Here's why ‘WHY' is such a profit-making marketing trigger.

“Stop taking two and three plates of food,” my mother said to me angrily.

I was at a wedding and seven years old. Back then; at a lot of the weddings we used to go to, the food would be pre-served on a plate. I could never get enough of that calorie-ridden platter. Waylaying different waiters, (so I would not be recognised) I'd polish 3-4 plates without blinking an eye.

Mum wasn't impressed and told me to stop and desist.

“Why?” I'd ask her and her stock reply was always “It's bad manners to do that.” This Dustbin Hoffman act obviously got her goat, but it left me unfazed. It must have bugged her more than I expected though, because in a short while Dad was peering down my food-stuffed face.

My question remained unchanged. “WHY?”

“If you invite a hundred people to a wedding, how many would you cater for?” he asked. “A hundred,” I answered, proud of my analytical genius. “If you ate four,” he continued, “how many would remain?” “Ninety-six right?” he prompted quickly. I nodded vigorously. “That means some people don't eat. If you're so hungry, we can go out after the wedding and get something to eat, but don't deprive others.”

Dad Made Sense. Are You?

Dad understood psychology. He had to sell my brain an idea that my rumbling stomach didn't want to understand. And he did it by answering the question ‘WHY.' How many of us waste this powerful trigger in our marketing because it seems too obvious, almost too simple?

Why ‘why' Puts Elvis' Shaking and Moving to Shame

Let's examine the six honest men. What, How, When, Where, Who and Why. Which one of these is the most powerful psychological movers of them all? This would be better answered with an example.

Let's assume you needed to go to the supermarket. All the other triggers (how, when, where, who and what) would make absolutely no difference if you didn't know ‘WHY' you're were headed there. Everything else would be totally irrelevant. Once you know WHY you're doing something, everything else is just a matter of logistics.

Why Does 90% of Advertising and Marketing Communication Go Down the Drain?

Simple. Look for the ‘WHY' in advertising and scarcity pops up instantly. All the fancy layouts and the smart headlines can't quite compensate for the niggling question that goes unanswered. All your customers want to know is ‘Why should I choose you?', ‘Why should I take this decision?', ‘Why should I spend this money?,' ‘Why should I look at your website?', ‘Why should I read your brochure?', ‘Why should I listen to your speech?', ‘Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?'

Dump the cotton woolly fluff. Get your customer's brain to go scrambling like an over-enthusiastic pup after a Frisbee. Once you have enough WHY factor built into what you're selling, everything else is just clip, clop, fall in place stuff.

Be an Accountant, Do an Audit

Look at your communication. Like reeeeeeeaaaaally look at it! What about your website? Does it answer the question WHY straight up? And does it do it on the first page? How about your brochure? Does its headline make it a cinch for dustbin land? Your speech: Do you have enough beds to compensate for your lack of WHY?

I could go on, but I strongly suspect you get the message.

Be merciless. If the ‘WHYs' don't stack up, dump the communication. Or chop and change to till it does.

Finding the Right Level of Why Power

If you noticed, Mum actually answered my WHY question. She just didn't answer it to my satisfaction like Dad did. Herein lies a subtle, yet formidable difference.

It's not enough to simply have the WHY question answered. It's got to be the most ‘Rambo in your face' answer, or it will bounce higher than a defaulting cheque. Let your ‘WHYs' loose on each other and let only the one with the most testosterone come out shining.

Aristotle: Man, Was he Smart or What?

All communication must lead to change.

That's what the old wise man said over 2000 years ago. Not some or most communication.

All.

Yet we are dealing with customers that inherently detest change. WHY is the only motivator that allows them to make that shift. Change is still a bad word, but at least the justification sits nicely in their cranium.

In fact, if you look closely, even a ‘WHAT' statement like ‘What's in it for me?' is really a ‘WHY.' All it is saying is ‘Why should I pay attention?' Give your customers the WHY factor and their buying sprees will reflect nicely in your growing bank account.

This is simple, down to earth advice, yet it represents one of the most powerful psychological triggers why people buy. WHY on earth would you ignore it?