Quick Tip: Ideas occur to you at the strangest of times – this post has been reconstructed from 1 am bedside table notes.

The other night while at dinner with friends, I was silently suffering with a fairly severe head cold. I was completely blocked up and had  a nasty sinus headache. Anyway my more muted than usual demeanor eventually attracted attention and the inevitable explanation followed by a house wide search for suitable flu medication.

Eventually two options were presented…

Which one did I go for?

• The one that was better sold
• The one that was presented with facts, the side of the box displayed with the magical words “for relieve of sinus congestion”
• The one with the insistent pitch
• The one with explicit packaging
• Lets call it the blue pill

Which one didn’t I go for?

• The one I should have gone with.
• The pill put forward by the experienced user, and someone who also occasionally suffers from similar sinus related torture
• The referral
• The red pill

Now why did I do that?

Effective marketing within a specific situation.

It was before dinner so, people were politely waiting while the two hosts proffered their versions of the miracle cure. So etiquette dictated that  I should make my mind up quickly so people could get some food on their plates.

The one host was insistent, gave me numerous reasons in quick succession, showed me the packaging with the correct phrase and put the blue pill in my hand.

The other host stood there patiently in the background, and said “this is what I take.”

The first approach requires very little thinking or comparison on the part of the consumer. All the information that is supposedly needed is given in a very short space of time. The claims made by this seller are backed up by facts in black and white immediately. Furthermore there is no barrier to having the product right now, theres the always appreciated instant gratification.

Had I had more time to think, my mind would have caught up to the situation and told me to take the red pill, the one offered by the person that actually takes them for the same reason. The experienced referral. My thinking is that given time to make a comparison and to sort out information overload, we shift towards referrals making the decision for us. We look for cars, or computer deals, or anything with numerous possible options and then use referrals of the people close to us to help us pick one. But in a time limited situation we go for the option that answers the most questions first. We seemingly choose the path of least resistance.

I thought this a was an interesting little marketing situation that deserved some thought and could provide some insight. Was this an isolated case or does this have some merit? I’d love to hear your thoughts.