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Imagine this…

It’s late.

You get home after a long drive. You sit in the driver’s seat, getting your things together before you head out into the cold.

Ping.

Goodie, you’re expecting a text from your bestie to plan a get-together.

It’s a notification from your bank.

Gulp.

You know it’s been a heavy month. Every other meal was some sort of takeout. You’ve been letting your hair down recently. It’s been one of those months.

New clothes. Ubereats. Lunches.

Life is for living right?

But then you do the mental math…

$400 + $300 + $200 + $50 + …

Your stomach drops.

You hoover your thumb over the notification.

You think about it. It’s likely going to be bad news.

And let’s be honest, you don’t need that right now.

So what do you do? Do you read the message or ignore it?

In today’s edition of Why We Buy 🧠, we’ll explore the Ostrich Effect —why we avoid bad news rather than facing it.

Let’s get into it.
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🧠 The Psychology of the Ostrich Effect

Coined in 2003, the Ostrich Effect was first observed by researchers Dan Galai and Orly Sade when studying the behaviors of investors in financial markets. They noticed a strange phenomenon where investors avoided negative information rather than facing it.

The name comes from the myth that ostriches bury their heads in the sand (turns out ostriches don’t actually bury their heads in the sand. They fall down and stay still to avoid being seen. LOL. But the name stuck).

The Ostrich Effect isn’t limited to financial situations. Researchers have seen the same effect in healthcare, weight loss, and even climate change.

This next study really blew my mind…

In 2014, Banerjee & Zanella wanted to understand the impact of the Ostrich Effect on the likelihood of getting a mammogram. In the presence of a co-worker diagnosed with breast cancer, women were 8% less likely to get a mammogram. It seems when bad news is spatially closer, the Ostrich Effect increases.

It’s that classic ‘it’ll go away if I don’t pay it attention’ mindset. And we do it in all areas of life, usually unconsciously.

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🧐 Inside Your Buyer’s Mind

A boatload of emotions surround sensitive topics like health, relationships, well-being, and finances.

Your prospective customers may know they should make a change, but fear keeps them stuck.

You may sell a product or service that buyers desperately need, but if you’re not strategic in how you deliver your message, you could unintentionally scare them off.
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🤑 How To Apply This

Alright, so how can you apply this right now to sell more?
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E-commerce​
Use humor to reframe sensitive topics

When faced with a potentially embarrassing situation, what lightens the mood better than any other trick in the book?

​Humor.

Use it to lighten the mood, demystify the embarrassing topic, kill the Ostrich Effect, and ultimately land more sales.

Thix’s tagline, “Keep Your Hair On” is a double entendre. If you’re immature like me, it will definitely make you giggle.

Tech​
Use gamification to motivate users

People often prioritize pleasure today over our future prosperity. Behavior scientists call this Hyperbolic Discounting.
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​How can you help people to do more of the stuff they already know they should do?​
​
1. Make it fun
2. Make not doing it painful or scary

Duolingo gets it. They know learning a new language can feel overwhelming so they’ve gamified the process to make it fun.

​

Check out this Duolingo case study for more details.

Retail & Hospitality​
Sell the benefit while avoiding hot-button words

Choosing the right words matters. Some words empower buyers while others make them bury their heads in the sand (aka. they don’t buy).
​
Halo Top does something very clever with its tub designs. They know people who are “dieting” probably don’t think they can have ice cream.
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So instead of saying anything about weight loss, which might evoke the Ostrich Effect, they simply state the number of calories per tub.
​
Genius.

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Service Businesses​
Help buyers visualize a better future

It’s easy to get stuck in the here and now. But if you want buyers to do something good for “future them”, you need to shift their focus and help them visualize the future.

You can do this through the images and copy in your marketing materials. Or you can take it a step further, like this:

​SOURCE​

Imagine if banks or investment apps used images like this to remind customers to think long-term?

I couldn’t find an example of a business doing this yet, but according to a recent study, this could inspire a game-changing ad campaign for a bank, investment app, or other businesses.
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💥 The Short of It

Some problems are so embarrassing or overwhelming buyers would rather bury their heads in the sand than face them.

It’s your job as a marketer to step into the shoes of your buyer and understand the emotions relating to your product or service.

Look for opportunities to reframe stigmatized products, educate buyers using data, or help buyers visualize a better future.

Until next time, happy selling!