Plato’s view was that man is rational and that it is our emotions that interfere with rational decisions. Today, we are more aware of the power of our subconscious mind and some doubt that we have much free will at all. That all our decisions are programmed by our prejudices and past experience.
When we buy things, we do act more rationally, as long as the decision is a simple one, but the more complex it gets the more we rely on emotions which we label instinct, or intuition. All established brands are designed to appeal to both.
There is some neuroscience that suggest that 95% of our purchase decision making takes place subconsciously, but that isn’t always clear to us as our conscious mind makes up reasons to justify them. So, if emotions are such a powerful purchase trigger why don’t we make more use of them?
The Power of Praise
I am not a great fan of appealing directly to emotions - perhaps the deluge of extravagant car adverts on TV has turned me against it – so, I suggest a different approach. I think that one of the best ways to influence how a potential customer feels – rather than thinks - about your products, instead of appealing directly to emotions, is to provide an experience that creates the desired emotion.
The customer story does that very well.
Just imagine one of your happy customers talking directly to camera about how great your products or services are, what makes you different to the competition, and what a great guy you are. Now imagine yourself looking to buy those same services and watching the video. See? It has a deeper impact than anything you write coldly on a web page.
Praise direct from customers is very powerful as if connects subconsciously and increases credibility. Jaguar once did something similar in reverse. They had quality problems in their UK factory so interviewed customers all over the globe about their experiences of the cars they bought. The direct feedback had a powerful effect on the build quality almost overnight.
Today, Plato’s view might be that man thinks he is rational, but his emotions are very often in the driving seat, even though he doesn’t know it. So, perhaps it is time to give customer stories and testimonials more space in your store.
If you need any help in doing that, please get in touch.
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