Have you ever found yourself selling a product or service that’s just not selling? Maybe the price is too high, the marketing materials aren’t working, or even worse you’re unsure if your product or service is actually helping your customers.
If this sounds familiar to you then it’s time to turn to neuroscience! Here are 20 different ways you can use neuroscience to sell more of what you’re trying to sell.
| Takeaways |
|---|
| 1. Utilize the principle of scarcity to create a sense of urgency. |
| 2. Appeal to emotions by telling compelling stories. |
| 3. Leverage the “mere exposure effect” for familiarity. |
| 4. Incorporate social proof to build credibility. |
| 5. Highlight the benefits of your product using vivid imagery. |
| 6. Implement the “anchoring effect” by presenting higher-priced options. |
| 7. Use the “reciprocity principle” to provide value upfront. |
| 8. Create a sense of belonging through community engagement. |
| 9. Employ the “endowment effect” to make customers value your product. |
| 10. Appeal to customers’ desire for consistency and commitment. |
1. Tell Them A Story
A study at the University of Texas in Dallas found that when people are told a story and then asked to buy a product, they are willing to pay more than if they were just offered the product on its own.
This is because stories affect us emotionally and socially, making us feel like we know you or have been in your shoes. For example: “I used to be so shy that I couldn’t even talk to my crush at school!
That was until I discovered this amazing new app called Text Your Crush Now, which helped me learn how to text my crush without feeling nervous.”
This method has been proven effective in studies where participants who were exposed to persuasive messages incorporating narrative components were found more likely than those exposed.
Merely persuasive messages with no narrative components (or vice versa) not only remember these narratives better but also remembered less about other information present during exposure (e.g., brand names).
In turn, this leads them towards making decisions based on their emotions rather than facts or logic;
Thus increasing their likelihood of purchasing from you because they believe wholeheartedly what you’re saying about yourself or your products/services without having any reason why other than simply believing it because it feels good!
Understanding cognitive biases can provide valuable insights into consumer behavior. Explore our article on 19 Ways We Can Learn from Cognitive Biases to discover how these biases shape decision-making.
2. People Do What They See Other People Doing
One of the most important things you can do is get your prospects to see other people doing what you want them to do. If a prospect sees her friend using your product or service, she’s more likely to buy from you because she feels that it’s okay for her to take action.
If this seems like it might be difficult for you, don’t worry there are plenty of ways to accomplish this. You can:
- Post videos with testimonials on social media
- Create case studies and make them available on your website
- Send out emails with tips/tricks based on user feedback
3. Use Simplicity And Complexity To Your Advantage
To make a message easy to understand, you need to use simple language. To make a message interesting, you need to use complex language. But the problem is how can you do both?
The answer: Use simplicity and complexity to your advantage!
For example, if you want to sell someone on buying something from you and your sales pitch looks like this: “I have something very special for sale today. It’s a brand-new product that is guaranteed to make every woman look ten years younger in just three days!
It’s also organic and natural so that means there are no side effects or health risks associated with using my product at all! If I take care of it properly (which I will), this thing should last forever so don’t worry about having any issues with it later on down the road either.”
Neuromarketing techniques can be both fascinating and powerful. Dive into 15 Terrifying Examples of Neuromarketing at Work to see how businesses use psychology to influence consumer choices.”
4. Social Proof
Social proof is the principle that we are influenced by the actions of others. We’re more likely to do something if we see other people doing it. Social proof can be used to encourage people to take action in many ways.
If your prospect has buyer’s remorse, you can use social proof to ease their worries and encourage them to return:
“Today, only 3% of buyers have returned items purchased from our store. That means 97% of buyers are happy with their purchases!”
“We believe 100% in customer satisfaction, so if for any reason you aren’t satisfied with your purchase, just reach out to us within 30 days and we will give you a full refund with no questions asked! Our customers love our products…and so will you!
5. Acknowledge The People That Are Important To Them
One of the most powerful ways to make your customers feel special is to acknowledge the people that are important to them. If you can bring their loved ones into the conversation, even if it’s only in a subtle way, you’ll have an instant connection with them.
Let’s say someone emailed you about an issue they were having with your product or service. You could respond by saying something like:
I’m sorry we’re having this problem! I know how frustrating it can be when things don’t work as expected.
It sounds like [insert name] has been very helpful thus far and let me assure you that he will get back to both of us shortly with some answers! You’ve been so patient throughout this entire process and I want to thank you for that!
6. Put Them Into A State Of Flow
What Is Flow?
Flow, a mental state in which you’re fully engaged in an activity and lose track of time, has been proven to be one of the most rewarding states humans can experience.
It’s such a profound experience that it’s caused many people to say things like “I feel like I’m in the zone” or “I was doing so well.”
