Trigger Marketing

Twenty five cents a glass seemed to be a good price. The air was thick and the sun felt like a one-tone elephant on your neck. Yep, twenty five cents seemed like a good price.

By 1:30pm one Sunday afternoon, Jim was sold out. He had sold the world record for lemonade (at least as far as Jim was concerned) and had made enough money to buy that new comic book he'd had his eye on for weeks. Jim thought selling lemonade was a pretty good business and decided to do it everyday during the rest of his summer vacation.

The next few weeks were the hottest on record, and lemonade sales were brisk. Jim was over half way to getting that shinny new red mountain bike with the chrome wheels and fluorescent stickers he had always dreamed of.

But as always happens, summer turns to fall, and that one-tone elephant looses weight and the wind sings a new tune of changes on the way. Lemonade sales ground to a halt and so did Jim's dream of the shinny new red mountain bike with the chrome wheels and fluorescent stickers.

Lemonade is not a necessity. But when that one-tone elephant is beating down on your neck it sure is. A need is something we require, a want is something we desire. A need is something people will pay for. Only when a want turns into a need will the customer make the purchase.

Jim's problem was he thought he was in the lemonade business, when he should have been in the beverage business. Then he could have sold other beverage more conducive to the time of year.

What need are you satisfying? What business are you in? Will you be ready when the wind signs the tune of changes on the way?

To learn more, download our free eBook "Seat of your pants marketing - The 10 biggest mistakes small businesses make and what to do about it"

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