Are you selling a product or a feeling?

The more I look at advertisements, not many companies actually sell their product or service anymore.  They promote themselves by trying to make you feel a certain way.

Anheuser-Busch did a great job of this.  Showed how one of the partners Adolphus Busch endured immigration travels, fitting into a new land,  and many other hardships to finally meet with Eberhard Anheuser.  Both of them, from Germany.   The commercial wasn't selling a product as much as it was creating  feeling inside of you to associate with their brand.  Watch it here.

84 Lumber...produced a commercial so controversial that had nothing to do with lumber that Fox refused to air it.  You can watch it, and I highly suggest you do, here.   Am I more inclined to shop at 84 Lumber now?  Yes.  But how do I know they aren't doing other shady or unethical stuff that I'm not a fan of?  I don't.

I remember a few years ago that Chic-Fil-A had some controversy.  Mike Huckabee claimed a Chic Fil-A day.  It was supposedly promoting free speech after word got out that the founders of the restaurant chain supported "traditional marriage" that many people deemed as anti-gay.  I don't want to get into the Chic Fil-A side of things.  But lets be honest...the majority of the people that were there did not show up for freedom of speech.  I showed up, I was anti-gay at the time as well.  But when I saw the hoards of people (when I say hoards I mean hundreds if not thousands),  I was disgusted.  See, they've had freedom of speech rallies before.  And not many people show up.  It wasn't until it was about "traditional marriage/anti-gay" stuff that all the people showed up.

Why do I share that one about Chic Fil-A?  That's when I decided that if the sandwich is good, eat there.  If it's not, don't.  Don't pick and choose where you'll shop based on one small aspect of a business.

Do you have a good product?  Sell your product.  Sell your service.  And on the back end, make ethical business decisions.  Maybe that's why I was always a shitty salesman.  I tried to sell the product to much.  Because ultimately, that's what you are buying.  And when you really get down to it, there's really not that much you actually "need".   Zig's not really wrong in his line of thinking....but dang it sounds manipulative.  Sounds greedy.  Sounds like it's all about the sale and getting people to like you.  Intentions are everything.  Do you care more about the people you are selling to or do you care more about getting the sale?

I see all sorts of commercials and advertisements.  Many use veterans or military families uniting to promote their product.  All those things are great...but why are you doing those good deeds?  Is it all to promote your product and make sales?  Or what if we all went around with our good deeds pinned to our chest.  So everyone knew how great we were based on what we'd done or do for others.

I see it in "christian" bookstores and retail chains.  Poor quality merchandise being sold at high prices because it has a bible verse inscribed on it.  The one that sticks out to me the most was a tool kit.  A TOOL KIT!  It was extremely poor quality but it was being sold and most likely purchased because of the bible verse.  Like somehow it makes it the "christian" choice.

Create a quality product or service that meets the needs of the people.  Do that.

I happen to believe that the more we have that we don't need, the more problems we create for ourselves.  More to come later on that thought....