Sales Psychology Strategies

Do you know that 90% of buyers attend industry events to speak with salespeople about their products? During these times, professionals bring out their top game to convince their potential customers. Using sales psychology strategies in promotion and marketing is a good option here. The result is that this will directly or indirectly impact consumers’ choices, mindsets, and buying decisions.

Here in this blog, we will talk about the seven proven strategies that have helped many brands, eCommerce sites, and businesses accomplish their sales goals. Featuring brand stories and examples, this comprehensive discussion is a must-read for marketers and salespeople. Let’s start without further ado!

Sales Psychology Strategies

How to use them to get more sales

Sales psychology strategies refer to psychological techniques that a brand or business implements in its marketing to influence customers’ buying decisions. In this segment of the blog, we, team Fotomasking, will try to share a few powerful strategies that have worked for us and other fellow companies out there. See what’s up!

Use storytelling

Stories elicit human emotions in such a way that always works. If your customers can connect with your product or brand emotionally, they’ll be returning customers eventually. 

Hence, in marketing psychology, storytelling is a key component when tailored to the brand’s identity. To do that, you have to engage customers with empathy and care. In turn, people will think emotionally about your brand while buying and feel like it cares about them. 

Dove’s brand campaign through storytelling 

Let us give you an example of how storytelling can make customers feel connected to a brand personally. We will introduce you to Dove’s powerful brand storytelling here.

As soon as we entered the Dove USA site, the community felt real. In other words, we immediately realized Dove is for women of all kinds. Irrespective of their skin tone, hairstyle, and body shape, they are beautiful. Dove is glad to be a companion on their journey- a message that echoes through the website. 

Dove has been building trust in the concurrent beauty industry since 1955, celebrating women’s diversity. Moreover, other than self-care cleansing products, Dove’s product line does not produce or promote make-up. And that aligns with their belief in their users’ natural elegance. Dove commercials emphasize the importance of being confident in your own skin color, while other commercials promote skin-whitening products that portray dark skin tones as something disgraceful. 

We would also like to remind you of Dove’s Real Beauty campaign in 2004. A revolutionary marketing campaign supporting females regardless of body type, using videos, ads, workshops, sleepovers, and so on, this one has given the brand an emotional connection to its customers. Nothing is more satisfying for a consumer than when they see a brand that celebrates their inner beauty. 

With empathetic storytelling that revolves around real people, DOVE accomplishes all of these.

Make it easier to choose

As humans, information overload can throw our minds off the rails. That is the case with customers in an online store. With an abundance of product lists, they might make the wrong choice or, perhaps, delay buying until later. And that is how it affects business sales

However, when you stick with the ideal sales psychology strategies, it becomes easier for your customers to avoid decision paralysis. Here are some tips to simplify the process: 

  • Limit the number of products displayed to a minimum. The ideal range is 8-10 products per page. 
  • Create filter options like price range, brand, product type, customer reviews, etc.
  • Try to shorten the category options as much as possible. On a site that sells electronic gadgets, under the laptop category, there can be more subcategories like charger, keyboard, mouse, laptop bag, laptop battery, etc. 
  • All of these subcategories should have drop-down menus. This will cut down on clutter and make navigation easier for site visitors. Additionally, it will produce more accurate search results.

Put in enticing product descriptions

People often make buying decisions after reading well-written product description copy. This is because customers’ minds are automatically driven towards products when product descriptions say exactly what your product can do to make their lives better or how it can impact their well-being. 

So, here’s our recommendation to get the most out of this sales strategy to influence consumer behavior

  • Emphasize all the benefits of the products with updated science-backed statements whenever possible. This content influences customer psychology a lot.
  • Avoid faking product features. This will only backfire on your progress in the long run. However, ensure to deliver all the relevant information with stunning visuals and easy-to-understand terminology. 
  • Whenever you’re presenting a product, think about what customers want.
  • Finally, keep the copy crisp, on-point, and easy to follow. Not too much and not too little is a rule of thumb here.  

Keep social proof and reviews handy

In sales psychology strategies, displaying social proof means showing past customer reviews, feedback, etc. This section highlights previous buyers’ positive experiences with the product. As a result, the social warranty gives potential customers a sense of security, which builds credibility and trust.  

In light of eCommerce’s biggest boom after the COVID outbreak, people are more interested in customer reviews than ever. For instance, any product with a zero rating or a below-average rating may lack credibility. 

And why is that such a major issue? How does it affect consumer behavior?

