Baker's Dozen INDEX
The Most Important Reasons 'Why People Buy' ... Part I
The second most important element in every marketing campaign, behind selecting the right audience, is having the right offer.
An offer is a reason for your prospect to consider becoming your customer. It is more than features and benefits of the product or service. It is an "extra", a bonus, it is in addition to what the customer will gain when they do business with you.
Offers are frequently mis-understood. Or overlooked. Sometimes viewed as a cost, rather than an incentive. Or thought of as unnecessary, because "I've got what the customer needs".
Which misses the point. Of course, you should only be talking to those who need what you sell. Yet, an offer, many times, is the difference between meeting your objectives, and not. It's what pushes you into the forefront of consideration. It's what turns a shopper into your buyer.
This is Part I of a double set of reasons Why People Buy. 13 this time ... 13 more next time. Let's begin with these two;
Reason #1. To Make Money
Reason #2. To Save Money
Which is not a surprise. And there is a reason I put this set first.
Every campaign is measured by a financial result. Sooner or later money comes into question. Did we make it, earn it, save it, invest it, donate it ... something about money. Money in any form will get attention.
Money is also a determining factor for the prospect. Is this a good deal?, is a question often asked. Will I earn more with this investment, or that? Can I save when I buy here rather than there? Can I save today vs. tomorrow?
Money affects every buy / sell relationship - at every level in the chain.
Reason #3. To save time
Reason #4. To avoid extra effort & work
Reason #5. To make work easier, more pleasant
These three are also a collection. Separate. Different. And tied together.
For when we save time we most often do so for a benefit. We become more efficient, hopefully more effective. Which may make work more enjoyable and allow more time for other things. When we save time it is most often used for something else in our life or our work ... something we want to do, vs. need to do.
There is a theory that says we have less time than ever before. Of course, that is not so ... you have the same amount of time available to you as those who walked this earth decades, centuries, millenniums ago. What you do with it - now, that's another story.
Time and work and pleasure ... they do all mesh together. For good, or not. And thus are each a factor in the buying and selling process.
Reason #6. To protect their family
Reason #7. To provide for their family
Family plays a huge role in many peoples lives. Often "family" is extended to others outside the blood line. An association or club, at work or church, a group of neighbors and other friends. A charity. For those close to us we'll do most anything to "protect".
Next, many work and give their entire lives, exclusively for others ... their real family and others they've adopted. They are providers.
There is a lady in my life who gave and gave and gave ... and truly did nothing for herself until her entire family was gone. She looked around, and for the first time began to think about herself. She had both protected and provided for others exclusively for the first 50 years of her life.
Today she is in a new, a second life. Doing what most of us do between ages 20 and 50, she is doing from 50 onward. Her family has changed - and so has she.
Reason #8. To feel important and significant
Not certain which of these two descriptions is key. Guess it depends on the individual. And circumstances.
Your product and service will affect how you talk and what you say. With time and experience you'll learn when "important" is the word ... when it should be "significant".
Sometimes a significant act is not important. It may have a major one time, short term, very narrow impact ... and then "disappear". In other cases an important act is not significant in the overall lay of the land.
This is another lesson in making certain you have the right audience to talk with from the beginning. As your product, your service, will mean different things to different people.
Reason #9. To build a financial & secure future
Everyone wants to do better than they already have. And they want their family to have more. More of just about everything.
They see their kids going to a top school - and graduating. They want their home to be in a better neighborhood ... bigger and nicer. They see a new car in the driveway - every year. And their later years as one big playground of fun and games. They work toward a specific set of ends.
For many work achievement is all about financial security. Providing for their loved ones in a way all are comfortable.
Still, there is another group where money is nothing more than something along the way. Yes, they need enough to exist ... they don't care about more. They see security in a broader way than just money.
Reason #10. To be in "style"
Reason #11. To be an individual
Fashion is about style and individualism. So are fast and fancy cars. And 5 star resorts. Brand name products.
Younger people and the wealthy tend to be more style conscious than others. Certain industries, and companies, scream "style". Where the women all wear dresses and the men 3-piece suits. And behave a set way. Belong to certain clubs. Go to the "right" events. Because that is expected by their marketplace. i.e., insurance for an industry. And a number of old line manufacturing companies, too. The 'rules' are strict.
The opposite is being an individual. Where these same groups - the rich and the young - also like to standout. And be different than others.
My avocation and radio work takes to motorcycle events around the country. Honda Gold Wing riders have a different perspective on style and individualism than do Harley-Davidson riders. And yet, many suppliers sell to each - successfully. Because they have selected the right message for each audience.
"Individual Style" is a challenge. As it is why certain people buy.
Reason #12. To avoid criticism from family, friends, at work
Reason #13. To be recognized by others
This set is at opposites. No one craves criticism ... even when they appreciate the value in the comments.
Most everyone enjoys a level of recognition - provided it's positive. Which most criticism is not.
This pair of reasons why people buy both conflict and compliment one another. How do you give praise and offer advice in the same breath? It's a tough assignment.
Next time I'll be back with Part II of this double set ... the next 13 Reasons Why People Buy. In between time, try a few these thoughts on your marketplace. See what happens when you think about your customers approach to buying and selling.