No Soliciting
Hello! I'm Kathy, and I'm a registered, certified skeptic with extensive experience in avoiding bandwagons. I'd love to be your personal skepticism consultant and show you how to avoid marketing schemes in a way that will enrich your family's life!
But seriously, what is with all the bandwagoning lately? ("Bandwagoning" is owned solely by Sethswife of Tongue Tied Inc. All rights reserved.)
Fads aren't new. There have been millions of them throughout the ages. Seances in the Victorian Era. Bell bottom pants. Justin Bieber. But it seems that with the age of social media they have gotten out of control. I can't open Facebook without feeling like I've been sucked into an infomercial, and I'm not talking about the paid-by-FB ads.
Today's fads, like many diets that have faded into the annals of history, seem to center around health. If you just try this product, your life will change! Dramatically! And you'll use more exclamation points! And I'll be happy to sell it to you!
This tactic, regardless of how valid the product is and how much you personally believe in it, will always make me take a slow, cautious step back with my hands in the air.
And I'm not the only one.
I've been accused of skepticism or disregarding a product without a reason other than just the fact that so many people like it. (In my head, when people say this, I'm always like, "....and this is a bad thing why?") And since I'm so awful at actual talking, please allow me to sum up why I tend to resist fads and popular things.
1. I absolutely hate being the subject of a sales pitch. It makes me so uncomfortable. I feel used and fake. It's not real life, it's someone trying to make money, my money, selling a product. That is not how I shop. When I buy something, I want to pursue it. I want to read reviews, research it, weigh it's pros and cons on my own. I really believe in research--unbiased research that doesn't come from the company selling me something. If you're only learning about a product from the company selling it, you're potentially putting yourself in danger. When I was a kid in the days of sales calls, my parents had a standard expression: "We don't buy things over the phone." Today, I've expanded it to be "We don't buy things over the phone, off the television, on our front doorstep, or off of social media." About five or six years ago, I also stopped going to "parties" completely. Social interaction is hard enough for me, and it's extremely unpleasant to add the pressure to buy something I can't afford and don't really want to the scenario. In other words, don't call us, we'll call you. Because if you call us, I can guarantee I'll be turned off by your pushiness.
2. I do not believe in brands or products. Sure, some things are great. Some things have turned your life around. Some things have really improved my own. But I won't jeopardize relationships by making selling a product my main form of dialogue with people. For example, I really love homeschooling. It has changed our family's life. But it would be naive to believe that everyone should be homeschooling. Sure, I'll answer if someone asks a question, or maybe I'll write a blog post about it, but I'll never be a salesgirl for it. I'll never post a comment on someone else's status about their difficulty with the public schools saying "You should TOTALLY homeschool!!! Message me for details!!" People don't want your product, they want a relationship. And if all they hear you talk about is a thing, they're going to feel like you're not really interested in being friends or genuinely discussing actual life with them, they're just going to feel like the subject of a sales' pitch. See #1.
3. Honestly? My life is pretty great. I don't sit around thinking my life would be so much better if... Now, I understand people with chronic illnesses or problems will get frustrated and seek solutions. But those solutions will never be the same for everyone. No one product can cure all life's ails. Because people are more than their bodies. Everyone is a unique individual. There's no one size fits all. People who disregard that at the expense of pushing a product fail to help someone with a real problem cope. But, back to my original point, I'm not looking for solutions. I don't self medicate very much. I don't get a headache and immediately try to cure it. I don't look at the scale and rail at the heavens about it. I don't devote my entire life to making myself feel good, (or "healthy", as a sales person would say). I'm far too busy homeschooling, mothering, wifeing, and being on Pinterest for that. And at the root of it, I know that life on this planet will be marred by physical suffering. There will never be a cure for everything, and I honestly think it's a little short sighted for people to be so passionately pursuing perfection, especially Christians. The answer isn't a product, it's Jesus. And even Jesus never tries to sell you a perfect life with no struggles or pain.
Expressing these thoughts will probably get me some backlash, but I've come to find that I'm not the only person who is a little tired of the constant selling. I don't mind people liking a product and being happy with it. Just be careful how you sell it, because oversaturation or talking too much about it will only backfire for you. Here are some good ways to keep people from being turned off by your product:
1. Don't post about it on other people's pages or statuses.
2. Don't talk about it in a way that makes it sound like it's THE answer for everything. Be rational about it. Don't use excessive enthusiasm. Don't make promises that it can't keep. Avoid the words "never" and "always".
3. Don't insert it into every conversation, especially when someone has politely declined.
4. Research your product from the outside. Don't only listen to what corporate headquarters tells you about it. Google is the easiest thing in the world to use. There's no excuse for being uninformed. I recently researched a popular company's product and found that the sales people for this company were telling people to use it in a way that directly conflicted with medical and expert recommendations for its use. I don't think these people are doing it intentionally, but a simple, unbiased internet search would have made them more informed, thereby making their advice more valid. I'm much more likely to trust someone who tells me the cons of a product along with the pros. If you can't think of a con, then most of us will not believe you.
5. When someone says no, obey Elsa's advice and let it go.
I don't expect to change anyone's mind about a product and you are welcomed to love what you love, just like I'm welcomed to be skeptical about it. But maybe we can find a better balance in our relationships, so you're not always disappointed and I'm not always frustrated. How about we talk about "safe" things instead?
