Whitepaper_Designing for the Consumer Experience: The Role of Psychology in Marketing.pdf
- 1. Magical Unthinking DESIGNING FOR THE CONSUMER EXPERIENCE: THE ROLE OF PSYCHOLOGY IN MARKETING FEBRUARY 2023 PREPARED BY Fatima Akbar Elena Bubeeva Anirban Halder AKBAR / BUBEEVA / HALDER PHOTO BY EFE KURNAZ ON UNSPLASH
- 2. Table of Contents What you (don't) see is what you get. Page 1: Title Page Page 2: Table of Contents Page 3: Magical Unthinking in Design Page 4: Sales Psychology: Why is it important for a marketer? Cialdini’s Influence Page 5: Cialdini's Principles of Persuasion Page 6: Core Principles Page 7: Examples I Page 8: Examples II Page 9: Conversion-Centered Design (CCD) Page 10-11: Examples of CCD Page 12: Conclusion Page 13: Bio-Notes "The secret power of appearing to make impossible things happen by saying special words or doing special things." The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word "magic" in these terms. We know that in the field of design this magic is often delivered by Gestalt principles that have been around for a very long time. In this presentation, we would like to highlight the specific role of the principles of proximity and reciprocity in sales pyschology and conversion-centric design to suggest the secret lies in making the audience "unthink" the process. PAGE 2 PHOTO BY SCOTT WEBB ON UNSPLASH AKBAR / BUBEEVA / HALDER
- 3. MAGICAL UNTHINKING IN DESIGN How can web designs create a layout that not only abides by the foundational principles of perception but also make the user navigate effortlessly and convert them to paying customers? The designs highlighted here do just that: they let processes of thinking remain unthought and play with the human mind's desire for stories, images, and connections made through them. THE AFTERLIFE OF GESTALT In application-oriented fields like sales psychology, behavioral and persuasion sciences, Gestalt principles are often used to convert viewers to paying customers. Conversion-Centered Design (CCD) deploys strategies like directional flow and invitation for reciprocal action to achieve this. CIALDINI'S PRINCIPLES Reciprocity, consistency, and social proof form some of the core principles of American psychologist Robert Cialdini's work. These ideas form the basis of his noted work "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" (1984). People like to respond consistently and reciprocate with 'favors' when there is proof of consensus. THE SILENT MAGIC OF CONSUMER-DRIVEN DESIGN (CDD) The silent magic of whitespace, directional cues (often with 3D effect), and various uses of colours with contrasting impact are some primary techniques used in CCD. AKBAR / BUBEEVA / HALDER PAGE 3 PHOTO BY NORDWOOD THEMES ON UNSPLASH
- 4. A Marketing Analyst's goal is to connect with consumers and persuade them to buy a product or service. By grasping the principles of human psychology, marketers can gain a deeper insight into how consumers think, feel, and act, and use this information to craft more effective marketing campaigns. By utilizing the principles of consumer psychology, marketers can develop messaging and experiences that resonate with their target audience, resulting in increased engagement and improved conversion rates. Sales Psychology Why is it important for a marketing analyst to understand consumer psychology? PAGE 4 PHOTO BY EFE KURNAZ ON UNSPLASH AKBAR / BUBEEVA / HALDER
- 5. Cialdini’s Principles of Persuasion Cialdini's principles of persuasion are 6 ways marketers can influence consumer behaviour. By using these principles in their campaigns, they can encourage actions like buying a product or sharing information. Incorporating these principles into messaging can make marketing campaigns more successful. Reciprocity: People feel obligated to repay favours, gifts, or invitations. Scarcity: People are more likely to desire something that is rare or in limited supply Authority: People are more likely to follow the lead of someone perceived as an expert or having a position of authority. Consistency: People have the desire to be consistent with their previous actions, commitments, and beliefs. Liking: People are more likely to comply with requests from people they know, like and trust. Social Proof: People tend to conform to the actions and opinions of others in a given social group. PAGE 5 PHOTO BY DANIEL KORPAI ON UNSPLASH AKBAR / BUBEEVA / HALDER
- 6. Core Principles To improve engagement and conversion rates, marketing analysts can leverage various principles of psychology in their strategies. In order to establish lasting connections with customers, building trust is crucial. The principle of trust involves demonstrating competence, being transparent and honest, and consistently delivering on promises. In marketing these can be shown through positive reviews, recommendations, numbers and statistics. PAGE 6 PHOTO BY NORDWOOD THEMES ON UNSPLASH AKBAR / BUBEEVA / HALDER
- 7. PAGE 7 Authority via Proximity: The image of the doctor´s uniform is a sign of expertise and authority allowing the audience to be confident in the company´s ability to provide good services in this area. As a care-giver's authoritative body, it stands by at a proximal distance to offer care. Trust: The slogan aims to transform this confidence to trust, By directly communicating with the audience and giving them assurance that their loved ones are indeed safe at Family First Clinic. Reciprocity & Proximity: The offer of 30 Day Free Trial is given to the customer with the goal that in return the customer will become a paid customer. The CTA for "30 Day Free Trial" lies close to "Join Now", As if it is playfully teasing us to accept the invitation. Social Proof: The customer's need to be part of a community will be satisfied by becoming part of a community of 3K+ members. How can you use these principles to increase your company´s conversion rates?
