Are Cuban cigars as valuable and “good” if they are no longer hard to get and illegal?
Is a VISA black card as “exclusive” if over 3 million people have the opportunity to get one?
The answer is no to both.
Scarcity is a powerful marketing tactic. Do you use it effectively? You should.
Look around, it’s used all over. How about those TV ads that say they only have 100 items left in stock? Or the online marketer (myself included) who can only hold a few spots left for the special training class.
The fact of the matter is, scarcity is one of the principals that work very well in marketing/sales. It’s a trigger (one of them) that causes consumers to react.
I’ll ask you again? Do you use scarcity? If so, tell us about how you use it in the comments.
I hate to be that self-promoting dude, but at least this is totally relevant. I run a used t-shirt site called Teecycle.org, and each shirt has an inventory of just ONE. Itself. How's that for scarcity?
stupid if someone wants to buy two
Cuban cigars are only scarce in the USA. Here in the UK I can buy as many as I want whenever I want and it doesn't affect their quality or my perception of it. As a US citizen you can't even legally smoke one of my Cuban cigars in my country. Did you know that?
I've not used scarcity in my own business or blog, but did use it on occasion at Case Western Reserve and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
For the former we used it for event promotion, making sure people knew that seating would be limited for popular speakers or guest lecturers.
For the latter we use it for events and promotional giveaways. I'm on the Nature League committee at the museum and we'll sometimes have events that are open to Nature League members only. These could include behind the scenes tours or special curator lectures that the general public wouldn't have access to.
At public events we'll also sometimes have raffles in which one of the prizes is something like a private tour (food and bevvies included) of the museum (including non-public areas) led by a curator.
These tend to be quite popular because the participants get to see something that is usually unavailable. There is a certain thrill derived from getting "insider access" and they have the personal ear of a curator who can give them indepth answers to whatever questions they may have. Such events are naturally scarce, because it would be impractical for the museum to offer such things on a regular basis.
Convenience can be another benefit of scarcity. When Mars was close to earth in 2003, 750 visitors came to the museum one night to look at the red planet through the observatory telescope. The Nature League has a small party that same night, so about 30 of us got to see it first before they opened the doors to the public.
On the one hand we saw an amazing site, on the other we didn't have to stand in the enormous line we saw waiting when we left the museum that night. While such events seem "exclusive," the barrier to entry isn't high, in most cases one merely needs to become a Nature League member to reap these and other benefits.
For those with an interest in science, the outdoors and related social activities, access to these "scarce" events adds real value beyond what the would get as regular museum members.
The same principle can be applied to many fields, it's simply a matter of offering something unique that has a strong appeal to the audience in question.
Thanks for the large comment Heidi. Great examples.
I've never thought about scarcity as a tool, but it clearly works: I reached this post by following hacool's tweet: "RT @jimkukral: I'm only allowing 5 people to read this post, then I'm deleting it. http://tinyurl.com/ccaal4 – Scarcity as a benefit."
Not only did I feel completely compelled to click the link but as I waited for it to load I caught myself actively hoping I was one of the first five.
In part I clicked through based on hacool's authority/reputation. But part of it was the desire to be among the elect. As a marketing tactic, does scarcity have an appeal regardless of the value of what is being offered ?
Like much of marketing, scarcity is bullshit. Just a tool, based on the pretense that's necessary to move inferior products. Something that's done or made well may move faster using scarcity, but ultimately, a quality, product that people have a use for will tend to move.
So if it works, how can you say it's bullshit? Maybe you think the intent of using it to sell something is a bullshit tactic, but don't try to tell me it doesn't work. It works, well.
I don't think it's BS – particularly the 'scarcity of time' angle i.e. act now while stocks last, or 'offer ends saturday' – these calls to action are great for motivating people who would otherwise dither to spend their money…
Rob
The role of the venture capitalist is to partner the entrepreneur in the journey. Despite frequent misconceptions that make it seem more hostile. The start-up ecosystem has been termed a zoo (or in certain geographies, a jungle) where vulture capitalists pounce on innocent entrepreneurs as their hapless prey. By and large, however, a star VC can provide the missing expertise a start-up needs for winning the marathon. The best VCs don't just hand over cash; they help the companies in their portfolio plan and pace themselves like marathon runners, and they also help the companies make sound decisions and build teamwork, and they tap their own networks to strengthen each entrepreneur's team.
Tan Yinglan
The Way Of The VC – Top Venture Capitalists On Your Board (Amazon: http://www.tinyurl.com/wayofthevc)
Blog: http://www.wayofthevc.com