The issue: Cialdini talks about the scarcity principle, which states that people place higher value on things that are more limited or rare.
Major strength: As per usual, Cialdini’s greatest strength laid in his examples and providing ones that the reader can relate to. I immediately thought of some of the T-shirt websites I found earlier this school year that sell shirts for only a week or two at a time. Making those shirts so scarce made me want the shirt more and ultimately influenced my decision to buy them. Another example could be Disney, who only releases DVDs of certain movies for a limited time (see the Jungle Book and the Little Mermaid) before they are “locked away in the vault for good.”
Major weakness: Seems like other people were as bothered about the ethics behind using the scarcity principle to push products in the way Disney has. I understand that the principle works and it helps push product, but it is really the best way to do that? Surely there’s a better and more ethical way to make your product more wanted. But that’s not so much a weakness as it is something that bothers the heck out of me.
Underlying assumption: He seems to assume that natural human behavior is to want something more as soon as they find out that it is limited or rare.
Provocative questions: When are times that the scarcity principle failed or backfired? How often are the general public aware that a company is using the scarcity principle? Isn’t it risky to use the scarcity principle online, where people can find nearly anything at anytime whether it is on your website or somewhere else?