Like politics.
But seriously, what is with all the bandwagoning lately? ("Bandwagoning" is owned solely by Sethswife of Tongue Tied Inc. All rights reserved.)
Fads aren't new. There have been millions of them throughout the ages. Seances in the Victorian Era. Bell bottom pants. Justin Bieber. But it seems that with the age of social media they have gotten out of control. I can't open Facebook without feeling like I've been sucked into an infomercial, and I'm not talking about the paid-by-FB ads.
Today's fads, like many diets that have faded into the annals of history, seem to center around health. If you just try this product, your life will change! Dramatically! And you'll use more exclamation points! And I'll be happy to sell it to you!
This tactic, regardless of how valid the product is and how much you personally believe in it, will always make me take a slow, cautious step back with my hands in the air.
And I'm not the only one.
I've been accused of skepticism or disregarding a product without a reason other than just the fact that so many people like it. (In my head, when people say this, I'm always like, "....and this is a bad thing why?") And since I'm so awful at actual talking, please allow me to sum up why I tend to resist fads and popular things.
1. I absolutely hate being the subject of a sales pitch. It makes me so uncomfortable. I feel used and fake. It's not real life, it's someone trying to make money, my money, selling a product. That is not how I shop. When I buy something, I want to pursue it. I want to read reviews, research it, weigh it's pros and cons on my own. I really believe in research--unbiased research that doesn't come from the company selling me something. If you're only learning about a product from the company selling it, you're potentially putting yourself in danger. When I was a kid in the days of sales calls, my parents had a standard expression: "We don't buy things over the phone." Today, I've expanded it to be "We don't buy things over the phone, off the television, on our front doorstep, or off of social media." About five or six years ago, I also stopped going to "parties" completely. Social interaction is hard enough for me, and it's extremely unpleasant to add the pressure to buy something I can't afford and don't really want to the scenario. In other words, don't call us, we'll call you. Because if you call us, I can guarantee I'll be turned off by your pushiness.
2. I do not believe in brands or products. Sure, some things are great. Some things have turned your life around. Some things have really improved my own. But I won't jeopardize relationships by making selling a product my main form of dialogue with people. For example, I really love homeschooling. It has changed our family's life. But it would be naive to believe that everyone should be homeschooling. Sure, I'll answer if someone asks a question, or maybe I'll write a blog post about it, but I'll never be a salesgirl for it. I'll never post a comment on someone else's status about their difficulty with the public schools saying "You should TOTALLY homeschool!!! Message me for details!!" People don't want your product, they want a relationship. And if all they hear you talk about is a thing, they're going to feel like you're not really interested in being friends or genuinely discussing actual life with them, they're just going to feel like the subject of a sales' pitch. See #1.
3. Honestly? My life is pretty great. I don't sit around thinking my life would be so much better if... Now, I understand people with chronic illnesses or problems will get frustrated and seek solutions. But those solutions will never be the same for everyone. No one product can cure all life's ails. Because people are more than their bodies. Everyone is a unique individual. There's no one size fits all. People who disregard that at the expense of pushing a product fail to help someone with a real problem cope. But, back to my original point, I'm not looking for solutions. I don't self medicate very much. I don't get a headache and immediately try to cure it. I don't look at the scale and rail at the heavens about it. I don't devote my entire life to making myself feel good, (or "healthy", as a sales person would say). I'm far too busy homeschooling, mothering, wifeing, and being on Pinterest for that. And at the root of it, I know that life on this planet will be marred by physical suffering. There will never be a cure for everything, and I honestly think it's a little short sighted for people to be so passionately pursuing perfection, especially Christians. The answer isn't a product, it's Jesus. And even Jesus never tries to sell you a perfect life with no struggles or pain.
Expressing these thoughts will probably get me some backlash, but I've come to find that I'm not the only person who is a little tired of the constant selling. I don't mind people liking a product and being happy with it. Just be careful how you sell it, because oversaturation or talking too much about it will only backfire for you. Here are some good ways to keep people from being turned off by your product:
1. Don't post about it on other people's pages or statuses.
2. Don't talk about it in a way that makes it sound like it's THE answer for everything. Be rational about it. Don't use excessive enthusiasm. Don't make promises that it can't keep. Avoid the words "never" and "always".
3. Don't insert it into every conversation, especially when someone has politely declined.
4. Research your product from the outside. Don't only listen to what corporate headquarters tells you about it. Google is the easiest thing in the world to use. There's no excuse for being uninformed. I recently researched a popular company's product and found that the sales people for this company were telling people to use it in a way that directly conflicted with medical and expert recommendations for its use. I don't think these people are doing it intentionally, but a simple, unbiased internet search would have made them more informed, thereby making their advice more valid. I'm much more likely to trust someone who tells me the cons of a product along with the pros. If you can't think of a con, then most of us will not believe you.
5. When someone says no, obey Elsa's advice and let it go.
I don't expect to change anyone's mind about a product and you are welcomed to love what you love, just like I'm welcomed to be skeptical about it. But maybe we can find a better balance in our relationships, so you're not always disappointed and I'm not always frustrated. How about we talk about "safe" things instead?
Like politics.
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