- 8. Liking: Creating desire and connection with audience through shared values that are listed one after another. The bold fonts and drop-down numbering of the offered features satisfy the proximation of those very features in our mind. Scarcity: Get it while it is on sale ... Right now. PAGE 8
- 9. CONVERSION-CENTERED DESIGN One of the applications of the principles of design and psychology mentioned above is conversion-centred design. It employs various techniques with the single goal of turning a visitor into a customer. Think of it as the process of planning, creating, and analyzing user experiences with the aim of achieving a specific conversion goal. The major distinction with user-centred design (UCD) is the intent to get someone to achieve your goal, as opposed to their own. PAGE 9 7 main principles The heart of any CCD is a landing page that is primarily designed for a user to perform an action whether it is a fill-out of the contact form or a click of a "purchase" button.
- 10. PAGE 10 So how do you persuade a visitor to complete your conversion goal? - by using DESIGN elements that drive the user's attention towards a specific action Below is the landing page from Instapage. It is designed using a white space principle that beneficially highlights a primary CTA in the middle. By reducing the clutter and separating various on-page elements from each other, this design tends to improve the user’s focus on conversion only. The better comprehension of the offer, the higher possibility that the user clicks the button. Below is the landing page from uMake. It is designed using the directional-cues-principle that playfully directs the user’s attention towards the CTA. Using smart visual hints that are also interactive this design guides the visitors towards the desired action immediately after they arrive at the page. CONVERSION-CENTERED DESIGN
- 11. PAGE 11 Conversion-Centered Design So how do you persuade a visitor to complete your conversion goal using design? - by using elements of PSYCHOLOGY that encourage participation Here is the landing page from Banana Beauty. Using the statements of urgency like “last chance” this design encourages the user to take a purchasing decision right away. It plays around with the basic human feeling of a fear of missing out on a promising opportunity, in this case, a trendy beauty set. Here is the landing page from Adobe InDesign. By enabling the user to enjoy the full version for a 7-day trial (“try before you buy” principle) for free, this design creates extra credibility around the brand. Users who can scrutinise the programme for a week are able to make more informed decisions.
- 12. Conclusion The aesthetic and cognitive principles covered here show how to design layouts can adapt according to the complicated ways in which the human mind works and best responds to visual stimulation. For marketers to be able to convert website visitors to paying customers, they must be aware of the mind's dynamic interaction with visuals. In our findings, we have understood the relationship between the mind and images on a design layout as mutually communicative. That is, the examples given above start off with principles and age-old theories, but is eventually called to action and respond through dialogue enabled by robust conversion-centric design. This dialogue should be well-thought through but is also best left at times subtle, or what we have called magical elements that let us (un)think a webpage design. PAGE 12 PHOTO BY EFE KURNAZ ON UNSPLASH AKBAR / BUBEEVA / HALDER
- 13. Meet the Authors FATIMA AKBAR Marketing Analyst, Germany-based with strong communications and administrative skills. Critical thinker, writer, and public speaker with experience in fundraising and management. B.A. in Women and Gender Studies at Lafayette College, USA. Trainee at Marketing analytics bootcamp at WBS Coding School. LinkedIn: fatimaakbar GitHub: parwanaa ELENA BUBEEVA, MA Digital Marketing Analyst with strong communication and project management skills. Experience in copywriting, content management, and website analytics from both the public and private sectors. MA in Heritage Studies from the University of Cottbus, Germany. LinkedIn: elenabubeeva GitHub: salatmehl ANIRBAN HALDER, PHD Marketing Analyst with a demonstrated history of working in education management. Skilled in Administration, Corporate Communications in English, Web Analytics, and Business Development. Professional with a PhD in American Studies from the University of Mainz, Germany. LinkedIn: Dr. Anirban Halder GitHub: anirhal PAGE 13