Trip wires—those small-priced offers made to you immediately upon opting in for something on-line—seem to be all the rage.
And they certainly work for many.
They make you an offer of some great, compelling value…say 5 Everyday Foods Your Dog Should Never Eat. You opt-in, providing your first name and email address. As soon as you click “Give It To Me,” you find yourself on a landing page offering you something interesting for…hmm…$7, for example.
Let’s say you find the $7 offer interesting. So you say “Yes” and share your credit card info.
BAM! The next page and subsequent emails make an offer for the next thing you should get at a price much higher than $7, let’s say $325 for our example.
Take a look at the psychology of this strategy, and the success rate of this offer.
You’ve only “known” the company for a few clicks. What are the odds you’ll whip out $325? Certainly, some people do…otherwise NO ONE would make such an offer.
In contrast, there is a different sequence that quite often produces better engagement.
And a simple trip to your local grocery store will be the proof.
Because you’ve done it lots of time.
You go into the grocery store to buy steaks, veggies, fruit, laundry detergent and all kinds of items that cost $6, $7, $10 or more.
Then you head to the check-out. Sitting there on the shelves of the check-out line are items like gum, mints and candy bars for $1.99, $2.39 and the like. Impulsively, you toss a pack of gum on to the check-out counter.
The gum is an impulse add-on. You don’t spend much time thinking about whether you should put it in your bag or not. It’s a non-thinking decision.
Now look at that $325 offer. Deciding to buy that after a $7 purchase generates a lot of thinking. “Should I?” “Nah, I don’t need it.” “Hmmm…maybe it will change something for me.” “I don’t know.”
So what if you tried this opposite approach? What if you offered $325 first, and then the non-thinking offer for $7…even $29 or so?
Yes, you would have to be prepared to showcase the great value in the $325 offer (what many on-line marketers call their core offer) in order to get people to say YES. So make it a GREAT offer, not an okay offer.
Then offer the non-thinking offer.
Those who have experimented with this approach have had great success. And when you think about it, it kind of makes some sense, doesn’t it?
Take a little inspiration from your grocery store. You’ve been happily putting gum and mints and candy in your cart for a long time. Why not try it in your business?