R9 — Stop using implicit-loss framing; replace "you'll fall behind" with bounded loss ("specific cost of current configuration over 12 months, in lost leads / wasted spend")

Rule: Remove implicit-loss framing from Candid content. Replace with bounded-loss framing: "here is the specific cost of the current configuration over the next 12 months, expressed in lost leads or wasted spend" wherever possible.

Why: The implicit-loss frame ("you'll fall behind") fails on this audience for three reasons documented in [[bounded-vs-implicit-loss-frame-distinction]]: unbounded loss can't be calculated; violates affordable-loss decision rule ([[sarasvathy-effectuation-bird-in-hand-affordable-loss]]); triggers overconfidence-on-in-house-execution counter-response ([[overconfidence-in-house-comparator-pattern-for-gc-pitches]]).

This is a direct refinement of the foundation brief's ([[research-brief-psychology-gc-marketing-aversion-may-2026]]) loss-framing recommendation. The foundation brief recommended loss-framing in general; this rule specifies which kind works.

How to apply:

• Audit existing Candid copy and proposal templates for "you'll fall behind," "competitors are pulling ahead," "if you don't do this now" — these are implicit-loss patterns. Replace.
• For each implicit-loss claim, ask: can I express the loss as a concrete number over a defined period? If yes, do that. If no, the claim is probably not load-bearing enough to keep.
• Concrete forms that work: "Without [specific change], at your current conversion rate of X%, you're losing approximately Y inquiries per month to your three closest competitors." Specific, calculable, bounded.