I just wanted a hamburger.
I was hungry. I was driving by a
fast-food restaurant, so I pulled into the drive through and placed my order. "I'll have a hamburger," I clearly
say. But to get my hamburger I had to
refuse a drink, french fries, an apple pie, and a pair of socks. I might be making up the last one, but after
being offered way more than I wanted I sort of zoned out and was saying no to
everything!
I'm told it’s a common sales technique called
upselling. It operates under the
assumption that the customer really doesn’t know what he wants and if offered
more will come upon the realization that they couldn’t live with just a hamburger. Life will not go on without the apple
pie. Every time I'm upsold my dark side
wants to say, "I would have ordered that if I wanted it," but my wife
reminds me that would be rude and that the employee is made to read off a
script that includes offering you more than what you order, no matter how much
you order! I wonder how much I would
have to order not to be upsold. What if
I ordered one of everything? Would they
suggest I order two? Where does the
madness end?
I get a sense of perverted pride when I say, "No"
to the annoying upsell. "You can't
talk me into spending more money," I proudly say to myself. I am a man who knows what he wants and no
power of suggestion will sucker me into doling out an additional buck and a
half! I am a master of the upsell - or
am I?
The upsell is not just limited to fast-food and the
techniques are much more subtle than a teenager trying to super-size an
order. The extra square-footage, the appealing
accessory, the second one half off, the lure of higher quality, the temptation
of the designer label. All enticing us
to spend a little more than we intended.
All urging us to extend ourselves just a little more for what we
deserve. Sometimes the bait is so hard
to resist and we can't help but say, "Yes!" I must admit I'm much more susceptible to some
of these upsells than I am to the apple pie.
It's none of my business how you spend your money, but many
a person has fallen into unnecessary debt or has strapped themselves financially
by falling for the upsell. I know
because I'm one of them! We can all benefit
from some sound advice from scripture in this dangerous world of the upsell.
The wise king Solomon, who himself seems to have been a
victim, reminds us that, "Whoever loves money never has enough"
(Ecclesiastes 5:10). The apostle Paul,
writing to his protégé Timothy, explains to him that "the love of money is
a root of all kinds of evil" and that an obsession with things often
prevents a person from living a generous and charitable life (1 Timothy
6). Jesus urges people to resist investing
in things that inevitably disappear by either the thief's sticky fingers or by
the destructive power of moths and rust.
He recommends investing in spiritual riches that have a much longer
shelf-life (Matthew 6).
Extravagance and opulence are hard to resist but we must be
aware that the upsell usually ends up costing more than what initially meets
the eye. Is it worth the financial
stress? Will this limit my ability to
meet needs around me? Am I expecting
some thing to meet a spiritual need that is only satisfied by God? These are questions we must seriously
consider before we upgrade or super-size.
If you want a hamburger, just get a hamburger!
