One of the questions I’ve occasionally been asked is why I don’t market my business more aggressively.
From a purely commercial perspective, there are probably many things I could do differently. I could create more scarcity, run larger discounts, launch products more frequently, send more emails, or remind people more often that they might miss an opportunity if they don’t act now. None of those strategies is inherently unethical.
Scarcity can sometimes be genuine.. Like for example, a workshop may genuinely have limited seats, or a handmade collection may genuinely consist of one-of-a-kind pieces. The problem isn’t that urgency exists, it’s when urgency becomes the primary reason someone decides to buy.
Over the years, I’ve become increasingly convinced that trust is a much stronger foundation for a business than urgency.
Part of that comes from my own experiences as a consumer. Like many people, I’ve encountered marketing that made me feel as though every decision had to be made immediately. There always seemed to be another countdown timer, another “last chance” email, another reminder that if I didn’t act now, I might miss the opportunity forever. Sometimes the urgency was real, but most of the time, it simply felt manufactured.
What those experiences taught me wasn’t how to become a better marketer, they actually taught me the kind of business I didn’t want to build.
When I eventually started Crysto.light, I found myself returning to a simple question whenever I had to make a business decision: if someone chooses not to buy from me today, how do I hope they feel when they leave? Ideally, I’d like them to feel informed rather than pressured. I would like them to understand what I’m offering, why I’ve chosen to offer it and who it is most suitable for. If they decide that it isn’t the right fit for them, I don’t see that as a failure because sometimes the right decision really is not to buy.
The same philosophy shapes the way I approach astrology and tarot readings. I’ve never wanted clients to feel that they need me in order to navigate their lives. If a reading leaves someone believing they must return every month before making an important decision, then I don’t think I’ve served them particularly well. My hope is that people leave with greater clarity, greater confidence in their own judgment and a better understanding of themselves than when they first arrived.
Ironically, I think that approach is also good for business because trust grows slowly. It cannot be manufactured through clever copywriting or urgency campaigns. Trust develops through consistency.. people notice when your actions continue to match your values over time. They notice when you recommend against buying something because it isn’t the right fit. They notice when you acknowledge uncertainty instead of pretending to have all the answers. They notice when you continue showing up even when there isn’t a launch happening.
Those moments rarely create dramatic spikes in sales but they do create something far more valuable. They create relationships that last.. I’ve noticed this within my own community over the years.
Many of the people who support Crysto.light didn’t become customers immediately. Some followed my work for months, while others quietly read my articles or watched my stories long before they ever purchased anything. There was never a moment where I felt the need to convince them. When they eventually decided to support my work, it happened because trust had been built gradually through many small interactions rather than a single persuasive campaign.
Perhaps this is also why I don’t think of every interaction as a sales opportunity. Sometimes someone asks a question and all they need is an honest answer. Sometimes they would benefit more from a book than from booking a consultation. Sometimes the most ethical recommendation is to suggest that they speak with a doctor, therapist or another professional instead of me. Helping someone doesn’t always require selling them something.
In fact, I think knowing when not to sell is one of the clearest demonstrations of trust. I realise this may not be the fastest way to grow a business and there will probably always be strategies that generate quicker sales than patiently building credibility over time. But speed has never been my primary goal. I’m far more interested in building a business that people continue recommending years from now because they trust how they were treated, than one that grows rapidly by persuading people to make decisions they later regret.
Businesses inevitably reflect the values of the people who build them. If that is true, then I hope Crysto.light continues to reflect one principle above all else. I would rather earn someone’s trust slowly than their money quickly.