There are 3 ways to write urgency into your copy:

1. Scarcity
2. Deadline
3. Consequence

These are separate tools that you should combine for explosive results.

#1. Scarcity

When there is a limited supply of something, it becomes more valuable. This could be a commodity like milk or fuel or a luxury like a diamond. We happily pay more for scarce items because of the fear of loss.

When a commodity is in limited supply, we tend to stockpile the item… just in case. I was born in Jamaica. 40 years ago, there were shortages of everything. Shortages of luxuries like chocolate and staples like rice. So what did my parent do? The stockpiled rice!

Today my Mother laughs about it today, because she kept a year's supply of rice in the house "just in case."If she heard on the radio that there were going to be supply problems she would immediately rush out and buy more. This is crazy, because she already had a year's worth of rice in the house.

That’s the power of the lizard brain. It bypasses all rational thought, to protect us at any cost.

What happens when there's a fuel strike? There are immediately long lines to fill up. Why? Because you don't know how long the strike will last, so you better fill up just in case.

The fear of missing out sparks a raging fire that makes people run.

So, what limitations are you placing on your offer?

Are you running a live workshop? Will you limit the number of delegates to 30 so that you can answer every question? Or are you limiting the number of people in the room for another reason? Maybe, you’ve only got 8 chars!

Whatever the reason you must tell your audience. If they believe there is a limit then their lizard brain will force them to act now.

Are you selling a book or CD set and you’ve only printed 500 copies? Now, 500 copies sounds like a lot to me… so how can you make that number look tiny?

You contrast the number of books or CDs with the size of your community. If you have a community of 20,000 people hungry to change their lives, and you’ve only got 500 copies, then it's easy to see why you must act now.

But don’t just stop there. You’ve got to show your reader what will happen when the supply runs out. You can use something like this.

If you place your order after we have sold out, we will refund your purchase!

Words like that shock the lizard brain. They spark fear and creates immediate action.

If you're selling a consulting service, then you can be honest about the number of clients that you want to take on. You may only have time to work with another one or two clients. If they pass on the opportunity or think too long, then it will be snapped up by someone else… possibly one of their competitors.

This is not intimidation. This is honestly telling a prospect what will happen if they debate their decision for too long. Like all great opportunities, they disappear fast.

#2. Deadline

Scarcity is a limited quantity of a specific item.

A deadline is time scarcity. So if you've got scarcity of quantity and time you are fanning the flames of the urgency to make the fire rage intensely.

A deadline could be, after this specific date, the sale price disappears. A more powerful level of scarcity is to say that after a particular date you cannot buy the product for another 6 months or even 12 months.

An example of time scarcity that we all know is January sales. They start on Boxing day (or sometimes before Christmas), and they run until the middle of January.

Shops use both quantity scarcity and time scarcity to force you to buy an item now. Let’s face it, we all live in a world of abundance. We don’t need another shirt or another pair of trousers. We just want another pair… and if they are half price today then that’s a good enough reason to buy them now, right?

You will make the deadline more meaningful if you give a reason or justification for it. For example, it's my birthday today, so I'm deciding to give away 40 books, CDs, event tickets, whatever you choose… for today only!

Your story makes the deadline real in your community’s mind.

Another reason for the deadline could be that the course starts the very next day. This works well for online workshops.

You don't have to give a reason for the deadline, after all, shops don't tell us why the sale ends on a particular day. We just know it does. But if you wrap a story around your deadline, it becomes much more than just a number. It becomes something that your prospect can see and remember. If they can see it, then the fire will rage brighter and hotter… which will make them run faster.

#3. Consequence

What happens if your prospect does nothing?

The more significant the consequence for doing nothing the more intensely the decision making fire will rage.

If you’re selling a product or service and the consequence for not acting before the deadline is that they cannot buy it for another 6 months or 12 months then they can see why they must move now.

Your prospect has a problem in their life, and they are considering your solution. How do you know this? Because they keep reading your emails. Because they keep reading your sales page and attending your webinars.

But…

They haven’t bought yet. Why not?

One reason may be that they are considering alternative products. This is an obvious worry when you are selling a commodity product such as a transport.

But…

If you have told inspirational personal stories, then you have an emotional connection with your prospect. The emotional connection makes you unique. It makes them want to work with you over anyone else.

So, why haven’t they bought yet?

Because of the inertia of doing nothing. The status quo is a safe and comfortable place.

A solution to their problem is likely to force them out of their comfort zone and into the unknown.

You force them to make a decision now when you use words they can see, hear, touch and feel… the consequences of doing nothing. The more significant the consequences of doing nothing, the more they will act now.

Now It’s Your Turn

You now know how to light a decision making fire that will make your prospect sprint for your solution.

You know that urgency is like Salt in food. Use a small amount, and it brightens the flavours. Use too much, and the meal is inedible. Use too little and what you've cooked is bland and tasteless.

Take the time to think of ways you can write urgency into your offers. Wrap the 3 urgency tools in stories that your reader can see and watch a stampede of customers come charging towards you.

If you've found this useful, then please leave a comment below to let me know.

If this can help someone you know, then please share it with them.

Until next time…

Carpe diem

Roland Eva

P.S. if you'd like a proven system to turn your expertise into cash so you can become your own boss and work from home, please click the link below to download your FREE copy of my book How To Turn Expertise Into Cash.