Brownie Sundae

Intelligent business tactics are everywhere if you know where to look.

They often say “Teach me like I’m 5” but instead, this week’s strategy is taught to adult you by a 5-year-old.

Also, your free PDF is waiting at the end of this short story:

As we celebrated my birthday this past weekend, the dessert portion was at a local ice cream shop in St Pete Beach.

You could smell the fresh waffle cones from the parking lot.

Entering this shop is like a sugar lover’s paradise: donuts covered in frosting and fruity pebbles, double chocolate chip brownies, fresh apple pie, chocolate cake, and every flavor of ice cream you can think of.

My 5-year-old was first to order: “May I have chawklat pweez”

(She tends to slide back into baby talk whenever she feels giddy)

But she was decisive and quick to act, though chocolate usually isn’t her favorite.

In the meantime, the rest of us pondered and finally decided on our flavors:

• Superman for BK

• Cookie Dough for Mel

• Brownie Sundae with a cherry for me

Yes, I went big, but only because they had a candle for me and I needed something to put it in. That’s the only reason 😉 

As we sat down, I noticed DJ (the 5yo) soon became very generous.

“You want some of miiiiine?” she kept offering the rest of us.

She began dispersing big spoonfuls of her “Chawklat” ice cream around the table, and I began to realize what this innocent child was doing.

There are so many psychological levels at play here it would take two emails to get through, so I will just break this down into 2 major points.

1. Always lead with value

Why did DJ start offering up her ice cream: kindness? compassion? consideration?

How about Clever?

She inherently understood a lesson I teach clients and that’s the human instinct toward reciprocation.

People don’t like to feel underweight in value. Most of us tend to maintain an uneasy feeling if we feel that we owe somebody something.

It’s in our instinct to want to pay that person back.

So DJ’s strategy of leading with value was to freely offer up some of her ice cream.

In return, each of us felt obligated to share ours with her. So whether of free will or gently reminded by her, she got what she wanted.

The results:

1. We each had our ice cream plus a taste of chawklat.

2. DJ got to enjoy FOUR different flavors of ice cream (plus some brownie and whipped cream)

DJ led with value. No trickery. No manipulation. Simply an intelligent way to be friendly, develop goodwill, and ultimately get the benefit of 4 flavors.

The next tactic she pulled off came to me later in the evening and it’s so simple I can’t believe I didn’t notice it.

2. Take Action

Me: “DJ, how did you know so quickly you wanted chocolate when there were so many options?”

DJ: “Dad you guys take long to pick. So I picked one and I had so much more ice cream than you!”

In her mind, since she was eating her ice cream the whole time the rest of us were picking it means she got to have more.

She took action - and even though her math isn’t quite accurate her sentiment is.

Or so I thought.

Bonus Tip:

Me: “Why did you even pick chocolate, is that your new favorite?”

DJ: “I like it ok, but it’s a good trade”

insert mind-blown emoji here → 🤯 

DJ didn’t even really want the chocolate!!

She strategized her whole plan: Quickly order a flavor you know nobody else would refuse.

So that she could get everything she wanted:

• To eat first

• As much ice cream as possible

• A variety of flavors

DJ chose to acquire a valuable asset that’s highly liquid. She could trade chocolate at any point for something else she wanted.

Imagine if she chose something like Rum Raisin… who TF would’ve traded for that?!

Strategic market positioning was crucial to her desired outcome.

Lead with Value: Start by giving. This makes others want to return the favor.

Take Action: Make decisions and act on them quickly to get ahead.

Positioning: Put yourself in a position to achieve your desired results.

Value for you

I’ve designed a system called IMPACT which is a 6-step process to turn your customers into advocates for your brand.

Click the button for access to your free pdf on the M step which is MOTIVATE, and it’s about you providing value to your customers:

Brian “overweight” Orr

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