You're crossing the intersection, on foot, when a car comes flying out of nowhere. You hear people screaming and tires screeching. Somehow, they sound foggy and distant as you lay in the street, a crumpled heap of pain.
There's a face looming above you. It's talking. You try to focus. "paramedic... give you something... ease the pain."
As the drug does it's magic, you smile. What pain? Grinning in your drug induced daze, you grandly wave to the onlookers and announce that you're okay now.
They take you to the hospital and a doctor tells you you need surgery. You laugh. Surgery? Nah. You're feeling fine now.
Now, imagine that the doctor agrees. No surgery. You just take more of the drug. Is that okay? Of course not. The pain isn't the problem. It's just a symptom. Fixing a symptom doesn't fix the problem.
Pretty soon, the drug won't work as well anymore. You'll need more to get the same effect. Wait longer, and you'll need it more often, too. After a while, you're an addict... and you still have the problem that hasn't been dealt with.
The same applies to your business.
Lack of sales hurt. The pain is a symptom of a problem inside your business.
Like the man in the street, there's a quick fix. You can offer a discount. Or a clearance. You can pile on the bonuses, or hold a time limited special. And the pain will often go away.
Anytime you start to hurt again, you just apply the fix. Add more bonuses. Shorten up that deadline date.
Sales in between the events will continue to dwindle. Over time, you'll need your fix more and more often - until your profit dwindles to almost nothing.
One day you'll realize that the quick fix doesn't work anymore. You can't make the pain go away.
As doors close around you, you'll fondly remember how good the high felt. Inside, you'll probably wonder... what happened?
But then - you wouldn't devalue what you offer like that... would you?
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