Sitting in the garden bleary-eyed, sipping coffee on Sunday morning.
We noticed tree blossom, on the roof.
Nothing unusual there.
We live in the countryside, after all.
But, as the coffee kicked in and our eyes began to focus.
A piece of "blossom" fell from the roof and blew past us like tumbleweed, in a budget spaghetti western.
It was at this point we realised that it was, in fact, the insulation from our loft!!
And on closer inspection, we found out that we have squatters!
In the form of a rowdy sparrow family.
They've decided to move in unannounced.
And to make room for their nests, have thinned out our loft insulation!
Which is a bit rude, if you ask me!
But they seem pretty settled (between the bickering), so we've decided to leave them to it.
Now you are probably thinking...cute story and all, but I thought this email was about copywriting and marketing?
And you'd be right, so let's get down to brass tacks here.
The sparrows got me thinking about FOMO (fear of missing out).
You see, some of the babies have hatched and now yell at the top of their voices whenever the parents get close.
They have really bad FOMO, as they don't want to miss out on the juicy snacks.
And whilst you don't want your ideal clients yelling at you for juicy snacks or anything else in fact.
Creating genuine FOMO for your product or service can be a good thing.
Why?
Because it helps people to get off the fence and make a decision to buy your stuff.
Which is what most of us are here for if we're honest.
So, here are a few ways to create some FOMO:
Paint a clear picture for your reader of how your product or service will make a difference in their life. Leaving them in no doubt about what they will miss out on if they don't buy.
Add a bonus to encourage people to sign up by a specific date (great for evergreen products).
Have a deadline/closing date and create a waiting list for people who miss the deadline.
Highlight limited stock or spaces.
A word of warning.
We've all seen a particular furniture store that has a sale which must end today but starts again tomorrow.
People soon see through this kind of false scarcity, and instead of creating FOMO, people lose trust in the business.
So, always try to use it genuinely.