Jul 10
21
Better Marketing by using Psychology
Creating a Better Marketing Strategy Through the Use of Psychology
By Alexander Carroll
Psychology:
1) The emotional and behavioral characteristics of an individual, group, or activity
2) Subtle tactical action or argument used to manipulate or influence another
Marketing:
1) The process or technique of promoting, selling and distributing a product or service from producer to consumer
To be successful at marketing requires the process of promoting; selling and distributing the product or service in a way that prompts the consumer to purchase the product.
To prompt the consumer, marketing requires the subtle action needed to influence its audience.
In order to influence the audience, marketing needs to understand the emotional and behavioral characteristics of the group.
Every time we view an ad on television, in print or online we are viewing the mixture of marketing and psychology in action. In truth psychology is involved in marketing so much that we take it for granted. A simple example of how psychology affects marketing can be viewed in how you pick colors and images for your website.
Depending on the market, some colors will sell better than others. Below are listed common colors and the associations people subconsciously give them. Whether your site will focus on the positive associations or the negative ones will depend, in large part, on what other elements you include in your site. For example, a man in a suit under a blue sky will show trustworthiness, where someone in dark blue leaning against a wall with a frown would imply sadness or boredom.
The color red has the positive association of love, warmth, excitement, and passion while its negative associations are danger and anger. Blue relates to power, professionalism, and trustworthiness but can also convey boredom or sadness. Green represents nature, life and money although decay and toxicity are given to it also. Orange is fun and youthful but can appear to be cheap and lack of quality.
Another example of psychology in marketing is with the ‘teaser’.
A teaser is a short paragraph that entices, or influences, someone to click in deeper and find out more. The teaser focuses the need that the customer feels for the product. To accomplish this requires the understanding of the emotional and behavioral characteristics of the customer. If you do not understand your customer your teaser will be ineffective.
Regardless of the marketing strategy or the product being promoted – to market effectively requires the basic understanding of your target market and to understand your target market requires psychology.
Does this mean we need to take courses and classes in psychology?
No.
Realizing that psychology is involved helps to focus your efforts, helps to form your strategy, helps to think about the problem from a different view point. Understanding the use of psychology will help you study your customers’ habits, needs, even the language they use, and integrate the results into your marketing campaign.
For more on the subject of marketing please read my article “More than Product Promotion” or visit my site at http://optimizeroi.com.
Alex is an independent consultant focusing on business development and internet marketing.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Alexander_Carroll
