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The Consumer Mindset

This is a topic that has always been fascinating to me as a professional business and marketing consultant.  Marketing is about perception, so the mindset of consumers begs a whole series of questions.

  • What do consumers buy?
  • Why do they buy?
  • Why should they buy from a certain seller vs. a different one?
  • How do you reach the consumer when they’re ready to buy?
  • How do you convince or encourage them to buy when you want them to?

These questions seem simple, but the answers are rather complicated.  Keep in mind that the average consumer wants to avoid being sold; they prefer to make purchases on their own terms.  My hair stylist told me she finished her Christmas shopping early in 2012; she bought everything online.  Her terms.

There are several factors that influence the consumer’s mindset, such as the budget (is the product or service affordable), the level of need (is it a necessity or a luxury purchase), and the deal (is it a bargain at the price offered or is it better to wait), among other variables.

Let’s start with the level of need.  Remember the heirarchy of needs?  It starts with basic necessities such as food, water, and shelter.  If your business offers products to meet these necessities, the theory holds that your business should survive and succeed.  The consumer, in most cases, wants toilet paper so you should have little competition … except there are different levels of softness, sheets per roll, and other variables.  What determines the consumer’s decision to buy in this scenario?

Here’s where other factors come in.  Is the consumer looking to stock up because the supply is running low?  Is there a good price on their favorite brand?  Are they totally out and need whatever they can find at whatever the price?

With other necessities, such as electrical power and a water supply, the consumer has little choice since the market is dominated by monopolies.  Utilities provide cost savings through the control of grid systems which enable individual users to share the cost of a major development.  Going “off the grid” for your energy needs is an expensive project for the same reason it is costly to develop your own water capture and filtration system.

Another aspect of the level of need is whether the purchase is vital or merely a luxury.

This can be where the budget factors come in.  If a woman needs a pair of pants for work and the same slacks are available at a discount store for 30% less than at a name brand department store, where does she buy the pants?  She may buy them at the department store for the “prestige factor” or save the money buying them at the discount store and saying she bought them at the other place.

As the retailer, your advertising is going to depend on which store you own or represent.  The discount outlet can be effective marketing the pants as “department store quality at 1/3rd the cost” whereas the department store is likely to focus on the quality of the name brand with a message along the lines of “available exclusively at.”

Another influencers in the consumer’s mind is brand loyalty.  If the woman needing pants has always purchased her work slacks at the discount store, she will most likely purchase the next pair from that store.  And if she’s loyal to the department store, she will buy there despite the price difference.  The deal is less a factor when the power of the brand trumps the perceived value.

So what have we learned about the consumer’s mindset?

While advertising tends to lump consumers together, the individual makes his or her own buying decisions based on their psyche, budget, personal preferences, and perceived value.  As a business owner, it is essential to understand your customers as much as you possibly can so that you and your products or services, remain relevant to them and their desires.

If you’d like some assistance with some market research on your consumer’s mindsets, please contact Brand Irons.

 

5 Signs of Business Passion

One of the first elements I consider when meeting with a prospective new client is whether they have passion for their project or business venture.  Without it, the process of creating successful business and market strategies becomes an uphill struggle that often winds up in the ditch, especially with existing companies.

Think of it this way:  If your car is stuck on a hill in a foot of snow and you have to get over that hill, passion and determination must be necessary to get the job done.  If you give up and tell yourself it’s futile and not worth the effort, your car (and you) will stay stuck in the snow or slide off into the ditch and stay there for days.  You will be frustrated, stranded, and discouraged because you never got to your destination.

You would be amazed at how many entrepreneurs wind up that way.  They have a great idea but get stuck and lack the determination and the passion to go any further, to get beyond that hurdle and achieve potential success.

The driver with passion takes the time to think through the solution to the dilemma, then acts with determination.  The snow is removed from under the tires and the car may be backed up a little, but eventually a slow, steady climb gets the vehicle over the hill – maybe with a little help – and then it’s on to the next challenge.

Are you passionate about your business?

Here are symptoms that will identify the level of your passion:

  1. You don’t consider that you have to go to “work” every day because you enjoy it;
  2. You enjoy solving your customer’s problems and helping them in the process;
  3. You value your employees because they seem to share your passion;
  4. Your employees enjoy coming to work and take good care of your customers; and
  5. You spend less time working in your business and more on how to make it better.

One of the five C’s of credit that banks consider in loaning money to business owners is Character.  The major element of that character they evaluate is passion.  The bank, or any investor, wants to know how passionate you are about the business, your customers, and the products and/or services you offer.

We recently counselled a client who was passionate about opening a franchise restaurant as a family-owned business.  The passion was dampened when the franchise allowed another franchisee to open within the territory being considered.  We opted for an independent yet similar business and the family-owned aspects of creating their own concept drove the owner’s passion to new heights.  And the banker was impressed with that determination to succeed.

