Comments on: Credibility from stating the obvious http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/ Made to Stick Blog by Dan and Chip Heath Thu, 13 Nov 2008 05:22:57 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: jen_chan, writer SureFireWealth.com http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/comment-page-1/#comment-4486 jen_chan, writer SureFireWealth.com Tue, 02 Oct 2007 07:43:49 +0000 http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/#comment-4486 By not hiding your product's limitations, you appear more real. Customers tend to trust you even more because they know they won't encounter unwanted "surprises" down the road. Though I think there is a proper way of going about it... By not hiding your product’s limitations, you appear more real. Customers tend to trust you even more because they know they won’t encounter unwanted “surprises” down the road. Though I think there is a proper way of going about it…

]]> By: Barry http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/comment-page-1/#comment-4472 Barry Mon, 01 Oct 2007 07:19:57 +0000 http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/#comment-4472 The water in San Francisco may be good enough to drink from the tap, but in Los Angeles, our idiotic City Council mandated the addition of fluoride, a known carcinogen, with the idea of raising the quality of dental care for poor minority children. As a consequence, I even buy bottked water for my dog and would never drink our tap water. The fact that a point is valid in one location doesn't mean that all of the variables are the same somewhere else and you therefor can't extrapolate a generalization from the first point of reference. The water in San Francisco may be good enough to drink from the tap, but in Los Angeles, our idiotic City Council mandated the addition of fluoride, a known carcinogen, with the idea of raising the quality of dental care for poor minority children. As a consequence, I even buy bottked water for my dog and would never drink our tap water. The fact that a point is valid in one location doesn’t mean that all of the variables are the same somewhere else and you therefor can’t extrapolate a generalization from the first point of reference.

]]> By: Dan Heath http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/comment-page-1/#comment-4369 Dan Heath Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:06:27 +0000 http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/#comment-4369 Thanks David. And Steve, I think if I'd read the subtext as "we didn't try too hard to find good ones ... lackadaisical effort," then I'd probably agree with you. That wasn't my read on it. Thanks David. And Steve, I think if I’d read the subtext as “we didn’t try too hard to find good ones … lackadaisical effort,” then I’d probably agree with you. That wasn’t my read on it.

]]> By: Steve Rowley http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/comment-page-1/#comment-4345 Steve Rowley Tue, 25 Sep 2007 05:03:30 +0000 http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/#comment-4345 I'm a big fan of the blog, but I have to admit I had exactly the opposite reaction. Being a wine enthusiast, I followed the link before reading the rest of the post, and when I reached the exact sentence quoted, I quit reading and went back to the post. My reaction was "hey, they didn't try that hard to find good wines, so why should I read any more?" I was surprised when I got back to the post to find it devoted to praising the very line that made me lose interest. Not an invalid point in principle, but this example didn't fit. If the story's author admitted that maybe it's impossible to find the best of the best, that would be credible, but the "we drank some cheap wines, and we didn't try too hard to find good ones, but read on to hear the results of our lackadaisical effort," approach had the opposite effect on me. I’m a big fan of the blog, but I have to admit I had exactly the opposite reaction. Being a wine enthusiast, I followed the link before reading the rest of the post, and when I reached the exact sentence quoted, I quit reading and went back to the post. My reaction was “hey, they didn’t try that hard to find good wines, so why should I read any more?” I was surprised when I got back to the post to find it devoted to praising the very line that made me lose interest. Not an invalid point in principle, but this example didn’t fit. If the story’s author admitted that maybe it’s impossible to find the best of the best, that would be credible, but the “we drank some cheap wines, and we didn’t try too hard to find good ones, but read on to hear the results of our lackadaisical effort,” approach had the opposite effect on me.

]]> By: David Rendall http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/comment-page-1/#comment-4295 David Rendall Mon, 24 Sep 2007 01:01:42 +0000 http://www.madetostick.com/blog/2007/09/21/credibility-from-stating-the-obvious/#comment-4295 Fantastic! Your example was the perfect complement to my last blog entry about admitting weaknesses in job interviews. When trying to get a job, most people try to hide their limitations and fear the consequences of being open about them. Your post provides another strong reason to be honest. I just posted a new entry, SalesFreak, and linked to your blog and book. Thanks for the material. Dave Fantastic! Your example was the perfect complement to my last blog entry about admitting weaknesses in job interviews. When trying to get a job, most people try to hide their limitations and fear the consequences of being open about them. Your post provides another strong reason to be honest. I just posted a new entry, SalesFreak, and linked to your blog and book. Thanks for the material.

Dave

]]>