What stimuli motivate modern customers to make a purchase decision? Behavior patterns provide answers to this complex question and are effective methods for controlling the behavior of leads and customers. The intensive study of Behavior Patterns shows you potential for improvement in the Customer Journeys of your target groups.
This will provide you with valuable know-how on which cognitive behavioral patterns individual Buyer Personas follow. Some marketing and sales agencies apply over 60 common Behavior Patterns to increase your customers' e-commerce sales.
Targeting users in e-commerce through cognitive behavioral patterns
In the marketing and sales department of your company, everything revolves around Get the attention of the target groups. You want to convince them of your products and services and ultimately win them over successfully as customers. If you want to survive on the market in the long term and expand your market position, it is not enough to rely on guesswork. You are forced to predict the behavior of potential and existing customers as precisely as possible using structured methods.
Emotions and unconscious patterns of action have a significant influence on decisions.
Almost every intuitively made Purchase decision is replaced by a cognitive behavior pattern is influenced and can be steered accordingly. Apply Behavior Patterns to your marketing and sales channels to optimize your design, content, and processes. You can take advantage of psychological insights that allow you to target visitors to your website or online store.
Positive effects of Behavior Patterns
Your target groups are happy to accept help that reduces the effort involved in decision-making and makes purchasing easier. Targeted impulses, which fit seamlessly into the Customer Journey achieve the following effects:
- You increase the attractiveness of your Internet presence.
- They lead to the generation of high-quality leads.
- They increase the conversion rate.
- You strengthen the bond between your target groups and your brand.
In order for each behavior pattern to be used to best support your content and sales strategy and bring about the desired success, you need to Know your target groups exactlyn and, at best, have comprehensively developed buyer persona profiles.
Examples of successful Behavior Patterns
Behavior Patterns have sonorous names that give clues as to how they work. The best-known cognitive behavior patterns used in e-commerce include the Decocy Effect, Value, Curiosity, Authority, Known, Endowed Progress Effect, Loss Aversion and Scarcity:
- Decoy EffectIf you give your potential customers a choice between a cheaper and more expensive version of a product or service, the majority will opt for the cheaper version. If you offer an additional premium variant at an even higher price, most customers choose the originally most expensive and now mid-priced variant.
- ValueThe value behavior pattern is an integral part of online stores and consists of three to five unique selling propositions - such as free shipping, a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee, and an extended right of return - which make the use of a product or service appear particularly attractive to customers. The aim is to use value propositions to reassure customers that they are making the right decision. A decisive factor for the success of the Behavior Patterns Value is the highly visible placement of the USPs (Unique Selling Propositions) on the website.
- CuriosityWith the behavior pattern Curiosity, you appeal to the curiosity of your target groups and awaken desire. Means to optimize the content with regard to the behavior pattern Curiosity are storytelling with outstanding image and video content as well as the offering of novel complete solutions that go beyond the actual need through complementary products.
- AuthorityThe Behavior Pattern Authority is based on building trust. Certifications, awards, seals of approval, test results, publications on specialist portals and in trade journals, and expert opinions give uncertain prospective customers the feeling that they are making the right decision - especially when buying high-priced products and services.
- Known: Give your prospects a basis for comparison, you can better assess the features and added values of your products. You can apply the Behavior Pattern Known in written and visual form. It is important to choose meaningful combinations that allow your users to make a realistic comparison - for example, in terms of performance, size, and strength.
- Endowed Progress EffectShow your users at which point of the order process you are, generate trust through transparency and at the same time give your customers the motivating feeling of making progress. The Endowed Progress Effect behavior pattern encourages your users to successfully complete tedious processes.
- Loss Aversion: People feel the loss of possessions, privileges, and advantages to be extremely bad. This can be a real condition or one suggested by clever argumentation. Be careful: There's a fine line between subtle storytelling and unnecessary scaremongering, so exaggerations that stir up unnecessary fears can damage your brand's image and drive up bounce rates.
- ScarcityIf used carefully, the behavior pattern Scarcity is optimal to induce interested parties to make quick purchase decisions. Limited and scarce offers - with simultaneously high demand - trigger desire. The fear of running out of stock and missing out on something motivates users to make spontaneous purchases. Examples of actual and artificial shortages are statements such as "Only two left in stock" or "Only four seats left".
Conclusion - more success through Behavior Patterns
Adapt your marketing and sales processes to the needs of your target groups. Apply Behavior Patterns consistently and with the necessary Empathy for the needs of your target groups to differentiate yourself from your competitors and significantly increase your conversion rates and sales. While some Behavior Patterns - such as Endowed Progress or Authority - are fundamentally successful, others - such as Scarcity and Loss Aversion - need to be used with care. Properly set stimuli and triggers improve the shopping experience and are an effective tool for customer retention.