Keep in mind that passion is important in business, but should also be instrumental in everything else we do in life.

Creating Relevant Content

Too many business owners believe that more copy on their website is better than just a little.  A few years ago that may have been the case.  Today, in this age of instant gratification, it is far more critical that the content – the copy and images – on your website is relevant.  Relevant to your business and relevant to your potential consumers, the web users searching for your content.

Key Words.  Let’s assume a potential customer is online because they had a party and their carpet needs to be professionally cleaned.  What are they likely to key into the search engine, whether it’s Google, YouTube, Yahoo, or Bing?  Probably the key words “carpet cleaning” or “professional carpet cleaning” and possibly their city, but the search engines are intuitive enough to automatically search for those services in the general vicinity of that computer’s location.

Relevant content on your website needs to include “carpet cleaning” in a title page, and “professional carpet cleaning” in the hidden page description as well as among the key words coded into the html language.  The actual page seen by the potential consumer also has to have relevant content about the fact you provide carpet cleaning services and that you provide professional carpet cleaning services.

Keep in mind that users are unlikely to spend a lot of time on your site looking for the information.  Some recent research suggested that time is in the nano-seconds.  The more prominent and easy it is for users to access, and the more relevant it is to their search criteria, the greater likelihood you will get the call to provide the services.

Call to Action.  This is content that is often overlooked.  Do you want a visitor to your web site to do something once they find you?  Do you want them to call?  Send you an E-mail?  Click for more information?  Stop in at your store?

What you want them to do is the call to action that should be a relevant portion of your website’s content.  If you are a hair stylist or massage therapist, you probably want your online viewers to call for an appointment, so make that a headline on  your site:  Call (123) 456-7890 for an appointment today!

Users may ignore the call to action.  The point is to make it was easy as possible for potential customers to choose you.

Format.  How the content is presented on your website is also relevant to increasing and driving traffic.  It’s less about numbers of visitors than it is about visitors who become customers because of what they’ve found and how long they look at the information you provide to them.  Think about the last time you went to a website and found a massive block of copy for its content.  Did you read it all?  Or were you gone in seven seconds?  How you format your content can be critical to the success of your web presence.  Make it easy to find information that is relevant to their search.

Users love bullet points and numbered lists, such as the top 10 reasons to use your services (maybe it’s the top 7).  Headlines, clickable graphics, pictures, and other eye appealing elements – as long as they’re relevant to your business – can increase the amount of time visitors spend exploring your site, learning about you and your business, and considering using your services.

Create room on your site for a Facebook reader so the content changes every time you post to Facebook, or make a video that links to YouTube from your site.  The more activity that gets noticed on your site by the spiders, the higher your search engine ranking will be.  Keep in mind that the search engines are becoming more and more sophisticated, so you and your web developer need to stay on top of the factors that can elevate your site in the rankings, or demote you.

Theme.  Along with formatting, having a consistent theme between all the pages on your website adds to the relevancy of your content.  Adding copy or graphics to fill space can create confusion to viewers.  Often, less is more attractive, especially if it pertains to the message you’re trying to convey.

That brings up another point.  Do you know what your message, or brand, is?  Are you conveying it correctly in your web content?  It should be part of the overall look and feel, or theme, for your business and its website.

Spelling & Grammar.  How your business appears to the online consumer is critical.  Misspelled words, such as spelling a key word hidden in code as “capret cleaning” instead of “carpet cleaning” can mean the difference between your site being found in the search engines.  Extra care must be taken to avoid spelling errors and grammatical mistakes.  Abbreviations may be fine for txting, but are inappropriate for reflecting the image you wish to portray of your company.

Your potential consumers want reliable, trustworthy information for them to feel comfortable using your company and its products or services.  Be careful in using spell checkers, too, since it is difficult for them to discern where “their,” “they’re,” or “there” is the appropriate terminology.

Last thought, if you’re unsure about how relevant your web content is, consider using the services of a professional.  If they can help you move from page five of the search engine responses to page one, it will be worth the investment.

 

 

Sex Sells – Part One

Yes, it’s true!  Sexual attraction can sell your products or services.

Think about it for a few minutes (a few seconds for men) and you realize the attraction factor is more than male-female and female-male.  What do I mean?

I have often thought that department store ads for underwear were unfair to women.  The ads depict female models wearing the products in full color, which one might think were designed to appeal to the male audience.  You rarely see male models sporting the masculine products; it’s usually a picture of the product in its package.  That probably makes it easier for the guys to find it in the store.

The female models, I have learned, are what attract other women to the product.  The ads are not oriented toward men!  Women want to see what the product looks like, and the kind of body they would like to or do have.  So, in the case of women’s under garment advertising, the “sex” factor is female-female.

Companies that market sporting goods or sports-related products also find success with the “sex sells” approach.  Humor works well, too, such as some of the beer commercials where horses work out to improve their position or play football for example.  Yet beer marketing companies also use male bonding approaches to selling their products since research has shown that men are the most likely high quantity buyers of their products.

