“Appeal to Fear”
Carry a Big Stick
What is Appeal to Fear?
Applying fear tactics in order to scare people away or drive them toward an ideal.
Business Application
Fear is a base emotion that can be easily exploited when positioning an argument. It is important to recognize when your fear is being exploited . This recognition will help you gain composure and weigh every factor proportionately.
Example 1
“Never cold call again!”
Why This is a Fallacy
Many people fear cold calling. Leveraging that fear to build sales solutions that circumvent the need for cold calling is a trending marketing tactic.
Example 2
“Seats are limited and we only open our doors 4 times a year!”
Why This is a Fallacy
Many people have a fear of ‘missing out.’ Creating a sense of urgency by suggesting scarcity and decreasing a window of opportunity is a common fear-based sales tactic.
Tom Waters
Owner at Everyday Sales
Everyday Sales is an online resource for sales and business education. We expose the psychological exploits used in sales and marketing to empower our clients to become better professionals. Our feature content includes Sales in Cinema, Cognitive Biases in Business, Logical Fallacies in Business, and Quotes Deconstructed.
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