As we live in a society, by default, our cognitive bias tends to align with what everyone else likes. In some cases, people even make rash decisions to buy products. At times, this impulsive behavior can even result in unnecessary purchases. Therefore, the sales expert needs to be tactful and fair in how they use this mind game. 

Here, the key is to fill your site with original reviews of your existing customers. Ask for their opinions. It will help boost others’ confidence, and that could trigger your next customer’s buying decision!

Get color psychology on your side

Color psychology is a research-based approach to creating an impeccable brand identity. This is because, when applied appropriately, the right colors can improve customer interaction and boost their interest, thereby result in increasing sales

However, unlike all the other sales psychology strategies, applying this tactic isn’t as easy as it sounds. Proper research, trial and error, and an in-depth knowledge of this topic will make it easier. 

The fact is color preference or color bias is variable. Hence, based on people’s age, sex, cultural evolution, and personality, color influence happens differently. 

Let us share some tips from our experience in this regard:

  • Study brand colors. Also, learn how to interpret different colors’ negative and positive meanings accordingly.
  • Analyzing your competitors is an excellent way to increase your knowledge in this area. Study what colors they use for brands like yours and which ones have more impact on customer response. 
  • However, we recommend only taking inspiration from them and choosing colors that align with your brand’s identity. Avoid relying on others’ brand themes. 
  • Also, choose colors that will engage your target audience by evoking their emotions so as to attract them.

Use of colors in product images 

To tag along with the concept of color psychology, we want to remind you of the color adjustment of product images on a site. Nowadays, where aesthetic appeal is always a factor in product sales, product images can make or break a deal. 

So, why do colors matter? 

  • Properly utilizing the colors in the product images will put you ahead of the pack. 
  • Moreover, customers’ decision depends on the first impression of the product. 
  • Therefore, when you deliver the actual color combination with proper lighting in product photos, it will highlight the product features more vividly. 
  • As a result, when you make sure that the color palette of your product images is on-point, you create an appealing selling proposition.

Want to know more about color psychology to boost your branding game? We’ve got a detailed blog

Show off your word game

Copywriters can relate to this point personally. It is definitely a psychological phenomenon when a compelling product copy with power words like ”jaw-dropping”, ”mind-boggling” or ”blast” grabs customers’ attention almost immediately.

So, here you go! We are compiling this short yet effective list of power words to lift your copywriting spirit, aka sales psychology strategies. Save it for later!

Word Type Example
Affirmation words/phrases Eye-Opening
Delight
Epic
Empower
Awesome
Jaw-dropping
Next-level
Thrive
Urgency words/phrases Before
Soon
Bonus
Hurry
Instant
Final
Last-minute
Stock-out
Running low
Closing soon
Quick
Security words/phrases Better
Authentic
Legit
Expert
Refund
Secure
Verified
Approved
Risk-free
Best-selling
Cancel anytime
Fail-proof
World-class

Create an urgency with scarcity

Did you ever shop from your brand because there was a limited-time 50% flat sale on your favorite dresses? Maybe you didn’t need it right away; you just wanted to enrich your collection, but you bought it anyway.

Well, the same is true for all other customers. Whenever there is a limited-time golden offer on any brand, consumers move fast to claim the deal. It is one of the most effective sales psychology strategies at almost any time of the year. 

Yes, we are talking about a psychological aspect called the scarcity effect. According to this theory, limited editions or limited quantities make people more interested in a product. That comes from not wanting to miss out on a good deal just by delaying the purchase.

Let us take you to Udemy’s homepage to understand our statement.

Brand strategy

Here, the last chance to purchase Udemy courses is running out. And the courses start at only 13.99 USD for a limited time, valid only for new users.

What say? If you are looking to hone your soft and technical skills through online courses, you would not want to miss such an opportunity to spend less and learn more.

Final words

Sales psychology strategies are not just mere numbers or cheap marketing gimmicks to raise profits. Most often, marketers lose themselves halfway through the game because they want instant results. But strategic planning always takes significant time and consistency to really pay off. Moreover, people’s choices, customer-seller relationships, and brand messages all factor into a product’s success.

So, that was our small endeavor for aspiring marketers and sales enthusiasts. Hope this blog will inspire you to raise your sights higher while keeping everything in perspective. Good luck, you all!

References

https://www.dove.com/us/en/home.html

https://www.linkedin.com/business/sales/blog/trends/the-linkedin-state-of-sales-report-2021

https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/power-words

https://www.shopify.com/blog/8920983-6-psychological-triggers-that-win-sales-and-influence-customers

https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/power-words