We have become so familiar with the “sex sells” approach of print, TV, radio, and even Internet advertising that we rarely give it a second thought.  For it to be effective for your business, therefore, it must be different, tasteful, and outstanding to get your product or service noticed.

How do you do that?

First, know your customers.  Understand who makes the buying decision when it comes to purchasing your products or services.

Second, know your products or services.  What are your customers or prospective customers buying?  Are they buying wicker baskets, or are they purchasing decorative storage containers?

Third, decide if a sexy advertising approach is appropriate for your business, products, and services.  There may be a more effective way to get the results you desire.

Fourth, if sexual attraction will move your merchandise, find creative and tasteful ways to advertise your goods and services.  You may find that a subliminal, nuanced message has far greater impact on results than a raunchy, over-the-top and objectionable reference to bedroom behavior.

Allow me to share a couple of examples:

1) Think about the operation of a bar, tavern, or restaurant that serves alcohol.  Think about the patrons.  They could easily purchase alcohol and drink it at home.  Why do they come to the drinking establishment?  They come to be with friends, to enjoy the atmosphere, have fun, and to be entertained. 

Ignoring the age of the patrons, they are more likely to drink more product if the bartender or server is younger, more attractive, and more out-going.  Yes, even flirty!  A female bartender with a great personality and an attractive figure will build a loyal, repeat male customer base more than a grumpy older woman.  The same holds true for a muscular, handsome male bartender in building a repeat loyalty among female patrons.

2) Think about trade shows and exhibits for a minute.  As you walk the floors of a convention center to check out the various products and services offered by vendors in your industry, what draws you into the exhibit?  One, obviously, is that you are interested in learning more about the product or service being displayed.  How do you react if there’s a “pushy” sales rep approaching you to “step in” or “take this brochure” as you get close?  You either get sucked in or side-step to the other side of the aisle to avoid them.

Now think about the booth where there’s an attractive male or female staffing the display.  They’re smiling at you (and everyone) and being a bit flirtatious as you approach.  The display is also attractive, but the way the staffer is dressed and groomed reels you in.  If they answer your serious questions professionally and appeal to your attraction to them, you are more likely to also be attracted to their products and services.

The point is to take the time to think things through when it involves using a sexual approach to marketing your business.

 

 

 

Why Are You In Business?

As business owners, one of the tasks we often overlook is to stop and think about why we’re in business.  Sure, we know we have to market, sell, produce, and deliver our product.  That’s a given.  Why we do what we do gets short shrift in the process.  That can have an impact on the entire operation of our enterprise.

Perhaps the most critical element in our business is the reason we are in business to begin with.  Some of us started our venture in the hopes our children would have an interest and want to take over some day.  Some got lucky and found a niche that hadn’t been filled yet and are now the cat’s meow in that industry.  Quite a few Baby Boomers want to enjoy their retirement doing something they’ve always wanted to do.  Why did you get into the business you’re in?

Here’s why the answer to that question is so important, and worth revisiting every six months or so:  The reason you are in business becomes your mission, and your mission is conveyed to your employees, customers, and the public as the vision and public persona (if you will) of your company.

That vision becomes the engine that drives your business.  As you will find in the Small Business Owner’s Guide to Marketing, your mission defines the products and services you offer and to whom you offer them.  It clarifies your position in the market and identifies strategies for marketing what you do to the consuming public.  And, as you look at it in terms of your life’s contributions, it also outlines an exit strategy for eventually getting out of the business to enjoy retirement.

You may think retirement would drive you crazy, but your spouse may want you to reconsider that option.  That’s another reason to think about why you’re in business today.

Take the time to think things through.

Trail Riding

A few years ago, when I was searching domain names, I discovered brandirons.com was available.  A month or so ago, I finally decided to do something with it.

To tell a brief story, mega-cattle ranchers needed new markets for their beef after the U.S. Civil War.  With the war over, the demand to supply troops dropped off so the ranchers hired a trail boss to move his large herds to markets in Kansas and Colorado.  The markets were along the railroad lines connecting east and west.

The trail boss hired drovers to supply the drive with fresh horses, cowboys (because many really were boys) to drive the cattle, and a cook with chuckwagon to feed the crew.  After branding the cattle with the rancher’s mark, they began what could be a six-week trek northward from central Texas, through Oklahoma (Indian Territory), and into the markets at a pace of roughly 10 miles per day.

Fast forward to today.  Business owners need to get their products to market, sell them, and make some profit.  Hiring a trail boss to handle that process still makes sense so the business owner or entrepreneur can concentrate on running their business.

Hence the concept of Brand Irons is to Brand Your Work – Work Your Brand.

The need for drovers and fresh horses may be gone, but the need for sales to move products and keep the company alive is a requirement.

The need for cowboys to take care of the animals has been replaced by every employee serving your customers.

So, what is your brand?