burglary. By playing up on your target buyers’ fear, you can sell your product
or service in a way that would make it seem like the only viable solution.
Psychological Trigger #2: Transfer.
This concept might sound new to you, but chances are you are quite familiar
with this already. This concept is not used that often in TV commercials, but
it is a fairly common strategy in print ads and promotional pages of websites.
In a nutshell, the concept of transfer is hinged on social proof or transitive
trust, which really is just fancy and technical speak for brand connection. To
illustrate this concept better, let us say that Brand Y is a new and unheard-of
product. Since it is new, people will be hesitant to try it, especially since there
is no guarantee as to its quality. To overcome this hurdle, the marketers of
Brand Y can namedrop familiar brands which it has collaborated with, in this
case, let us say Company A and Company B. Since people know Company A
and Company B, and they know that these are reputable companies, they will
also associate such good reputation with Brand Y. That said, this strategy is
most fitting for newer brands which can best be marketed through familiarity
with other brands, seeing as consumers are more likely to patronize a product
or service which is connected to something they already know or trust.
Psychological Trigger #3: Bandwagon effect.
This is among the most popular and most understood psychological sales
triggers. The bandwagon effect is a phenomenon wherein people do things
(or in the case of sales and marketing psychology, make purchases) because
other people are doing the same. This behavior is rooted in people’s
psychological need to belong. Essentially, all human beings, in one way or
another, desire to be a part of something regardless of whether they might
realize it or not.
I am sure that you have seen how this phenomenon plays out among
entrepreneurs. Whenever something becomes popular – be it a movie, a
product, or even a person – you will notice a meteoric rise in related
merchandise and people who sell such merchandise. Since people generally
want to belong, they tend to be willing to spend on products or services
which are popular among their peers. The great thing about this strategy is
that it requires minimal effort on the part of the seller or marketer. Basically,