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Today’s Monday Morning Quote discusses the relationship between Impact Quotient (Relevancy) and Repetition, and comes from Seth Godin and his book, Unleashing the Ideavirus

“It’s foolish to expect that one exposure to your message will instantly convert someone from stranger to raving ideavirus spreading fan. So plan on a process. Plan on a method that takes people from where they are to where you want them to go.” – Seth Godin

Businesses build lobbies that they rarely use, giant atriums with big windows and lots of empty space. It’s a waste, it’s expensive and it’s beautiful. It’s beautiful because it’s expensive.”
Allow me to be clear: Beauty isn’t the message.

Seth is describing conspicuous consumption. Introduced by economist and sociologist Thorstein Veblen in his 1899 book, The Theory of the Leisure Class, conspicuous consumption explains that wealthy individuals communicate their status by wasting money on expensive things: First class trips to Europe. BMW’s. Lavish homes.

Likewise, the woman described in Seth’s blog doesn’t spend $173 per week on her hair to demonstrate her beauty. No, $50 bucks can accomplish that.

Wasting a ridiculous amount of one’s wealth on hair styling is a status symbol. Seth’s acquaintance wants the world to know that she’s wealthy. That’s why she spends the money. You know it. I know it. And she knows it.

Here’s how this concept applies to business: Large banks spend money on ornate marble lobbies to communicate success and prestige. A transfer of confidence.

You see, banks aren’t in the business of beauty. They’re in the business of investing money. And they want your trust. End of story.

Surface Cues: Unreliable Predictors of the Buying Experience

Seth Godin recently commented on the phenomenon of signaling on his blog. But Seth’s post focuses solely on what I’d classify as surface cues.

Surface cues are superficial signals having a low degree of signal strength. Examples in business and marketing include employee dress codes, flashy vinyl lettering on delivery trucks and the number of years in business. Unreliable and untrustworthy, consumers are left to rely on these flaccid indicators to help them navigate the marketplace. The reason for this reliance: Most business owners and marketers neglect the signals their decisions send. And in the absence of meaningful signals, consumers will look for anything to tip the scales.

But as Seth Godin correctly indicated – marketers and consumers both must beware of these types of signals. To empower you, here are the three defining characteristics of a surface cue:

1. Surface cues are cheap – costing the business owner very little – and therefore will do little to move the needle on the customer’s “Who Cares Meter.”
2. Surface cues are superficial, heavily subjective and do not accurately predict the buying experience. These cues are influenced by fashion, trends and fads. The end result: Surface cues have an expiration date.
3. Surface cues have a low degree of exclusivity, which does little to help your customers filter their choices. Every decision your customer makes involves a comparison of choices. And the exclusivity of a signal is the degree to which you create meaningful contrast between you and your competition.

Here’s the bottom line: Signaling with a high degree of signal strength is a powerful and persuasive way to win your customer’s trust. I’ve long contended that a carefully constructed signal can slice through the clutter of ad-speak and take your business to heights your competition would be afraid to climb. The key is understanding the factors behind a signal’s strength.

Additional Methods to Elevate Your Credibility:

After years of study, I’ve determined there are just six assets your business can risk or spend to elevate the believability of your marketing message. I’ve named these assets the Six Currencies of Credibility.

Learn more about the Six Currencies of Credibility and how they act as an operating system for managing your actions and the signals you send.