Flow means that you’re so absorbed by what you’re doing that everything else fades away: your worries seem smaller, your fears seem less real…it’s kind of like magic! In fact, there are many parallels between what we know about flow and how magicians use misdirection.
The benefits of flow include:
- Increased happiness (flow makes us happier)
- Improved performance (when we perform better at something we enjoy, it also brings us more pleasure!)
But how do we get people into this state? You can try one or more of these methods:
Get them to work towards a goal or challenge with clear rules and an achievable goal and make sure those goals aren’t too easy for them;
If they are too easy for them then they won’t receive any enjoyment from achieving them because there won’t be anything challenging about it, but if they are too hard then there’ll be no chance for success – which means failure could cause frustration and disappointment instead!
The human brain plays a significant role in purchase decisions. Discover 11 Reasons Why Your Brain Will Win Your Buyer’s Decision and learn about the psychological factors behind buyer behavior.
7. Find A Backdoor Into The Limbic System
You may not know it, but your brain is an information-processing machine. It gets better at processing information the more it’s exposed to, and this makes us smarter as we get older.
The only problem is that our brains don’t always process information the way we want them to they can be stubborn and resistant to change. But there’s a trick you can use that will get around this resistance:
Use words your audience recognizes and understands in place of abstract concepts like “trust” or “empathy.”
These words are like backdoors into the limbic system the part of your audience’s brain where decision-making happens because they’re easy for people to relate with (and therefore easy for their brains to process).
By using backdoor words instead of complex business jargon, you’ll help ensure that your message reaches its intended target without getting lost along the way!
8. Easy To Understand Sales Pages
Easy to Understand Sales Pages. Instead of writing a long-winded sales page that is hard to understand, keep your information short and simple by using bullet points or numbered lists.
Images and Videos. Use eye-catching images that are relevant to the product you’re selling, as well as videos explaining how it works or what it can do for people who don’t know much about your product just yet.
Testimonials From Real People Who Have Used Your Product Before (With Their Full Names). Testimonials from people who have used your product before are helpful because they show potential customers that others found success with what you have to offer them too!
A Call To Action That Gets The Reader Excited About What You Are Selling And Encourages Them To Act Now So They Don’t Miss Out On The Opportunity At Hand (Without Being Pushy Or Intimidating).
Include a call-to-action in every piece of content on your website so readers know exactly what action they should take next – this will increase conversions significantly over time!
9. Convince Them You’re One Of Them
To persuade someone to believe in your product, speak about it in terms of shared experience. In other words, if you were to ask a potential customer something like, “How many times have you had to deal with people not sharing their passwords?”
Or “Have you ever had trouble making friends?”, they would most likely respond by saying yes (and feel ashamed). Then you can follow up by saying something like: “This is a problem that I’ve also faced.”
You may be wondering why this works so well. The answer lies in how our brains process information and make decisions about the world around us. We have certain biases that cause us to perceive things differently than others do.
For example, we tend to see faces faster than objects because we’ve been trained all our lives to look out for them as they appear around us every day while driving down the street or walking through an airport terminal (if there aren’t enough people around).
As soon as someone mentions something that fits into one of these categories such as “shared experience” the brain immediately starts searching for associations between what’s being said and everything else stored inside its memory banks; once found, those connections trigger emotions based on past experiences related
Unlock the subtle yet impactful strategies of neuromarketing. Read about 17 Subtle Yet Powerful Ways to Use Neuromarketing to Increase Sales to enhance your marketing tactics and drive better results.
10. Showing People What They Want Is Better Than Telling Them What You Have
If you want to sell something, it’s usually best to show people what they want. You can do this by showing them how to get it, use it, and make money with it. For example:
If you’re selling a book on neuroscience that teaches people how to improve their memory and fight depression through simple exercises and techniques (which we will discuss shortly).
One of the best things you could do is give away an eBook that gives some examples of these exercises and techniques so people can see exactly what they’re buying before deciding to buy your book.
If you want someone to hire your company for IT services based on your reputation as being knowledgeable and reliable, then don’t just tell them that show them!
11. Give Them A Structure To Follow
Give them a Structure to Follow. It’s no secret that people like to know what to expect, and they want clear paths of action to follow. You can use this information by giving them a structure that makes it easy for them to understand, such as:
- A checklist: List out the steps they need to take in order for their problem to be solved.
- A map: Show how the solution will fit into their lives, and how each step leads up the ladder until reaching the conclusion of your product or service.
- A step-by-step guide: Provide instructions showing exactly what needs done at each stage of using your product or service – don’t assume that people know what comes next!
12. Give Them As Much Detail As Possible
Give your prospect the details they need to make a decision, and give them the details they need to make a purchase.
