financial risks without knowing the results.

In other words, the risk/reward ratio has to be favorable in order for a consumer to make a quick purchasing decision.  The less favorable this becomes, the more logic that will go into the purchasing thought process.

Take this example:

You have a dieting product that helped 80% of people lose 20lbs.  And you have another dieting product that has a 20% chance of helping people lose 80lbs. Based on the weight loss curve, these could very well be the exact same product, and even though the people buying may need to lose 80lbs to be at a healthy state, the mind will choose the 1st product as the winner just based on the percentages.  The 80% is a much safer bet.

The same goes for any industry.  People tend to think in terms of "money".  Every purchase is broken down in terms of "money". Every transaction is the exchange of paper for product, and people tend to carry a higher value of a product than paper.

If you can reveal the value and reveal the "winning" aspects of a consumer purchasing a product/service, you will become a winning marketer. 

Cheers,

Kyle

PS. if you sign-up to WA for one year, you will have a 85% chance of making $10,000, but if you don't, you will have 15% chance of losing $10,000!