The contrast trigger shows us that the perception of something changes when it is compared to something else.
This is often why you will see a price tag on a retail item that has been crossed out with a lower price. Imagine walking into a store to buy a pair of jeans that you have been looking for. You have been debating about whether or not you really want to spend the money on another pair of jeans but you’ve convinced yourself that you need them and you’ll probably buy them if you can find them “at the right price”. You find the jeans in your size and look at the price tag which says $79.
You begin to wonder if the $79 is the right price. Now imagine if that same thing had happened again only this time the price tag said $110 slashed down to $79. Now, compared to the $110 price tag, the $79 seems like a good deal but in reality it’s the same price. The only thing that changed was your perception once it was compared to something else. This is the contrast trigger in action. We see this in sales all the time.
We make a presentation, and when we get to the price point we always set a higher price which becomes discounted down to a lower price so the prospect feels like they are getting a deal. If I'm selling you something for $50, and I presented it at $50 you will look at that figure and think for a few seconds about what that figure means to you based on previous experience, values and general beliefs. You will then decide whether or not $50 is - in your opinion - a lot of money.
But if I presented the product to you and told you that it costs $300, but you could get it for $50, that product instantly appears more valuable to you. That's how the trigger of contrast works. You take something, compare it to something else and you instantly change the perception of what you are presenting to other people.
There are several ways to use the contrast trigger. You can either add more benefits/rewards or reduce the consequences/risks. All you simply need to do is present the situation in a way that you know the other party will not like and then re-present it again in a manner that seems more beneficial to them.
As I said before, each one of us perceives things in a different way but we all perceive each thing that we see differently when we compare it to something else. It is for this reason that a person weighing 200 pounds looks thinner when standing next to someone that weighs 300 pounds but looks heavier when standing next to someone that weighs 175 pounds. This is how the human mind makes comparisons.
Another way to use the contrast trigger is to create a different frame of reference to shift someone's focus. What this does is completely change the perspective by which the other party is seeing things. The best time to apply the contrast trigger in this format is when there is a part of your presentation that you feel may deter the other party.
For example, if you were selling a car that was due for a tune up at 100,000 miles and the car already had 90,000 miles on it, instead of saying this car will need a tune up in the next 10,000 miles, you can focus on how the car can have 100,000 miles before getting its first tune-up.
The effectiveness of the contrast trigger (or any trigger for that matter) can also vary greatly because of timing and circumstance. For example, let's say I work for a multilevel marketing company and I was trying to find new recruits. Let's assume you had some interest in getting involved but you already had a full-time job that demanded a lot of your time.
In presenting the benefits and rewards that you receive by becoming involved, I would focus on the extra income that you would earn. You would then decide whether or not it would be worth the extra time that you would have to invest to make that extra income. But had I made that presentation to you on the same day that you just lost your job, you would see things much differently.
Because of the timing, I can now use the contrast trigger in a way where I am comparing multilevel marketing income as primary income rather than extra income. What this example clearly illustrates is that our ability to behave and make decisions can be greatly impacted at any moment depending on timing and circumstances.
Therefore, when using the trigger of contrast, make sure that you are always aware of the level of pain, pleasure, reward or consequence as it pertains to the other party.