Psychological Marketing Basics - Part One

Let me make a bold and provocative statement: any marketing that is not based in psychology is doomed to fail. Here's why.

Most marketers think in terms of tactics - a sales letter, or an email, or a brochure, or a landing page. That's a major blunder because people need more than one exposure to your message in order to feel comfortable enough to make the decision to give you a try. This advice is based on the psychology known as, "Convincer Strategy."

In other words, think in terms of multiple opportunities to tell parts of your message. The idea is to not give all your information at one time. Rather, you would piece it together so the target market experiences you and your message multiple times. As long as you include at least three separate pieces, you'll reach most people's convincer strategy. And, by breaking your message into smaller bites, you are making sure that the readers don't fall into information overload, which is a state of confusion caused by too much information in too short a span of time.
The more effective approach is called "Drip Marketing." This is the process by which you make contact in a pre-meditated sequence. Let me give you an example.

When I was writing direct response marketing programs for JCPenney, we made millions of dollars using a marketing strategy called "continuity programs." In those programs, the reader is asked to place an order for one inexpensive item. For example, it might be a cubic zirconia dinner ring for three dollars.

Then, after a few weeks, the reader would receive a related offer, this time for another piece of the same ensemble, say a matching necklace. Because each piece obviously belonged to the same collection, the target market would instantly recall the previous pieces. In addition, the photography and the copy in all the separate mailings were all similar. So, they would build on the psychology of familiarity.

The headlines might be something like this:

Mailing one. Incredible Austrian Crystal Dinner Ring - Only $3!
Mailing two. Incredible Austrian Crystal Matching Necklace - only $8!
Mailing three. Incredible Austrian Crystal Matching Earings - only $9!

JCPenney has sold millions of pieces of inexpensive jewelry using this type of marketing. And, there were three keys to their success. The familiarity of design and language, the sequence and the initial decision to buy the very first piece. That first decision is directly linked to the sequence and the familiarity.

Today, we see a twist on this concept. Many marketers give away a free report or ebook. As soon as you make the decision to accept that free gift, you've short circuited your convincer strategy. The marketer then follows up and sends you related pieces that taunt and tantilize you into wanting to gain access to something far better than that original freebie.

Here's another way to use this psychology on the internet. You might send an email with a subject saying, "How to get the best deal on car insurance - tip number 1." Then, the next week, you would send a second email saying, "How to get the best deal on car insurance - tip number 2." You would continue that sequence until you had exhausted your major benefits. But, here is the warning; the benefits must be described from the consumer's point of view, not your company's point of view.

If your firm operates with a limited marketing budget, you need to get more than simple recall from your marketing dollars. You need to make contact with your target market in a more personal, meaningful, memorable way. You want the prospect to associate you with the solution to something that he or she is worried about. The way you do that most effectively is with drip marketing - an extended series of sequential communications.

This is powerful stuff. You don't need to be a great writer. You only need to have empathy for your target market and think logically. When conducted correctly, drip marketing is a tremendous strategic advantage that will energize your marketing and bring you higher returns. When it's not conducted correctly, it's pollution.

If you like this information, you'll absolutely love what we can do for you in real life! Find us at: www.aboutpeople.com -- Michael Lovas