Psychological triggers to boost your sales

eugene koplyk Eugene Koplyk 04/03/2021 10 min read

Contents:

Introduction

Like all science, psychology is knowledge; and like science again, it is knowledge of a definite thing, the mind

James Mark Baldwin

The eternal question of all times for salespeople is "How to make people buy your product?". The thing is that everything is about psychology. The one who understands how customers think automatically wins sales-jackpot. Fortunately, we live in a time when all psychological influence tools have already been invented, and here we will show you the most effective.

Role of psychology in business

The best way to sell something is to explain to your customers why they should buy something from you. And that is a place where psychology comes from. It helps us to understand what customers want and which vision they have. You as a company have to develop strategic thinking to predict client’s reactions to different types of products. That is why psychological triggers of selling are so important.

So, firstly, what is a "trigger"? It is an experience of having a strong emotional reaction to specific words or actions. In marketing, triggers drive sales. Different types of psychological triggers influence what customers think and desire.

Psychological trigger types and how to use them for business:

Here we are ready to introduce seven emotional causes of buying.

1. Explain to your customers why they want your product

To do this, you have to understand what motivates people to make something. Even something that they do not really want. The key to making an impact on your customers is to realize what already impacts them. The main interest, for most people, is to receive satisfaction and pleasure, giving not much in return. But at the same time, when we realize how much we can get, we are ready to take action. And these are two points that definitely have to be taken in mind because you aim to combine both and use them as a powerful trigger.

Let's take work as an easy example. When you are not truly motivated to go to the office, you think of staying at home, but you can come back to the workplace every day once you imagine career opportunities or money. This is called the causal relationship in psychology. A primary trigger for everyone. It shows our everyday motivations. That is why it is necessary to know who your customers are and what they desire.

Consequently, your marketing task is to lead your consumers. You have to show clients that you are somebody who can guide them on their way to achieving goods. When they identify your company with something nice, they are yours. Here at WiserBrand, we use this strategy and set clear expectations, explaining what our customers will get.

clear expectations

Also, it would help if you remember that when you propose something pleasing, people tend to give back even more. This is the crucial rule here. An example with Apple Music will show you how.

apple music deal

Obviously, in that case, clients will like such an offer. This marketing strategy is called a “carrot content offer”.

2. Always be new and limited

Do psychological triggers exist? Yes, and these are the most prevalent in marketing. We all love something new. Remember this feeling when you’ve just bought some plane tickets, and now you start imagining how you will discover new lands. That’s the thing. We often expect something good in the future, so when we hear about new things, our brain wants to try them as soon as possible. The same thing is with the new information and gossip. We desire to know more and more. That is why many companies have new models and drop them almost every couple of months.

Coca-cola will be a nice example of a psychological trigger in marketing.

new coca cola

Coca-cola announces new product tastes quite often. Things like Vanilla Coke, Cherry Coke, etc. Basically, they are all the same tastes, which are not so different from the original Coca-Cola, but the “new effect” makes its work.  

Also, not less working natural product psychological trigger to convert sales is scarcity. The thing is that we live in a world of limited resources. That means that not everybody will get everything they want. And as a rule, humans most desire things that they don’t have. At the same time, we wish to have something that others don’t have because it gives us a feeling of exclusiveness.

It is easy to understand why luxury brands like Chanel, Hermes, etc., are so popular despite their extremely high price. A feeling of the rush is compelling, and good marketers actively use this as one of the biggest psychological triggers of advertising. Psychological triggers Amazon utilizes create an atmosphere of "now or never" and "limited offer thing".

amazon deals

3. Make it simple

The subsequent two psychological triggers that grab your prospects’ attention are simplifying and clustering. Imagine a situation in which you are trying to remember a big text. Reading it won’t be really effective, but it becomes much easier if you make a little straightforward plan. That is the point of clustering. Our memory tends to simplify and gather the relevant pieces of information. Your brain literally arranges data on the shelves of your mind.

That is why the more simple information is, the more straightforward it’s going to be for customers to remember it.

Knowing psychological sales trigger like this, your purpose is to assemble your texts on the same subject in conjunction. To make it scannable, use more bullet points and bright headings. Leave more free space and avoid cluttering information. Entering your web page, the client should receive a clear understanding of what to do next and how to order your product. This method will not only help you to keep the audience’s attention but also will raise conversions. On our website, we implement it this way. Our page is well-scannable, easy-understandable, and gives the most relevant information.

