Study Shows No One Knows Which Diets Work Best
“A review of 10 separate studies of weight-loss programs showed there was very little hard data to support any commercial or nonprofit diet approach, the researchers found. Only Weight Watchers had scientific research to back up its simple approach of keeping a food diary and focusing on low-calorie foods, especially vegetables and whole grains, they wrote in the Annals of Internal Medicine.”
There are a couple of subtle messages here. First, it doesn’t matter that the programs literally work or not. Instead, people want to believe the programs work. In other words, people want to try the diets because they have hope. The diet programs feed on this hope. It is all about emotion. Second, this is another example of how data doesn’t really matter to people when they are making decisions. Once again, what matters is the sizzle not the steak. Put another way, managing expections is a critical success factor for these diet plans.
Are you selling hope and do you deliver on your promises? Do you do a good job managing expectations? Do you have data or not? Does it matter for your business or not?