The problem with taking offense is that it's really hard to figure out what to do with it after you're done using it. Better to just leave it on the table and walk away. Umbrage untaken quietly disappears.
Seth GodinRead
People rarely buy what they need. They buy what they want.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Consumers are driven more by their desires than by their necessities.
This quote by Seth Godin highlights the fundamental truth of consumer behavior: individuals often prioritize their wants over their actual needs when making purchasing decisions. This insight emphasizes the importance of understanding emotions, aspirations, and desires in marketing strategies, demonstrating that appeal to these elements can be more effective than merely addressing practical requirements.
Themes
ConsumersWantsNeedsMarketingBehavior
In practice
Example use cases
During a marketing presentation, this quote can be used to illustrate the importance of emotional appeal in advertisements.
More from Seth Godin
All quotes →Not adding value is the same as taking it away.
Seth GodinRead
Excellence isn’t about meeting the spec, it’s about setting the spec. It defines what the consumer sees as quality right this minute, and tomorrow, if you’re good, you’ll reset that expectation again
Seth GodinRead
Living with doubt ... is almost always more profitable than living with certainty. _x000D_ People don't like doubt, so they pay money and give up opportunities to avoid it. _x000D_ Entrepreneurshi p is largely about living with doubt. If you need reassurance, you're giving up quite a bit to get it. On the other hand, if you can get in the habit of seeking out uncertainty, you'll have developed a great instinct.
Seth GodinRead
The danger of the Web is that you can go from idea to public announcement in under ten minutes.
Seth GodinRead
Art isn't only a painting. Art is anything that is creative, passionate and personal. Art is the unique work of a human being created to touch another. Art is created to have an impact, to change someone else.
Seth GodinRead
Similar quotes
You can say the right thing about a product and nobody will listen. You’ve got to say it in such a way that people will feel it in their gut. Because if they don’t feel it, nothing will happen.
William BernbachRead
Between two products equal in price, function and quality, the one with the most attractive exterior will win.
Raymond LoewyRead
Your story needs to move people’s spirits and build their goodwill, so that when you finally do ask them to buy from you, they feel like you’ve given them so much it would be almost rude to refuse.
Gary VaynerchukRead
Provide good content and you’ll earn the right to promote your product.
Guy KawasakiRead
We read advertisements... to discover and enlarge our desires. We are always ready - even eager - to discover, from the announcement of a new product, what we have all along wanted without really knowing it.
Daniel J. BoorstinRead
The advertisers who believe in the selling power of jingles have never had to sell anything.
David OgilvyRead