Bovine Mentality

As humans we naturally conform to group norms. We see it in teenaged social sub-cultures, in financial market movements and in consumerism. The Emo, the Mum & Dad Stock Trader and the Fashion Victim all follow their herds. For example: When you decided on your Internet Service Provider did you base it solely on Bigpond’s homage to the dumb Aussie Dad; on Optus’ footage of African wildlife; or, on Dodo’s tight t-shirt wearing blonde models? Chances are you asked a friend, “Who do you use?” (and, if you’re male, chose Dodo anyway…) Group Mentality (or, as I prefer, Bovine Mentality) is a part of human psychology that makes us feel more secure in making decisions when we know that someone else has made the same decision. What if you could use group mentality to your advantage in your business? What if you had your own herd? The reality is that if you’ve had one happy customer you already have a herd. It’s now up to you to show this to your prospects. Group mentality will naturally kick in if you can show your prospects how you’ve helped other people. The easiest way, of course, is to collect testimonials and ensure that your prospects see them. The best testimonials identify the problem that the customer faced and then explains how you solved that problem for them. Here’s an example:

“WEBNERD, run by James Quinn-Hawtin, has provided a website and corporate identity solution that is second to none. Before finding WEBNERD the task of conveying the feeling of Smooth Latin Groove on a website seemed an impossible one. But with meticulous planning, analysis and a genuine interest in our business WEBNERD exceeded my expectations. I am so happy with the service provided by WEBNERD that I consider James my right hand man.” Ian Corbett Director Smooth Latin Groove