“I don’t want to use fear as a marketing tactic, so what exactly do I say to avoid that?”

I’ve received this question a lot lately. I really appreciate people asking it, because it shows me you’re being conscious of your INTENTION in your messaging, and that’s more important than ever right now.

Here’s my answer to that.

There’s a difference between marketing with FEAR and marketing with EMPATHY.

• Marketing with FEAR is saying things like “This terrible thing has happened and if you don’t do X now, then Y is going to happen to you.”

• Marketing with EMPATHY is saying things like “I know this feels scary and you’re worried about X, Y and Z, and here’s what we’re going to do to help.”

At this time I encourage you to be a strong, proactive and sensitive communicator.

Market with EMPATHY front of mind, and speak with CONFIDENCE to show you have solutions to offer (or at least encouragement and determination, if a solution is not yet possible!).

When you approach your marketing this way, you are not leveraging people’s vulnerabilities for your own gain. You are understanding their fears and concerns and working with them to find a way forward. And THAT makes all the difference.