I believe that the human brain has a deep rooted response to small differences. This response’s purpose is to keep you alive. Predators do their best to ensure that you don’t see them coming so what you do see is in the details. The tip of a branch is broken, something smells a bit off, or it is too quiet. Your conscious mind might not even notice, but you feel on edge.
Our predators have changed from wolves to deceptive salespeople, but our deep rooted response still kicks in. And it is the details that matter more than the big red flags. Someone might just be really different and that is weird to you, but you can write that off to diversity. But a small difference, a feeling that the person is just a little bit odd, triggers a bigger response. You don’t know why, but you don’t trust that person.
So let’s say your a good business person, like most of you are. Are you paying enough attention to those details? If you’re a plumber and you’re wearing shiny shoes, I might not trust you. Or if the fonts on your business card are very similar, but not the same. Or if your logo looks different on your business card than it does on your website.
Each of these is another little flag that can immediately influence a deep rooted fear response in someone’s brain – a response that person is probably not even aware of. You don’t want that. Pay attention to those details. None is too small.