Sometime back in 1872 I was going through an MLM (multi level marketing) phase. You know the stuff: hold house-parties for amazing products that included secret ingredients sourced from the moon, sell sh*t loads, and hopefully recruit other sellers into the business under you (and thus earn a cut of their future sales).
These pyramids-that-aren’t-pyramids obviously worked well, because everyone told you how well they were doing. And honest to God, no-one was bullsh!tt!ng and barely making ends meet. No-one. 
Anyway, I digress…the key business lesson I want you to learn from this experience is based on how many people accept the house party invite in relation to how many actually turn up. It goes something like this…
“Oh my God! Yes! I’d LOVE to come! Count me in, thrice over. I’ll bring a friend. No two friends. Wait! 3! Make that me plus three!”
This might happen 20 times until you have a full-to-capacity crowd ready to descend on your night of sales-ing.
“Ooh, but hang on – what’s this? ONLY 3 FRIGGIN PEOPLE HAVE TURNED UP!!! For fu…”
So, the moral of this story – aside from thinking twice before joining the next MLM ‘cults’ (feel free to change the ‘L’ to something else) is to judge not what people say, but what people DO (and yes – me most certainly included).
This holds true of almost any situation involving human beings you care to dream up.
So when you next run a promo campaign of any sort, just remember to match your expectations to the reality of the human being: we don’t do promises very well. But we do do hype absolutely brilliantly.
If you think this is a criticism or cynicism of people, think again (I know, I know – thinking’s hard enough without doing it twice in one sentence). It’s just a quick reality check about how things work out there in the great big old business world of homo sapiens.
As Indiana Jones’ dad might have said during a Brian Tracey seminar: “Psycholology, Indy. Sales Psycholology!”
Feel free to yank my chain below:
(Though I reserve the right to flush you away 
)
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Adam,
Seldom post! I so agee with you as I do actually observe and notice that behavior in human beings nowadays, everyday.
People never do have the word they use to have anymore!
)
(and, yes that includes myself too sometimes
Best reagrds,
Andre Foisy
Thanks for stopping by, Andre.
I think we’re not much different underneath than during our caveman days – I mean look at me: “Ugh! ugh!”…
But there are infinitely more distractions in this information era that help increase “promise loss”. Of course, I could just be talking complete drivel
Right – where’s my club: ugh need find female!