Keith Goodrum

April 15th is the perfect example of a powerful deadline. In the USA, we all know this date, the mention of it can raise the hairs on the back of your neck. Of course April 15th is the deadline for filing your taxes.

This time of year brings about two types of filers: the one that rushes to file early because they’re likely owed a fat tax refund; and the other type of filer that drags their feet because they likely owe more taxes or just good at procrastination.

The early filers set a self imposed deadline and get their taxes done. They want their money now (albeit overpaid to the gov’t in the first place) and rush to get it back as quickly as possible.

The procrastinators, who likely owe money, wait until April 15th to file their taxes. The country is buzzing with people rushing around trying to beat the IRS deadline. You can feel the energy in the air…..counting down to midnight, driving up to the one post office in the area that’s still open to provide the all important April 15th postmark….making the deadline.

So why does the IRS impose a deadline?

Because they know if they waited for people to get around to filing, about 80% would put it off indefinitely. Not only has the IRS set a deadline, but they impose stiff penalties if you miss it.

When marketing to my window cleaning customers I was afraid to impose a deadline. I thought it would limit the number of customers that would respond to my offer. I thought a deadline would limit my potential income because there would be customers who missed out.

I Finally Started Using Deadlines… But I Screwed It UP!

I finally put a deadline on my marketing material… But I was a chicken, and had the offer expire in 6 weeks! So, guess what happened?

Well, for the first 5 weeks nothing. Then on the 6th week I would receive a couple of phone calls. But, the last 48 hours the phones got busy. Customers waited for the deadline before they called. I ran the same ad 3 more times, each time with the same 6 week expiration. Finally (18 weeks later) the light bulb switched on… I can be a slow learner.

After reviewing my customer’s response patterns, I realized I had to set a shorter deadline. I couldn’t wait 6 weeks for customers to get around to calling me. I needed to create a sense of urgency that they would miss out on a great deal if they didn’t call me a.s.a.p. I got bold and put a one week deadline on my coupon. I was scared to make a deadline so short, and was convinced it would backfire. Boy was I ever wrong. The flyers went out, and the response was great. The shorter deadline had created a greater sense of urgency.

Of course, I pretended I knew it would work all along. I had found the optimal deadline.

Short deadlines will really put fire into your offers. Don’t be afraid to use them, and it will add a sense of urgency into your offer.