Marketing that Gets a Response
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5 Ways to Create Marketing That Gets a Hardwired Response

Want to create seductive marketing that gets a response?
Start by understanding WHY people take action.
The marketing messages you experience every day are filled with psychological principles that trigger response.  Become a student of these principles.
If you’ve got a good offer and you’re not getting enough action — apply one of these 5 marketing principles that increase response.

1 – Become “the hot chick”

Back in high school, there was always that one girl that all the guys wanted.  You know, “the hot chick”.  Because she had her pick of guys, she could be extremely selective with who she dated.
In fact, this made her more desirable.
Why do we desire something (or someone) more when we know we can’t have it?”
The “Hot Chick” principle is more commonly called The Principle of Exclusivity.
In business, exclusivity can be achieved in a number of ways.
One powerful method of communicating exclusivity is through pricing.  Think of the dream car you wanted to drive as a kid.  Perhaps it was a Ferrari, or Mercedes, or BMW.  Why did you want to drive that car?  Because you knew if you can afford that car, then you had achieved a certain status in your life.
Premium pricing is not for everyone… but consider that, if you’re positioning yourself as exclusive, your pricing should likely match that message.
Persuasion by ExcusivityThe second way to achieve exclusivity is with the “velvet rope.”  You know… the velvet rope that gates off those who qualify from those that don’t.
If Harvard or Princeton let everyone in, would they be elite universities?  Nope.  By definition, they wouldn’t be elite.
Exclusivity works for products and services alike.  inDinero is an accounting software for small and mid-sized businesses that uses the exclusivity principle in their marketing.
First, they ask their prospects to “Request an Invite”…
Exculisivity
Then, they explain why the software is invite only.  They only want customers who are “Serious about having a business. Not just ‘thinking about’ building a business.”
More exclusivity
This is a far cry from the typical marketing message that practically begs you to become a customer.

RELATED:  Get access to all of Digital Marketer’s best articles on boosting conversions (no charge) by clicking here.

2 – Create an Itch, Then Scratch It

George Loewenstein, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University developed the “information gap theory of curiosity.”
According to Loewenstein, curiosity is rather simple:

It comes when we feel a gap ‘between what we know and what we want to know’.  This gap has emotional consequences: it feels like a mental itch, a mosquito bite on the brain. We seek out new knowledge because that’s how we scratch the itch.

The home page of QuickSprout does a fantastic job of creating a mental itch, then scratching that itch with the solution.
The headline draws you in:  “Do you want more traffic?”
Of course you want more traffic.
Curiosity
In a vacuum, that question isn’t really all that different from countless other headlines that you’ve read today.
What’s really cool is how Quicksprout.com answers the question.
Once you’ve entered your URL, you will receive a custom report showing you how to improve your site’s social media and SEO impact.
More curiosity
You can read the entire report on the screen, but in order to get it in a PDF or Excel (so you can read it later), you must enter your email address.
Notice how SingleGrain builds curiosity in this Facebook ad both with the text of the ad and the blurred out image…
Curiosity in a Facebook Ad

3 – Show Them Your Crystall Ball

People don’t buy products and services… they buy outcomes.
Your job is to show them what their future will look like when they become a customer of yours.  Drip is an email marketing software.  Yet, you don’t see the word “email” until the 6th line of text on their website.
Why?  Because they spend the first few lines forecasting the future — telling prospects about the future they could have by increasing conversions on your website.  Some marketers call it “futurecasting.”
From their landing page:  “Imagine that instead of the meager purchase rate you see today you could capture contact information for 5-10% of your website visitors and easily engage them with a  pre-written email sequence during the following weeks.”
You can’t help but get excited by the prospect of more leads and more traffic.
Futurecasting
Rich Schefren does a brilliant job of helping you visualize the outcome of buying his solution…
Visualization or Futurecasting

4 – Make the Customer a Star

According to Search Engine Land, 79% of people trust online reviews as much as they trust personal recommendations.
By featuring customers, instead of having testimonials buried in a sidebar, you’ll prominently display your social proof on your landing page.
This persuasive principle is known as social proof.
Basecamp, formerly 37 Signals, took this premise to a whole ‘nother level.  They didn’t just create landing pages that featured customers, they created landing pages about their customers.
Social Proof
Instead of featuring their product as the central image, they featured a customer.  Instead of creating a crafty headline, they simply used a quote from the same customer increasing both trust and social proof.

5 – Break the Mold

The web is filled with the same ol’, same ol’.
Something that isn’t what you were expecting, that doesn’t follow a predictable pattern, is called a pattern interrupt.
Your first job is to STOP your prospect and get them to lean into their computer screen.
One way to interrupt a pattern is through personalization.  Good (non-creepy) personalization is so rare on the Internet, despite all the talk of its importance.
Notice how Conversion Voodoo’s home page uses personalization as a pattern interrupt…
Pattern Interrupt through Personalization
When your prospective customers are browsing the web with attention spans less than that of a goldfish, you need a way to stop them in their tracks.
Check out the Noah Kagan’s headline on his blog OKDork
Headline with Pattern Interrupt
A typical marketing message like “Get access to my best business hacks” blends into the pattern.
However, a headline that says “Get access to 85% of my best business hacks” sticks out.  It makes you stop your mindless browsing and pay attention.

The Truth about Creating Marketing That Gets a Response

It’s not easy.
You need to be endlessly curious.  You need to dive deep into the psyche of your customer to find out what makes them tick.  And most of all, you need to be willing to experiment, and fail.
But the reward is going to be worth the pain.
When potential customers are simply scanning your competitor’s website, they’re going to be glued to yours, devouring every word and getting excited to use your product or service.
The question is:  Do you have what it takes to create seductive marketing that gets a response?
I’m willing to bet you do.

RELATED:  Get access to Digital Marketer’s best articles on boosting conversions (no charge) by clicking here.

Greg Digneo

Greg Digneo

Greg Digneo is the founder of Cloud Marketing Labs where he helps companies like Staff.com and Appsumo generate leads by creating and promoting epic content.  Pick up his new ebook where he shows you how to use content marketing to build your email list, increase sales, and generate revenue

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