What is the cobra effect?

In the best of times, the British colonized Indian lands. If for most colonies, the main problem was racial differences, then people were worried about the local wildlife. The main problem was cobras. They mercilessly killed foreigners who did not know how to handle them. To cope with this problem, the British offered to pay the local population for each head of a snake killed.

It would seem that the problem was solved, what a clever move! But the system failed. Hindus began to breed snakes in their homes to earn as much money as possible. Subsequently, having decided that the threat was eliminated, the reward was canceled. And what did the Hindus do in this case? They set all their cobras free. And the result was that the time before the bounty was introduced seemed like flowers to the British. Since then, the cobra effect has been used to describe all actions that seem brilliant at first glance but ultimately lead to collapse!

The cobra effect in marketing:

1. Your goal is to increase sales. You decide to organize a promotional campaign and incentives for customers. But as we can see from the story we told earlier, incentives are not always a good thing!

Don't think about incentives that target a loyal audience for your product. The incentive should only attract an audience unfamiliar with your business!

2. Increase sales by 20% within 6 months, according to a specific order. The marketer focuses on "selling" the product to anyone. Don't fall into this trap. It always leads only to an increase in refusals and dissatisfaction. Try to sell your product to an already loyal audience. It will be much easier and more enjoyable, because this type of customer already trusts you!

These are just two examples from a huge pot of cobra companies. Being a marketer means being systematic and not neglecting the obvious. Keep these two rules in mind and reap the rewards of juicy results today!