FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) marketing is a valid way to market as long as it does not taunt, tease or anger your target market. Here are the two faces of the FOMO story.
When Tesla announced its new Model 3 and opened it up for reservations we saw a line out the door in Santa Barbara of people waiting to give them their $1000 deposits. Over 400,000 reservations came rolling in. The dynamic of FOMO Marketing was unleashed on the automotive scene as stories of this buying frenzy spread like wildfire throughout the media.
There was obviously a pent up demand for Tesla’s value proposition, offering ownership of an affordable model of this sustainable energy vehicle brand. Tesla brilliantly began as strictly a luxury brand with its $100K+ Roadster. By introducing an affordable model they effectively accomplished what Apple achieved as a brand, known for expensive computers, when it introduced the iPod. Everyone had to have one! No one wanted to be left out.
This morning, I (Alexandra here) called to cancel a credit card because we no longer wanted to pay the annual fee. The promise of value became negligible compared to a competing card that we subsequently acquired.
Although the customer service representative was very nice, he explained to me that they would be downgrading us from the present “gold” card to the “bronze” card. He also had me listen and agree to all the benefits I would be missing out on by having the lowly “bronze” card. And, then he added that I still had until July 20th to change my mind.
When that bronze card arrives, we will put it in a safe place and not use it. That is the “dark” side of FOMO. The taunting and teasing turned me completely off. It had the opposite effect. It must work on some people or they would not use it.
The dark side of FOMO marketing in real estate is evidenced when agents use the words “Too Late” instead of simply using the word “Sold”. At the very least it annoys the potential buyers they are trying to attract.
The moral of the story: Do not rub it in! In doing so you will rub people the wrong way.
All photos are courtesy of Tesla.