How admitting small flaws makes customers trust you more — and the counterintuitive psychology behind it

Last week a client panicked because a customer posted a mildly critical review.

“This will ruin our five-star average rating!”

I told them to breathe. That review could be the best thing that ever happened to their credibility.

Welcome to the Pratfall Effect — one of psychology’s most useful paradoxes.

Competent people become more likable after making small mistakes.

Perfect performance feels suspicious.

Minor flaws make us human.

The same principle applies to product marketing.

Brands that acknowledge minor limitations often build more trust than those claiming perfection.

Avis built an empire on “We’re #2, so we try harder.” They turned competitive weakness into competitive advantage.

Patagonia famously told customers “Don’t buy this jacket” and explained the environmental cost of production. Sales increased.

Liquid Death admits their water tastes like regular water — in cans that look like brewskis. The honesty became part of a billion-dollar brand story.

When I review marketing copy with clients, I often ask: “What’s the one small thing customers complain about?”

Then we address it proactively.

If your product takes 8-10 business days to ship, say so upfront. Don’t bury it in fine print and hope nobody notices. (Would you rather have buyers get impatient and frustrated? Of course not.)

If your software has a learning curve, acknowledge it while explaining how the complexity delivers so much value, it’s well worth it.

The magic happens when competence meets vulnerability.

In I Need That, I write about how our dog brain constantly scans for authenticity signals. Perfection triggers suspicion. Controlled honesty triggers trust.

But there’s a crucial distinction: the Pratfall Effect only works if your core competence is unquestionable.

A master chef can laugh about burning toast. A novice cook cannot.

A reliable company can admit their packaging occasionally arrives dented. An unreliable company admitting the same thing looks incompetent.

That kind of pratfall moments strengthen rather than weaken customer relationships.

The vulnerability test: Identify ONE minor, honest limitation of your product that customers occasionally mention.

Find a way to acknowledge it proactively in your messaging while demonstrating competence elsewhere.

Test whether addressing it upfront reduces objections and increases trust.

People don’t trust perfection. (It isn’t even a human trait.)

We trust what feels real.

What small, real “flaw” could you turn into a trust-building opportunity?

Pop that reply arrow and share how honesty about limitations has affected your customer relationships.

Or reach out to my team of product marketing strategists at Graphos Product.