Understanding human behaviours is a top skill because humans are the primary (and only) target audience of any advertising campaign. Therefore, businesses that grasp how their consumers feel and think sell and convert the highest. Read on to learn how to boost your conversions with behavioural insights like a seasoned behavioural psychologist.
What are behavioural insights?
Behavioural insights are patterns in human behaviour that inform us why people make economic, sociological, and psychological decisions. They involve studying human behaviour to derive meaningful patterns for decision-making in business and other fields. Humans are very complex, and our driving force can be a variety of factors. However, studies carried out by expert psychologists and scholars have helped us understand why people behave the way they do and identify factors behind their choices. For this article, we will focus on the factors behind people’s buying choices.
Understanding human behaviour in buying
Human behaviour drives every decision we make include our clicks, engagements, interactions with ads and purchases. According to Jonah Berger in his book, Contagious: Why Things Catch On, five major factors are why some products or services are more popular than others. They are social currency, triggers, emotions, public, practical value, and stories. In applying these, here are some factors that influence purchase decisions:
1. Social proof
This theory means that people like to copy others when making decisions, causing a pattern of societal norms. People seek others’ opinions, especially before making a purchase. This is so for several reasons, such as ensuring they get their money’s worth on such products or services. Hence, buyers look for authentic reviews and testimonials before buying.
2. Emotional triggers
Reports state that emotion is the major driving force of our purchasing behaviours. We buy things because they excite us and make us happy or angry about our current selves. We mostly make purchases because of our subconscious feelings rather than a rational reason.
3. Heuristics
These are mental shortcuts that allow us make decisions faster and easily due to some factors. They include scarcity, fear of missing out, urgency, trust, experience, amongst others. People purchase things when they feel it may suddenly become unavailable, even when they do not need it. They also do not want to miss out on an offer they believe they cannot get elsewhere.
4. Practical value
Providing practical value is a surefire way to get people to buy and share our brand. First, people are seeking solutions to different problems such as skincare, fashion, health, and entertainment, to mention a few. They also would pay money to avert challenges that can cause them to spend more. On the other hand, people also love to share helpful information with others to look smart. This also coincides with Jonah’s point on social currency. In his words, “…So to get people talking, companies and organisations need to mint social currency. Give people a way to make themselves look good while promoting their products and ideas along the way.
5. Stories
As humans are emotional beings, we connect to a good story in movies, relationships, and the brand we patronise. Selling your brand’s story would help you connect to your audience and gain a competitive edge. It would also compel people to share your business online and through word of mouth. Word of mouth is the reason for 90% of all purchases according to studies.
How to boost your conversions with behavioural insights
1. Create social proof
If you want customers to share reviews about your products, it is important to take some things seriously. First, create high-quality products that actually serve their purpose. Provide top-notch customer service and experience that keep people coming back to buy from you. Also, you can create incentives for people to make reviews of your business on your landing page or social media. You can offer gifts or some other benefit for creating user-generated content. You may also work with influencers who have a significant following to entice people to buy.
2. Story selling
There is no manual for creating an emotional attachment with your target audience. However, story selling is one way to achieve that. It is the art of promoting a story associated with the value your business offers. This is different from just marketing your products. While the aim of both is to sell, with the former, your audience can naturally gravitate to you. It equally evokes emotions that help to foster word of mouth marketing. A good example is Nike’s tagline “Just Do It” which motivates people to achieve their dreams while promoting fitness. You can also do it with marketing campaigns by crafting compelling ad copies that resonate with the audience.
3. Create scarcity
A good way to get a buyer to purchase quicker is to create the illusion that your products are scarce or likely to go out of stock soon. Another way is to offer amazing discounts to only a few people or during a short period of time. People do not like to miss out on mouthwatering offers. Hence, they purchase more products “on sale” even when they do not need them. For example, “50% discount for the first 20 people to order now!” or “free shipping on orders from 4-6pm.”
4. Provide value
It is essential to prioritise providing practical value aside from just making sales. The key is to identify a problem in your niche and provide an adequate solution. It is also helpful to offer valuable information to your audience concerning your field. For example, if you run a skincare brand, you can share tips on how to maintain good skin. You can also offer free consultations for people before they purchase your products.
5. Invest in aesthetics
Visual aesthetics contribute significantly to purchase decisions. Many times, people choose aesthetics over functionality when buying. While function is important, it is a great marketing decision to properly brand your business for more public appeal.
6. Clear call to action
The goal of every marketing campaign is to convert sales and one of the elements is a call to action. It is important to have a clear call to action on your website to target the audience to carry out the action. Place a call to action in a visible spot in your ad or website to covert a potential customer. A study reveals that placing the CTA on the left side of the website increases sales.
Conclusion
Understanding human behaviour is an essential skill as a business owner as it gives you insights into how and why people buy what they do. Many business owners are rather invested in production and improving numbers. Book a free consultation with Primeclick Media to harness behavioural insights to maximise profit.
