Understand the Consumer Mind - think like a customer
Posted by Audrey Sendrowski-Breuer on Tue, May 31, 2011 @ 02:42 PM
Wouldn't it be nice if we could read minds? We would know what people want without them ever having to directly tell us. What an advantage!
You may not be able to read your customer's mind, but you can gain the advantage if you understand the Consumer Mind. The Consumer Mind is a busy place. It's on information overload most of the time. You have about 3 and a half seconds to get its attention. And pretty much all it's interested in is the answer to these two questions:
Why should I listen to you?
What's in it for me?
The 'What' is pretty obvious - that's your offer, product or service. But more specifically, it's about how your offer, product or service will benefit them. Make their life easier. Simpler. Faster. Slower. Quieter. Fun. Adventurous. Richer.
You answer the 'What' not with what you are selling but what it will do for the customer once they have it.
The 'Why' may not be so obvious. Again, it's not about how great your offer is. It's about a compelling message. Something that stands out (addresses real problems) and gets their attention (offers real solutions). A compelling message is written with interesting, dynamic words. It isn't so careful and cautious not to offend anyone that it's boring. It has impact.
You answer the 'Why' with saying something different, unexpected, out of the ordinary that addresses the problem and offers the answer.
Remember: to get the Consumer Mind to pay attention to you, answer the all-consuming 'Why' and 'What'. Here's how:
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Don't sound like everyone else (see next)
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Pay attention to your competitors' messages - be different, not the same-old, same-old
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Craft your compelling message - make it provocative, throw me off course, if you have to!
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Use a thesaurus to get more dynamic versions of the words you want to use
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Make sure you (potentially) fix my problem and make my life better
Next Consumer Mind blog will be about the Consumer Buying Cycle - when is the right time to advertise?
Good luck!
Audrey
Find out how well you connect to your customer...
photo source (consumer mind) http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=2155
photo source (what why...) http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=721