Begging for a T-Shirt

Your customers aren't cheap.

If they don't buy from you, it's your fault.

It's because you sell the object, not what it means.

Look.

On Friday, I went to the basketball arena.

My team, the Houston Rockets, against King LeBron James and the Lakers.

I was sitting almost in the rafters.

But happy.

So happy to be there.

The Houston crowd that day was dead.

Their team is in the playoffs, and they didn't even fill the stadium.

Sitting.

Slumped in their seats.

No emotion.

No yelling.

No pushing their team.

Until, 10 minutes into the game, everything changed.

During a timeout, the team's entertainers came out onto the court and into the stands.

Suddenly, people stood up.

Started yelling.

Dancing.

Raising their hands as if they were giving away land deeds in Tulum.

But it wasn't for their team.

Not for the players.

It was for something much vainer.

And sadder.

Because the entertainers were giving away t-shirts.

And don't think official jerseys.

No.

T-shirts with political campaign quality.

Extra large size.

The kind that wouldn't fit half the stadium well.

But there they all were.

Dancing.

Yelling.

Begging for one.

As if their lives depended on it.

Why?

They made a huge effort to be there, so why beg for a cheap t-shirt?

Because that t-shirt meant something.

It wasn't a t-shirt bought in a store.

It wasn't just any t-shirt.

It was a t-shirt "caught at the game."

They'd tell their friends, their kids, their grandkids.

It wasn't the fabric.

Nor the quality.

Nor the design.

But what that little t-shirt meant.

And there's the lesson.

Meaning matters.

In fact, it's what drives us.

That's why people choose lower quality things without caring.

That's why they pay more for a symbol.

That's why one brand can be worth more than another, even if they offer almost the same thing.

That's why someone doesn't buy "a cell phone."

They buy an iPhone.

Because they don't just want the object.

They want what that object says about them.

And companies that understand this sell differently.

They sell more.

They spend less.

And they stop begging.

Because when your product means something, you don't have to chase so much.

Customers want it.

Like little fish fighting over a cracker.

If you want to start making what you sell mean more, I have a 6-step guide.

Reply with 6 and I'll send it to you.

Carlos

Serving is the way.

P.S. I'm going to basketball again today.

And yes, I'm going to try to catch a little t-shirt.

Maybe I'll have a story to tell.

---

Shopology S.A. de C.V.

Av. Pacífico 468 Local C, Coyoacán, Ciudad de México, CP 04330, México.

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