How many times have your heard the claim that a particular product is “the best on the market” or “leads all other brands”? If you are like me, the answer is “too often!”.
But if we are to be honest, how many times have we been guilty of those sorts of claim? Across the various industries and organisations I have been associated with I have heard claims like “we have THE truth”, “our lifestyle is the best there is”, “our schools provide the best education possible”, and “our standard of aged care is unsurpassed”.
Recent research is cautioning organisations from making these sorts of claims as it has a tendancy to chase consumers away. Many people today are in a ‘Maximising Mindset’, which means they are undertaking more research and exploring more options before making a decision. The most recent research by Jingjing Ma and Neal Roese has explored this phenomena, which can be found here, or for an abbreviated version, try here.
Where an organisation has made such big claims the consumer has bigger regrets if the product or service does not live up to them, or they find something better. They will be unsatisfied unless it is the most amazing thing ever. Or in other words, they are very quick to ‘ditch and switch’. And this applies to services as much as products. Education, health care, aged care and even lifestyle choices all factor into the maximising mindset. The feelings of regret and dissatisfaction are amplified in the maximising mindset.
A close examination of the marketing approaches of many of the world’s leading brands today will show that rarely do they actually tout the taste, speed, function of the product or service. More likely, the advertising will be promoting an experience and connecting the product to that experience. The assumption being that by having that product or service, you as the consumer will share that experience.
So the advice for organisations that do have a great product or service – don’t make broken promises or create excessive expectations, instead, create memories and experiences for people. Essentially, the more experiential you can make the product, the happier people are.
If you would further information on how Avondale Business School can help your organisation, contact Warrick Long
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