As a business owner, it’s important to understand customer psychology. Whether you have a brick-and-mortar store or whether you operate mostly online, it’s important to know what is going on inside a customer’s mind. When you understand the process a customer goes through before making a decision to go with your product or service, you will have better
When you understand the process a customer goes through before making a decision to go with your product or service, you will have better success converting and making high-quality sales.
Here’s what you need to know about customer psychology and the sales cycle:
Grab Attention
No one will buy what you’re selling if you don’t get their attention. You need to find a way to differentiate yourself from the competition. You can use online marketing campaigns as well as other strategies to get your name out there. But you need to figure out what makes you different from the others. Otherwise, you’ll just be white noise. Find an angle that works well, and that others can relate to.
Don’t forget that part of grabbing that attention is maintaining it. Customer psychology isn’t such that most consumers immediately make a purchase. Pushing for the conversion can backfire. There is research that indicates that it can take around seven contacts or “touches” before a customer commits. That means that you need to keep moving forward.
Evaluation
Today’s savvy consumer wants to make sure that s/he is getting the best value. This means that you need to offer something in return. Want to build your email list? You should offer some sort of value, like a freebie.
You also need to make sure that you are careful as you craft your brand image and offerings. You want to offer high quality, since your customers will likely compare you to other options. It’s not always about money. It’s more about value. You need to show value — even if you charge more.
Trust
An important part of understanding customer psychology is knowing how to cultivate trust. You need to make sure that you or projecting an image of someone who is trustworthy — and your products or services need to back that up. You can also bolster your credibility through social proof and testimonials. Prompt customer service can also help you cultivate trust among your customers and potential customers.
Loyalty
If you can successful lead a customer through these waters, there is a good chance that you will see a sale/conversion. What can be even more valuable is if your customers remain loyal. You want customers that turn into fans. When you create this situation, you will find that customer psychology is such that your customers will gladly spread the word for free. It’s a good way to boost your credibility and ensure that customers will keep coming back for more.
All of this takes a degree of effort, and you might need to do your research into customer psychology to identify best practices and formulate a plan. In the end, though, it’s well worth it.
