January 14th, 2025
Last week, I introduced the "information gap," a psychological phenomenon that explains why some marketing grabs attention while most gets ignored. This week, I'll show you how to create these gaps.
While I'll use some real estate examples, the techniques work in any business where you want a prospect to say yes.
The principle is simple: hint at value, withhold the mechanism, invite pursuit.
Most sales talk spills answers before anyone asks questions. Curiosity-driven communication does the opposite. It opens a loop the listener feels compelled to close.
Three Techniques That Open Loops
First, use "this" or "that" instead of naming the thing. In real estate, that might look like this: "My competitors skip two critical steps, and that is usually why their listings sit unsold."
The word "that" creates a gap. The prospect must keep reading (or listening) to close that gap.
Second, replace declarations with statements that create questions. Instead of "We get sellers 5.8% higher prices," try "There are two simple changes we make that create bidding wars instead of seller price cuts." The first sentence is a claim. The second is a cliffhanger. Same information, but it causes the prospect to want to know more.
Write Like a Suspense Novelist
In today's world, the stakes are higher than ever. Distraction is one click away.
Here are three ways to defeat distraction:
Start with a scene, not a slogan. "The first buyer who walked in offered full price in 12 minutes." That line begs for explanation in a way "We sell at higher prices." never will.
Create a cliffhanger. Begin a story, stop at the turning point, and signal that the key is below the fold or "on the next page." Netflix built an empire on this technique with a sequence of series episodes, each ending with an open loop.
Use "blind" bullets. "The one question that turns a job interview into a job offer." "Why the best fundraisers never talk about money first." You tease the benefit while hiding the how. The reader has to engage to get the answer.
Curiosity in Action
When selling homes, buyers don't know what's inside until they arrive. This creates the perfect scenario for an information gap:
"The one thing you can't see in the photos."
"This home looks underpriced for one reason."
"Most homes make you compromise… but this one cheats."
When your first line creates an information gap in the prospect's mind, they naturally look to you to close it. Once someone starts leaning into their own curiosity, you're no longer pushing a pitch. You're guiding a search they already care about.
The Four-Second Question
There's a reason the most successful salespeople in any industry sound nothing like salespeople. They've discovered something counterintuitive: the moment you stop trying to convince is often the moment people become convinced.
But here's what most don't figure out on their own.
There's a single question you can ask in any sales conversation that opens an information gap leading to the final close where you win the sale. And once you hear it, you'll wonder why you ever sold any other way.
What is that question?
I could leave that loop open to close in my article next week. But I won't.
Instead of asking: "Will you move forward with me instead of my competitors?"
Ask this four-second question that sets you up to get a yes: "What would have to happen for you to feel like choosing me was the right decision?"
The question opens the door. The prospect feels compelled to close it with an answer that tells you what you need to do to make the sale.