The next point you need to know is the principle of least effort. All people are quite lazy by their nature. We all tend to achieve more by doing less. The effort is a price, our resources, which we are ready to pay for the desired result, and if we have a chance to give less for it, we’ll definitely take this chance. However, at the same time, everybody knows that it is not a good strategy if you really want to achieve a goal, but we are still striving to do less. And this is how triggers work when people see an offer, which proposes an easy pass to the wanting product, they tend to say yes to it.

To make this trigger work effectively, you have to create a structure, a guide following which customers will receive what they want. Reveal that your guide will lead them in the fastest way and educate, at the same time, like this Wholesalted example.

Wholesalted 6-step formula

4. Build a strong background history

What are triggers in psychological terms? Of course, stories! Tiggers are something to which our minds and emotions have a strong association. The same thing is with storytelling. It applies to our imagination and creates invisible relations between the narrator and the customer. A well-built story humanizes the whole process of selling. It works because we love to hear how a "hero" faces and defeats all the obstacles. That is why Ted Talks are so popular. And the most interesting is that it’s unnecessary to have all this "hero stuff", but only to bring some personality to what you are telling.

Clifbar does an excellent job telling the story of creating their first bar and explaining how their journey began. They give their customers the feeling that they are not just making money but also building a great "like a family" connection.

Clifbar

Furthermore, the other considerable example of a psychological trigger is showing your team and telling your customers more about the work processes. It can be a nice part of the story and give more real "antagonists" to it.

5. Create a community of leads

Subconsciously, we all want to be like everyone else. We want to fit into society. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, a sense of belonging is an essential demand that all humans share. That is why we join different groups beginning from neighbor’s community to political parties. Being a part of something inspires people for actions and gives pleasure from communication. Create a community of fans, and satisfied clients will make the best advertising you can imagine. Your mission is to give people a feeling of belonging to something, which makes them better than others who don’t in that community. Using this psychological trigger sale, your customers' devotion will grow and bring you more new followers. 

AirB&B has designed not just a traveling website, but they have shown their vision of how it should look like. They said and revealed in practice that traveling is for everyone and can be a natural lifestyle. They not only united people from different countries, but became a leader in cheap traveling.

airbnb community

Share your vision, and customers will share your products with others.

6. Talk from the establishment position

The following two psychological triggers that grab people's attention are the most popular on Instagram and TV these days. People tend to hear others’ opinions and experiences about different things. But even better, this works when you hear advice from somebody famous and desired, like a celebrity. That’s why, when Instagram bloggers give us a recommendation of a product, a loyal audience wants to be like this person and utilize the same things that an authorized person uses.

The problem is that we don’t always have enough money to hire influencers. In that case, a practical solution is logos. Logos of companies and firms with whom you are working express recognition and approval.

As a non-profit organization, World Vision operatively uses its partner’s logos to show its importance in this branch.

World Vision

7. Social proof is everything

And last but not the least - social proof. This one is quite similar to the previous - establishment position. The difference is in the kind of authority. As social creatures, we look for other people’s approval. Indeed, the first thing people do while deciding what to buy is looking at reviews. 82% of Americans confirmed that they ask some counsel from family and friends before shopping. That is why testimonials are so important. Showing how your customers are already profiting provides an example for others. A significant insight: try not just to say that your customers are happy with your services; people are not likely to believe it. Show it with the direct instances. That is precisely what Digitalplus has made. You have to reveal your work results, and many people can confirm that.

Conclusion

You do not have to be a salesperson from birth. Marketing and sales - things which you can easily understand and use, are very connected to psychology. We definitely know that these seven psychological triggers to buy will increase your deals and if you want to take your marketing up to the next level, apply to our content marketing specialists. Wiserbrand will embody your unique vision and will find a unique approach to boost your sales.

eugene koplyk
Eugene Koplyk
Head of Marketing department
As a Digital Strategist, I help companies grow their business online. Here share my expertise, ideas, and best practices on Ecommerce marketing initiatives, branding, SEO, conversion and many more. If you want to stay connected, follow me on LinkedIn.
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