Leisure is optional.

Leisure is, by definition, optional. People can choose to spend their leisure time however they see fit, including doing absolutely nothing. Some research suggests, that in the age of technology, staying home and doom scrolling on the internet is becoming an increasingly popular activity. The more time we spend at home binge watching Netflix and doom scrolling social media, the less time we have for other leisure experiences. It would be far easier to sell things that people find necessary, such as food, housing, health care, working supplies, etc.

Leisure doesn’t solve a problem.

The best way to sell something, as any professional sales coach will tell you, is to help your customers solve a problem. But leisure is what we do with the free time we have after all of our problems are solved. The only problem that leisure businesses solve is helping people decide, “what should I do with my free time right now?”

Leisure is positive

The reason that solving problems is the key to selling is because human psychology shows that people are more focused on the negative. We fear loss more than we appreciate gain, and we pay more attention to the negative news that comes to us. Consumers are more motivated to solve problems than they are to seek pleasure or enjoyment or fulfillment.

When you sell leisure, you compete with everything.

If you are working at a luxury spa in Paris, you probably think that your competition is the other luxury spas in the city. You are competing with the Chanel Spa at the Ritz, the Dior Spa at the Hotel Plaza Athenee or the La Prairie Spa at Le Bristol. That would be bad enough, but the reality is far worse. You are also competing with the Louvre, the Mona Lisa, and the Eiffel Tower. Your competition is not just the other spas in the city; it is all the other leisure experiences that a tourist could choose from in their limited time on a visit to Paris.

The leisure market is infinitely fragmented.

How people choose to spend their time is incredibly subjective and varies widely from one individual to another. One person loves Crossfit, another would rather die than set foot in a Crossfit gym. One person is obsessed with knitting, another would tear out their eyeballs in boredom and frustration after fifteen minutes. One person yearns to climb to the top of Mount Everest, another wants to go on a silent meditation retreat and a third wants to go to an acid rock music festival. Some people (like myself) want to do all three.

Make your leisure experiences feel mandatory.

Successful brands create “must do” experiences. Brands do this by designing inspiring spaces that draw people in and ignite interest, by building a community that generates social pressure, by using the power of celebrity to attract people, or by connecting deeply to culturally significant places, events or activities. When done well, people feel like they “must” experience it.

Link leisure experiences to problems to be solved.

Not all leisure experiences are the same, some help you build health, build relationships, build knowledge, etc. It is possible to solve problems through leisure experiences, but you have to be creative in how you communicate this. We can see an example of this right now in hospitality brands shifting away from “wellness” and towards “longevity.” The longevity offering is essentially wellness re-packaged in a problem-solving orientation.

Amplify the positive or focus on the negative.

It’s not that you can’t sell something positive. You just have to realize that people will shift more of their attention to the negative. So, if you want to sell something positive you have to be 3x more noticeable and 3x more compelling to stand out against more salient negatives that are drawing consumers’ attention. Or you have to focus on the negative sense of “loss” from not participating (FOMO, anyone?)

It’s the quality of the experience.

Leisure experiences compete with everything. But if you believe your experience is truly fulfilling and meaningful, then others will too. Don’t try to compete. Just be you, boo. Focus on delivering a great experience. But also understand when you are not everyone’s cup of tea. Even tea is not everyone’s cup of tea.

Find your people.

The market is infinitely fragmented, but somewhere out there are your people that would prefer your experience to all the other things that are available. Your job is to find them, build a “minimum viable audience,” and start communicating with them in a way that brings value and drives loyalty.