Make It Easy for Me

Raise your hand if you have ever tried to buy anything online, or in a store for that matter, and given up because the line was too long or the process too difficult.

I see a lot of raised hands.  And yet, wasn’t that the initial secret of Amazon’s success?  It was fast, convenient and easy to use.

I still remember sitting in a poetry class in the late 1990’s when the teacher asked us to buy books by a variety of poets.  “Some of these books may be difficult to find,” he said.

“Why not order them on Amazon?” I said.

“What’s an ‘Amazon’?” he said.

Believe it or not there was a time when Amazon, the company, was little known.  Amazon didn’t sell its first product, books, to the public until July, 1995.  I used to shop in bookstores often, but I found Amazon much easier to use.  Just a few clicks separated me from virtually any book I wanted. And then they arrived at my desk a few days later.  The Amazon web site was easy to understand and easy to use.  That’s why it appealed to me then, and why it appeals to me now.  There’s a lot to be said for instant (or at least quick and easy) gratification.

So why not rip a crucial page out of the Amazon playbook.  Whenever you want someone else to do something for you, make it easy for them.

If I wanted my father to attend a play with me, all I had to do was to tell him I would buy the tickets and pick him up.  If I want to have lunch with you I might offer to pick you up and take you to your favorite restaurant, my treat.

In short, lay out a road that is attractive and an easy downhill coast for me, rather than one full of potholes that is steep and arduous.

Now that I think about it, I’m going to use that technique more often – on myself.

Alan