Why does the last biscuit in the jar make your mouth water? While helping a friend find a house, I witnessed an interesting technique to “close the sale”. On 3 different occasions when my friend showed interest in a house, the real estate agent called her within 2 days & said, “someone else put an offer for the house. If we don’t make an offer now, we might lose it”.

What intrigued me was my friend’s reaction. Each time the real estate agent called, her interest in the aforementioned property went up a couple notches. As an objective bystander, I remained unaffected after the 1st call (I must admit, I was taken in the 1st time too) but it worked on my friend (who was more involved)

All of us fall for the “scarcity syndrome” at some point. When we are deprived of an option, we suddenly deem it more attractive.

1. Children fight over trivial objects viz marbles when they are in short supply

2. At a crowded sale, we buy things that we wouldn’t normally buy because it’s the last set

3. Ask game enthusiasts how much more valuable PS-5 has become because its in short supply

A typical response to scarcity is a lapse in clear thinking!!

The solution:

Assess products &services, only on their price&benefits. Not on if they are fast disappearing

When did you fall for the scarcity syndrome?