What is the Psychology behind Sales and Marketing?

Psychology is an important aspect of both Sales and Marketing. If you don’t understand your consumer’s behavior, you won’t be able to pitch your products and idea to them. Hence, psychology is an active element of both these functions. Wondering what is the psychology behind sales and marketing? This article has answers to just that.

Modern consumers like to believe that they are independent thinking customers. Moreover, our little internet ‘research’ helps us feel that we are making a critically analyzed choice. This further adds to our comfort.

However, it is not entirely true. Digital marketing allows businesses to influence their online reputation and word of mouth. Hence, our buying decisions are generally not as unaffected.

Let’s say you research a certain business on social media (as most people do). There are two possibilities. Either people respond to that business positively or negatively. In the former case, you’d like to further engage with the business and in the latter case, you’d avoid doing so. This is what becomes of your ‘independent’ thinking. However, it’s not about whether it’s a good thing or a bad thing. It is just the way it.

This was one example of how psychology works in sales and marketing. Psychology affects sales and marketing in many-many ways. And smart businesses understand that. This is why marketing psychology is a thing.

Hearing of this term for the first time? Then there is so much more for you to know.

Psychology behind Sales and Marketing

Since psychology is an indispensable part of sales and marketing, it best to master it. The points below will help you understand it better.

# Social image plays an important role

You may already be familiar with this concept. I have also mentioned the same at the beginning of this article. Now let’s understand this concept a bit more elaborately.

Reaching an audience is one thing but why successful online businesses are so invested in social media marketing? As I have already said, when researching a business, people tend to check out their social handles. This allows them to see how a particular business engages with its audience. But more importantly, it allows them to see how people engage with that particular organization.

Your audience wants to know how many people are engaging with your business; what other consumers think of your business; what they buy from you; how they are using your services; and so on.

And when they are assured that other people like them view your business in a positive light, it influences their perspective of your business accordingly.

Therefore, social proof is an important part of sales and marketing.

# Priming is widely used in sales and marketing

In the terms of psychology, priming is a phenomenon according to which exposure to one stimulus influences the response to the subsequent stimulus. This is done in the absence of conscious guiding.

For instance, “red” followed by “apple” would make more sense than “banana”. This is because the words “red” and “apple” have a semantic relationship between them. But priming is not limited to words. It can also be done through visuals and audios, or a combination of them.

Digital marketing uses priming in many ways. Certain words, visuals, audios, or a combination of these are used to stimulate related thought in the minds of the audience.

For example, a motorbike store may use hard rock or metal music in the background. Moreover, they may use graffiti on their walls. This type of music and aesthetics would warm up customers’ minds and will improve their experience as such attributes are generally associated with bikers.

On the other hand, fine-dining restaurants may play classical music in the background. They do so to come across as classy (which is apparently an important attribute of fine dining). Moreover, their lighting, uniforms, and other aesthetics are also arranged in the same manner.

How you manipulate your priming elements determine how you affect your audience’s psychology. Therefore, subtle priming methods can add to your marketing and sales efforts.

# The theory of reciprocity

To explain in simple terms, whenever someone does something for you, you feel like reciprocating. The phenomenon of reciprocity works in a similar way here.

Robert Cialdini, a psychologist at Arizona State University conducted research to establish the theory of reciprocity. It was found that when waiters served customers a free mint with their checks, they earned about 3.3% more tips. And guess what? When the number of mint was doubled, the tips jumped up to roughly 20%.

This shows how the theory of reciprocity works in sales and marketing. That’s why giving away personal discounts, gift cards, free service and things like that help businesses improve their conversions.

But it is important to remember that for profitable implementation of this psychology theory, businesses have to be the initiator. You can’t expect reciprocation unless you give something.

# Scarcity accelerates conversion

You must already be aware of this concept. Salesmen and marketers commonly use thing psychological tools to improve conversions.

You must have seen boards reading something “Limited stock” outside some commerce store that has put up a sale. In fact, many online businesses commonly use this digital marketing strategy.

The element of scarcity has always been proven effective in maximizing sales. Scarcity creates a sense of urgency. And this accelerates the buying decision.

For example, you may find a nice dress on an eCommerce. This is highly possible that you may pass it on for later and take some time to think. However, learning there is limited stock for the desired item, you may buy it quicker due to the fear of missing it out. And this is precisely how scarcity in marketing and sales work.

Therefore, scarcity is an important element of a successful sale.

Wrapping up

Psychology is an indispensable element of marketing and sales. It is through manipulating the psychological attributes of their offer that salesmen and marketers persuade their target audience. Concepts like social proof, priming, reciprocity, and scarcity show how psychology is a crucial aspect of sales and marketing. Therefore, in order to attain desired digital marketing and sales results, it is important for businesses to master these psychological concepts.

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