October 2019 - Sherwette

To persuade, ask, don’t tell

Cognitive Bias Consumer Behavior Sales skills October 25, 2019

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To persuade” could be one of the hardest things you can come across. I have been there. Multiple times. Every single day if you ask me.

Having a sound and logical arguments may work with some people, especially engineers and programmers, but at the end of the day, we are human. Humans are emotional, and whether you can do a good job hiding it or not, your emotions have an unneglectable impact on your decisions.

I have mentioned before the “endowment effect”. It’s such a powerful cognitive bias, and because it’s so powerful, you can use it in multiple ways.

The endowment effect basically says,
“We place greater value on items because we own them.” – Adam Ferrier, The Advertising Effect: How to Change Behaviour

Previously, I have demonstrated how you can use the best of the endowment effect before consumers buy your product so that they feel they own it, value it even more, then take out their credit cards.

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But…

What if all you want is to persuade someone to buy into your idea?

Are you an impulsive shopper? Wash your hands

Cognitive Bias Consumer Behavior Spending money October 22, 2019

Do you know an impulsive shopper? Ask them to wash their hands

Anyone one of us could be an impulsive shopper.

You could be having a bad day. Then find yourself at the mall, doing some retail therapy, and buying tons of things you don’t need. Perhaps even buy one item; however, that one item is so damn expensive.

You are always one moment away from making yet another impulsive shopper decision.
One of the key factors that influences you, as a consumer, to buy is the endowment effect.

The endowment effect basically says, “We place greater value on items because we own them.”
Adam Ferrier, The Advertising Effect: How to Change Behaviour

3 Amazing pricing psychology tips to try right now

Consumer Behavior Product Pricing October 18, 2019

If you are starting a new business or introducing a new product into the market, pricing is a topic that is always on top of mind.

You think, “How to price my product?”

In theory, the pricing formula should be straight forward (see below).

Material cost + Labor cost + Overhead cost = Total cost
Total cost + X% of Desired profit = Product cost

Assuming you zeroed on your product price, there are a few pricing psychology principles that you could embed in your pricing strategy.

So, let me ask you a question,

Have you thought about how pricing psychology can influence your consumers’ buying behavior?

What the IKEA effect can teach us about employee engagement

Cognitive Bias Consumer Behavior October 14, 2019 2 Comments

The IKEA effect?

What is that all about?

In some countries, or particularly in the west, IKEA is known as one of the cheapest options to buy furniture. This is not the case in the Middle East though.

And even though it’s known as one of the cheapest places to buy furniture, once you actually buy that piece of furniture, it’s very hard to let go of it.

It’s very hard to let go. You want to take it with you whenever and wherever you move. From one apartment to the next, you pack it and unpack it.

You do that because you have fallen for that IKEA piece of furniture. You have fallen for it even if it was so simple, even if it was so basic, even if all your friends have the same exact one, but perhaps in a different color.

You have fallen for it because IKEA made the best of what is called the “endowment effect”.

Discover how color psychology can increase your conversions

Consumer Behavior Consumer Marketing Product design October 11, 2019

Know your customer.

In different terms, when it comes to product design or marketing, one key element to your success is knowing your customer.

Some call it in the broader level of a customer segment, where basically you know specific statistics about your customer, such as age, demographics, etc.

Those who take a deeper look to empathize with their customers create personas or avatars. A customer avatar is an imaginary representation of your target customer in a specific segment. The avatar or the persona is Amy who in her mid-20s and loves to go swimming every day after work. She is self-aware and motivated to remain healthy because her Grandma died from such and such disease.

Knowing your customers can help you in so many decisions, from what to say and what not to say, what language to use, where to find them and how to trigger them.

One of those decisions is color.

One clever tip to use when pricing your products

Consumer Behavior Consumer Marketing October 5, 2019

If you think discounting the price of your product would increase its attractiveness in the eyes of your customers, think again.

Remember the last time you wanted to book a flight ticket?

You check the flight prices and think of your options. The next day, you check the prices again, and you see the prices have gone up. You regret not taking the decision on the spot, and you tell yourself…

“I could have saved.”

You hesitate again, thinking you could get a better deal. You think tomorrow the prices could change. You wait. You check the prices the next day, and guess what? The prices have gone up again.

“That’s it,” you say. “I am buying my ticket now,” you tell yourself.

You buy the ticket.

Here’s the secret to behavioral change

Consumer Behavior Product design Service design October 1, 2019 1 Comment

If you are creating a product that isn’t a necessity, you are competing on time. With so many distractions, simply, there isn’t enough time to do all the things we want to do.

You are competing to convert customers from what they do now to what you want them to do.

You are competing to convince them to go to Zumba classes instead of the gym. You are competing to influence them to eat gluten-free lactose-free sugar-free muffin instead of the muffin we grew up knowing. You are competing to persuade them to use Uber instead of the taxi. You are competing to have them book airbnb instead of a hotel. You are competing to make them view Instagram stories instead of Snapchat.

But, hey, how can you do that?