You can even go further than that and give them the details they need to go on to make good decisions and good purchases in general you’ll be taking their brain through every step of the process, which is what’s going to lead you right down that path towards conversion.
13. Create A Sense Of Urgency And Scarcity In Your Copywriting
If you really want to sell something, create a sense of urgency and scarcity.
Let’s say that your product is the best thing for them, but they don’t have time to learn about it (and buy it) right now. If you can get them to take action and buy from you, then great! But if not, well…maybe next time:
Create a sense of urgency: Give them reasons why they should buy from you today as opposed to tomorrow or sometime in the future. For example: “This offers expires today!” or “Don’t miss out on this amazing deal!”
Create a sense of scarcity: Make it seem like there’s only one left and no more will be made (or sold) after this one is gone.
This tactic works especially well when selling physical products because people tend to think there’s no risk involved in buying something online if there are so many other options out there somewhere else online too (even though most purchases are made by impulse shoppers rather than comparison shoppers).
14. Help People Feel Empowered By Your Offerings In Your Copywriting
We’ve talked a lot about how to get into the heads of your customers and help them feel good about buying something from you.
But there’s also another approach you can take: helping people feel empowered by what they want to buy. Empowerment is one of the most important feelings in the human condition, because it has so many different aspects.
Embracing empowerment means having confidence that we can cope with life’s challenges and make decisions for ourselves, rather than being told what to do by someone else (whether that someone is an authority figure or just an expert in some field).
In fact, studies have shown that people who are more confident tend to be healthier overall than those lacking confidence and not just physically but mentally as well!
15. Nail The Subject Line Of Your Emails When Practicing Email Copywriting
When you’re writing a sales email, make sure your subject line is short, relevant, and most importantly not too long or short. It should also be neither too generic nor too specific.
In practice, this means that if you’re attempting to sell something with an educational component (like a book).
Then the subject line should be specific enough to indicate what the reader will learn in the email but without being so detailed as to give away all of your secrets before they even open it up!
Colors can evoke specific emotions and influence consumer perceptions. Explore the psychology of color in marketing with insights from The Psychology of Color in Marketing: Yellow is the New Green and harness color psychology for your brand.
16. Make Them Feel Good About The Future With Email Copywriting That Inspires Hope, Dreaming, Possibility, And Optimism!
Now that you know the power of negative words, it’s time to move on to the opposite.
When it comes to copywriting, positive words will make a big difference in your sales conversion rates.
Positive words are those that inspire hope, dreaming and possibility as well as optimism and happiness. In fact, studies show that people who use more positive language in their writing have higher conversion rates than those who don’t!
Let me give you an example: If you were selling something like a protein powder supplement or even a weight loss program online (which involves shipping), what would be better for your sales page?
The following: “Look at all these amazing benefits of using our products!” Or this: “We’ve got everything covered so that you can stay healthy without breaking your budget.”
Now obviously there’s no right or wrong answer here but just think about how these sentences make YOU feel before continuing reading this article…
Conclusion
Simple neuroscience methods like these can help you sell anything. And, when combined with the right copywriting and sales writing techniques, they’ll make your readers feel good about buying from you and coming back again and again!
Further Reading
Science-Based Selling: How Psychology and Neuroscience Can Enhance Your Sales Short Description: Explore the intersection of psychology, neuroscience, and sales strategies in this informative article.
Neuroscientific Underpinnings of Consumer Behavior Short Description: Delve into the neuroscientific aspects influencing consumer behavior and decision-making.
Mastering the Art of Selling: How to Sell Anything to Anybody Short Description: Discover effective techniques and insights on selling by understanding customer psychology.
And here’s the FAQs section:
FAQs
What is the relationship between psychology and selling?
The relationship between psychology and selling is crucial. Understanding consumer behavior, decision-making processes, and emotional triggers can help sales professionals tailor their approach to meet customers’ needs effectively.
How can neuroscience contribute to sales strategies?
Neuroscience provides insights into how the brain responds to various stimuli, influencing purchasing decisions. By applying neuroscience findings, salespeople can optimize their pitches and messaging for greater impact.
Are there specific techniques to sell to different personality types?
Yes, there are. Tailoring your sales approach based on different personality types can enhance your success. Techniques like mirroring, adapting communication styles, and addressing specific motivations can be effective.
What role does emotion play in the sales process?
Emotion plays a significant role in the sales process. Emotionally resonating with customers can create a connection, influence decisions, and lead to long-term customer relationships.
How can I build trust with potential customers?
Building trust involves transparency, empathy, and consistent communication. Understanding your customers’ needs and demonstrating your commitment to solving their problems can establish trust and credibility.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.
