Yesterday, one of your fellow cultists—er, readers—wrote in with trembling hands:
Lol can you elaborate on stolen car guy?
Lol yes I can, Debbie.
Let’s talk about Bill.
“Gotta Reschedule, Car Got Stolen”
A few days ago, I was supposed to hop on a sales call with Bill.
(Y’all can call it an onboarding call, a discovery call, whatever. I call it what it is: a sales call. Because that’s what I’m doing—sellin’.)
Bill needed help with his website and sales messaging—specifically, making it painfully obvious why he was #1 compared to the competition.
Bill had a great offer, but his website wasn’t doing him any favors. Just like 97% of businesses.
So there I was—button-up shirt, sweatpants, notes in hand, ready to roll—when this text infiltrated my phone:
“Hey, I’m gonna need to reschedule. Just left the office and couldn’t find my car. Guess it got stolen.”
…Excuse me?
Normally, I have a strict NO LAST-MINUTE CANCELLATIONS policy.
Because let’s be real—99% of last-minute cancellations are BS.
We’re living in the Age of the Flake.
And that means a One Strike policy for new clients:
🚫 You don’t show up the first time? There’s no second time.
So imagine my Crayola-12-pack surprise when, 30 minutes later, I got this:
“Can we chat now? I’m in an Uber on the way to the police station.”
Guess what?
I DID take the call.
And Bill ended up being a fantastic client.
Could I have known that beforehand? Nope.
Could Bill have been a major time-waster, making me look like a fool for breaking my rule? Absolutely.
So why did I do it?
The Power of Intrigue in Marketing (and Sales Calls)
One word: Intrigue.
Right now, intrigue is the single biggest motivator in marketing.
Not even self-interest.
Yes, that means ads that lead with intrigue and curiosity routinely outperform ads that focus purely on benefits.
Crazy, right?
Why “Curiosity Gaps” Sell Better Than Benefits
It’s simple:
Curiosity creates an open loop in the brain.
An itch that has to be scratched.
Take a headline like:
👉 “How a pickpocket cured my back pain.”
It’s not the “cured my back pain” part that gets attention.
It’s the “pickpocket” part.
How in the world does a pickpocket of all people cure back pain?
Well…I have no clue.
But you want to find out.
That’s the power of curiosity-driven messaging.
What Does This Mean for Your Marketing?
Most businesses default to self-interest messaging:
❌ “Save 30% on insurance today!”
❌ “We offer fast, reliable service!”
❌ “Get the best deal now!”
Problem? Nobody cares.
Because nobody wakes up in the morning desperate for another generic offer.
What they do care about? A story. A mystery. A reason to keep reading.
That’s why 80/20 Copy—my copywriting guide—dives deep into how to write headlines, hooks, and sales pages that make people say:
“What on EARTH is that? I must find out…”
Want to Make Your Sales Messaging Impossible to Ignore?
If your marketing isn’t stopping people in their tracks, you’re losing money.
Fix it.
📩 Join my email list for more no-BS insights on what actually works.
