Fix the Tug of War That Slows Down Your Deals

Let’s talk about fear. Not the horror movie kind—we’re talking about the two most powerful psychological forces keeping your prospects stuck in the land of indecision: FOMO (fear of missing out) and FOMU (fear of messing up).

Both are deeply human. Both are baked into every B2B buyer journey. And if you don’t understand how to use them strategically, your deals will crawl instead of close.

Why marketers should care about FOMO and FOMU

You’ve got a sales team full of closers. You’ve got a killer product. But still, deals stall out. Why? Because buyers aren’t just rationally weighing features and pricing—they’re trying to protect their reputation, budget, team, and career trajectory.

This is where behavioral economics shines. Humans are not rational creatures with a sprinkling of emotion—we are emotional creatures with a sprinkling of logic. (Note: Some of us have more of this than others. You know who you are.) Your buyers don’t want to just win—they want to avoid regret.

FOMO: The engine of urgency

FOMO makes people lean in. It’s driven by social proof, scarcity, trends, or the perception that “everyone else is already doing this—and they’re succeeding because of it.”

How to use FOMO to your advantage:

• Highlight movement. “Eighty percent of peers in [your industry] are already using AI to speed up workflows. Are you?”
• Use case studies as social signals. Not just testimonials—show the transformation: before, after, and what the buyer gained (especially if it’s professional recognition or internal praise).
• Limited-time offers or pilots. Nothing turns heads like “We only have 10 pilot slots left this quarter. Want in?”

FOMU: The hidden drag on decision-making

Here’s the real challenge: Even if a buyer wants to move forward, FOMU can stop them in their tracks.

Choosing the wrong vendor, launching a failed initiative, getting blamed if things go sideways … we’re wired to avoid these consequential mistakes. Moreover, in large organizations, FOMU is stronger than FOMO. Why? Because success is often shared. But failure? That sticks to you.

How to counteract FOMU:

• De-risk the decision. Offer pilots, phased rollouts, or proof-of-concept trials. Make the first “yes” small and safe.
• Provide third-party validation. Analyst reports, peer reviews, technical comparisons—anything that shows this isn’t a gamble.
• Acknowledge the “nondecision” cost. Doing nothing is also a risk. Frame inaction as the riskiest option of all.

“FOMU is the reason B2B sales cycles stretch into oblivion. FOMO is how you pull decisions forward. The best marketing strikes the right balance—urgency with reassurance.” —Jamie Cleghorn, Senior Partner at Bain & Company

Accelerating the decision

Surprisingly, when you combine the forces of FOMO and FOMU, you get momentum. Here’s how:

• Map the FOMU moments, then add some FOMO. Where in the buyer journey do nerves spike? Where do deals slow? Design content to address that fear and then layer in FOMO.
• Use content as a behavioral nudge. Don’t just educate; validate. Instead of saying, “Here’s what we do,” say, “Here’s how someone like you succeeded, and how we made them look like a genius.”
• Enable your sales team to act like behavioral economists. Give them the right signals, stories, and soft landings. Teach them to read emotional cues as much as logical ones.

Brand vs. demand. A quick note:

Brand builds trust. Trust reduces FOMU. Demand gen leverages urgency. Urgency activates FOMO. If your marketing doesn’t do both, you’re either invisible or ignorable.

So marketing is about … psychology?

In 2025 and beyond, the B2B brands that win won’t just offer better products—they’ll manage buyer psychology better. FOMO gets attention. FOMU holds the brakes. Your job? Release the brakes. Step on the gas. And help your buyer look smart, safe, and ahead of the curve. We can help make this happen if you are prepared to talk today. (See what we did there?)

Related posts:

Bofu or Tofu? That’s the B2B Question.

Short-Form Video Helps B2B Brands Build Trust

Growth Marketing for B2B: 3 Expert Tips to Drive Revenue Faster