The
Hypnotic Power of Confusion
- by Joe Vitale
"Did
you walk to work or carry a lunch?"
Huh?
My
father asked me that question more than 25 years
ago. I still remember it. Why? Because it's a ridiculous
question.
A
famous comedian in the 1950s used to ask people,
"Got a banana?" The question might make
sense if asked in the right situation, but he asked
it everywhere. I've forgotten the name of the comedian,
but I still recall his question. Why? Because it's
strange.
As
I write this, I am creating new business cards for
myself. I decided to add a confusing line to it.
After some fun brainstorming with my girlfriend,
I settled on, "Ask me about the monkey."
Why
is "Ask me about the monkey?" worth putting
on my business card? As with my father's question
and the comedian's question, it stops your brain
in its tracks. It makes you pause. It makes you
focus on ME. The theory is that once you stop someone
with a confusing line, you can then implant a hypnotic
command right after it.
In
other words, if I write something like, "Apples
desk fly
dirt," and then follow it with, "Read
my new ebook," the chances are very high that
you are going to want to read my new ebook.
Why?
Because the first line jammed your mind, and the
second line slipped into your brain while you weren't
looking. I've just upped the odds that you will
buy my new e-book. And if you don't, of course,
it doesn't matter because I never really told you
to go buy it. See?
The
same thing will happen on my new business cards.
Since I'm now known as "The World's First Hypnotic
Marketer," I wanted a strange, confusing line
on my new card. When someone sees, "Ask
me about the monkey," and then asks me about
the monkey, I can simply point out that I practice
hypnotic selling and I just got them to do what
I wanted.
The
Japanese practice this "hypnotic confusion,"
but probably unknowingly. A friend of mine who flew
to Japan reported to me that the English phrases
on all the Japanese products were bizarre. A tube
of toothpaste might say, "Green days you not
sing." A box of cookies might say, "Wood
above fish."
How
can you use this secret right now? Don't be afraid
to be confusing. People tend to sort out whatever
you say anyway and make sense out of it using their
own terms. If you are describing your product in
great detail, be willing to toss in something odd.
It may increase sales.
If
not, swirl up!
Joe
Vitale is recognized by many to be one of the
greatest living copywriters. His latest project,
the Hypnotic Writer's Swipe File is a collection
of over 1,550 copywriting gems that took him years
to compile. This is his personal swipe file that
he uses to create world famous sales letters responsible
for generating millions and millions of dollars
of revenue. Click here 
to learn more.