Take a deep breath…

…And relax.

Because today I’m going to show you how to turn any product into something people will be so eager to buy, that they’ll throw all reason out of the window!

And it all begins with a bit of heavy breathing.

Okay, so the story begins two decades ago (long before I got into high-intensity training) when Heloise and I took up Pilates.

The idea is that you build up your core strength through low-impact movements and deep breath-work.

There was a studio in Islington, full of machines known as ‘reformers’, where I’d get coached (one-to-one) in a variety of exercises to the sound of classical music.

At that time, the clients were mainly people recovering from injuries, desk workers (like me) with back pain, pregnant women and elderly folk battling arthritis and osteoporosis.

It has since become trendier with younger people thanks to endorsements from celebrities like

Jennifer Aniston, Margot Robbie and David Beckham.

But Pilates is still largely viewed as a middle-class pursuit, popular with the wellness brigade and hipsters who video themselves eating goji berries on Instagram.

It’s popular because the exercises are slow and gentle – focusing on inner strength and mindfulness.

Which makes it all the more hilarious what happened in a London branch of Aldi last Bank Holiday weekend.

The Great Pilates FIGHT!

On Sunday 25th, Aldi launched their own super-cheap version of a Pilates reformer machine for £150.

Bear in mind that these can cost as much as £2,000 – £6,000.

So that was some deal!

Even before the launch, fitness influencers on social media had been hyping up the discounted machine, creating a viral online buzz.

One even joked that when these reformers hit the famous ‘middle aisle’ of Aldi, the outcome would be ‘like the Hunger Games’.

Well, that wasn’t too far from the truth.

On the launch day, there were massive queues for Aldis across the UK, with three-hour waits at some stores.

In one London branch, there were chaotic scenes, shared on TikTok, as FIGHTS broke out over discounted Pilates machines.

Seriously!

Customers were arguing, tug-of-warring over the boxes, or sitting on them to stop anyone else getting hold of one.

So what was going on here?

Is it the case that Pilates has suddenly become so popular with the masses that some folk will beat each other to death to get hold of a machine?

Well, possibly.

But my guess is that 99% of these customers will use it once, then stick it under the bed (or in the loft or garage) to gather dust.

While I did Pilates for only four years, Heloise has continued with it, doing virtual classes with her private instructor in the comfort of our home.

She bought a collapsible reformer a few years ago on QVC (for a lot more than £150) but she has used it maybe once or twice!

So here’s what I think is REALLY going on….

And it comes with a bunch of valuable lessons for anyone who wants to make a lot of money very quickly from a home business!

Lesson One – Perceived Value

First up, if you have a product or service to sell, the key is to elevate the perceived value.

For example, let’s say you are selling a ‘how to’ guide for £97.

That might seem to some people like a VERY expensive book.

But if you can show that your ‘how to’ guide will deliver a significant life-changing result (like earning £1,000 a month, getting a £50K per year job, or putting an end to back pain) then that £97 suddenly seems VERY cheap.

Especially if you can then show that the same advice would usually cost £497 or more to get elsewhere.

This is what happened in Aldi…

Pilates is seen as the hobby of wealthy, trendy, successful people, which immediately raises its perceived value.

Then you have fitness influencers talking about the benefits of Pilates, including more strength, less pain, better protection against ageing, and clearer mental focus.

So that’s even MORE perceived value in terms of the ultimate life outcome it promises.

On top of that, the equipment is notoriously expensive, with reformers costing £2000+, and weekly classes costing £30+.

So when a machine appears on the market for £150, that’s almost an INSANE price.

In fact, early buyers of the Aldi reformers have been reselling them on eBay for £465, according to the Daily Mail.

No wonder people were fighting to get hold of one – even those with little interest in actually doing Pilates.

Lesson Two – Limited Availability

Why were people so desperate to queue up for hours to get into Aldi and then wrestle with a stranger to get hold of an exercise machine?

Purely because there were a limited number of them.

Everyone knew that these would sell out quickly, so the only way to guarantee they got one was to be there early on the launch day.

The same principle works in an online business.

If you create a product or service, then limit the number of copies or places, you’ll create scarcity.

It means that when you launch, people will be too afraid to wait in case they miss out, so you’ll get a huge pile-on during the first day – sometimes even the first hour!

The same applies when you’re closing an offer – let people know that this won’t be available again, and you’ll see a big take-up in the final day.

Lesson Three – Pre-Launch Publicity

The scenes in Aldi would never have happened without the viral social media buzz that spread before the product was launched.

People were already primed and ready to act!

The same applies to any new product or service you might want to launch.

If you can get the message out there that something exciting and unmissable is about to happen, you’ll have more people chomping at the bit to buy.

It doesn’t have to be that you ‘go viral’ on TikTok or other social media channels.

Obviously, yes, if you have a following on social media then that’s a great place to start (teaser videos work really well!).

But even if you aren’t on social media, you can also do it by building an email list and warming up your audience with lots of enticing details about the coming offer.

Or you can set up an online webinar or presentation that you promote with a sponsored campaign on Facebook, which gets potential customers primed for your launch.

You could also send some PR out to news outlets and specialist websites…

Or you could get on some niche forums which are relevant to your product or service, and talk about your offering there.

So there you have it…

Three Secrets of a Surprise Bestseller!

You’d never imagine that a Pilates machine would cause outbreaks of mayhem in a supermarket on a Sunday….

But these three magic ingredients made it happen:

• High Perceived Value
• Limited Availability
• Pre-launch PublicityIf you want to make your first online product sell fast, then think about

ways you can include on (or all) of these elements.

And if you are creating a product or service at the moment and would like advice on how to make it fly, please hit ‘reply’ and tell me more!