The psychology of products

Products are basically anything created or existing for consumption in any form and all the best performing products in terms of sales and use all use on form of psychology to influence prospect decision or the other.

Naturally, the market is saturated with different products some performing the same job but why do we seem to use some products more than others? Why do users seem to take certain action more than others?

Simple, one part of the market hass figured out how to use external and internal triggers while desinging their product or website: An internal is what makes people think they would have to use your product. they’re usually emotions like boredom, excitement, challenge and external triggers are usually reminders or CTA’s that get them engaged with your product.

Here’s how you can use both to make taking action easier.

Trigger them to take an action,

Clearly define the key action

Make the action easy to find

Make the action clear

Make it easy to take

Use defaults, simplify or remove steps

The psychology of habits

Trigger, routine, reward. Think about the satisfaction of using your product, something people crave. There are 3 types of rewards we get from using products; social connection/reward, resources, achievements; getting better at whatever it is you’re doing makes you feel like you’re making progress or have done something meaningful.

Beyond the Reward: Create investment; The ikea effect for instance, when people contribute in any way towards a product, they take it more seriously and tend to feel more invested.

The psychology of websites:

A huge part of this module from my learning in my CXL class this week was focused on getting your value proposition right. Here’s what I learnt and key things to note while coming up with your product value prop.

Research by MarketingExperiments says that the key challenge companies have is identifying an effective value proposition, followed by communicating it clearly.

Value proposition is communicating what is in it for your prospects or site visitors, what are they getting by using your product? So you need to make them an offer they cannot refuse. A good value prop communicates a solution or benefit and what problem of the user you’re solving. Make it clear who the target audience is and deliver specific benefits that are unique to that product that your target audience also cares about. In essence, communicate why anyone should buy from you aside from your competitors, it’s important to focus on value and how your product is very important to your customers by using simple language. Your value proposition is not a slogan. It’s not a catchphrase.

A value proposition can boost your sales considerably when done right.

Here are some psychology concepts that help people take action

Dual process theory:

we think in two different systems.

System 1: automatic, we don’t have control and it’s very driven by emotion and habit

System 2: careful and robotic thinking, we put in effort and mental work to do it and it’s what differentiates us from animals.

But ultimately we spend most of our day in system one. Some researchers think as much as like 80% of our day is spent automatically in system one, like not really consciously thinking about what we’re doing. And our brain is sorta wired to do that because it takes a lot more energy to thinkin that system two thinking. So it’s always trying to conserve us energy and build habits and build intuitive reasoning that helps us not have to think deliberately. So our brain works that way to make things more easy and more seamless.One thing about our website is when someone goes in our website,it’s engaging one of those two systems. But the more someone has to think, the less likely they’ll take action or follow through. So do everything you can to make taking action be a system one thing for your site visitors or prospects.

Communicate clearly:

State your value prop using this questions

• Who is your website for?
• What are the benefits for site visitors?
• Why is it relevant to them?
• Are there technical jargon or industry terms they won’t resonate with?
• What words could replace them? And how can you speak in the language they use?

What the value proposition consists of

The value proposition is typically communicated via a block of text

Headline: What is the end-benefit you’re offering, in 1 short sentence. Can mention the product and/or the customer. Attention grabber.

Sub-headline or a 2–3 sentence paragraph: A specific explanation of what you do/offer, for whom and why is it useful.

3 bullet points: List the key benefits or features.

Visual: Images communicate much faster than words. Show the product, the hero shot or an image reinforcing your main message.

What makes a good value proposition:

Clarity! It’s easy to understand.

It communicates the concrete results a customer will get from purchasing and using your products and/or services.

It says how it’s different or better than the competitor’s offer.

It avoids hype (like never seen before amazing miracle product), superlatives (best) and business jargon (value-added interactions).

It can be read and understood in about 5 seconds.

Also, in most cases there is a difference between the value proposition for your company and your product. You must address both.

How to craft a unique value proposition

A key role for the value proposition is to set you apart from the competition. Most people check out 4–5 different options / service providers before they decide. You want your offering to stand out in this important research phase.

Value proposition is not just a cosmetic touch, it’s what you actually stand for. If you don’t stand for anything, time to start.

The key thing to remember is that you don’t need to be unique in the whole world, just in the customer’s mind. The closing of a sale takes place in a customer’s mind, not out in the marketplace among the competition.

Boosters for your value proposition

Sometimes it’s the little things that tip the decision in your favor. If all major things are pretty much the same between your and your competitors’ offer, you can win by offering small value-adds. I call them boosters.

These things work well against competitors who do not offer them. Boosters can be things like

Free shipping

Fast shipping / Next day shipping

Free bonus with a purchase

Free setup / installation

No setup fee

No long-term contract, cancel any time

License for multiple computers (vs 1)

(Better than) Money-back guarantee

A discounted price (for a product)

Your value proposition should come from what you do better than the competition, not from forcing copywriters to be clever.

Look at the weaknesses of your competitors & ask yourself:

Is your website easier to use? How specifically?

Can your product be better tailored to the market?

Do you have a kick ass customer service team?

Is your return policy or customer guarantee superior?

Are your prices lower?

Do you have faster shipping options?

Is your atmosphere better?

If your value proposition makes the benefit immediately apparent to the customer, you’ll be a step ahead — because everyone else is still trying to compete on features.