I’ve been flossing since I was a kid. Yes, it has been a long and established habit of my dental hygiene. Everyday, for years, I have been stringing out the floss from the little container, yanking back against the little metal piece to break it to the appropriate length, twirling it between my two index fingers (the proper way to do it), and then running the floss through all my teeth thereby removing the lodged food particles associated with gingivitis and (the dreaded) halitosis.
The routine was established into a technique, and the technique was placed into my daily habit autopilot. Invariably the floss I used would break, fray, and most of the time get caught between by tightly spaced teeth. Annoying, but I lived with the inconvenience. I did not think to “search for a solution”.
One day, after my regular dental checkup, my dentist gave me a sample of a “new” kind of dental floss. The new stuff promised to glide between my teeth, without fraying, breaking, or getting caught. I tried it. I was amazed. It didn’t break, didn’t fray, didn’t get caught. This is the only brand of dental floss I now buy, but it took someone physically placing it into my hand through a trial package to get me to switch.
Why?
Living with the frayed thread of flossing was part of my routine. I didn’t know that I had any other option. As well, the level of “pain” was not high enough to get me to actively search for another solution, so I just continued with the inertia of my previous “habit”.
This also happened with my previous favorite brand of shaving blades. I loved my Trac 2 twin blade system, and when the three blade version came along, I tried and switched to that. When they offered a 4 blade system, and then a 5 blade, I asked myself “what’s next, a 16 blade version?” It sounded silly to me, UNTIL I was given a 5 blade system to try along with gel based shaving cream. The result, the closest shave I’ve ever had, with next to no cuts.
Both situations illustrate the necessity of a “try” offer in your marketing. Most people cannot imagine what’s possible as easily as they can TRY the EXPERIENCE for themselves.
