Understanding Buying Triggers and How They Impact Your Content
Psychologists and consumer researchers have identified several buying triggers. These are emotions that motivate someone to take action and to make a purchase. We all experience these triggers; they’re human nature. Understanding them, and leveraging them in your content, can help you increase conversions and ultimately grow your business.
What are the Buying Triggers?
You may be familiar with some of the buying triggers. The author of the bestselling book, The E-Myth and The E-Myth Revisited and marketing expert Michael Gerber identified several buying triggers including:
- Reciprocity
- Likeability
- Trust
- Credibility
- Authority
These are all proven triggers. We buy from people or companies that we like, trust, and believe to be credible, and we buy from companies we believe we owe something to because they gave us tremendous value. Yet these are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to buying.
We also buy to:
- Save money
- Convenience
- Save time
- Look or feel better about ourselves
- Instant gratification
- Feel connected
- Curiosity
You may be nodding your head because you can remember these triggers motivating you to make a purchase. For example, maybe you once had your eye on something but weren’t ready or convinced that you should buy it. It goes on a huge sale and you buy it not because you were ready to buy it or because you had decided it was the right purchase for you, but because you could save money if you bought it right now.
The Role of Buying Triggers in Your Content
Every single piece of content that you publish and put out into the world should tap into some type of buying trigger. From social media posts to press releases and everything in between, it’s all a process of connecting with your target audience and convincing them to take action.
For example, a press release generally has the goal of driving traffic to your website and/or gaining media coverage. It should work to establish you as a credible authority in your industry. Right there are two triggers; credibility and authority. Good quotes in the release can also help boost likeability and trust.
It’s important to be aware of buying triggers and how they impact your audience and your business. For example, if you have a marketing or business goal to increase authority and credibility in your industry, then you might choose to publish more case studies, white papers, research reports and press releases. They are natural credibility builders. If you choose to focus on engagement you might shift your content formats to storytelling or reader-generated content.
Explore your current content marketing goals and objectives. Do you take buying triggers into and when you’re choosing content format and topics? Do you consider the channels you’re publishing your content on? Content directly impacts buying decisions; leverage this knowledge to grow and profit.
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