I’m going to introduce you to a marketing philosophy I’ve been working on over the years, and it has the power to answer all your major content questions, like:
“How much content do I need to make the sale?”
“What information is most important to my audience?”
“What’s the best marketing approach for my brand?”
We’re going to talk about informed purchase marketing, which involves giving your audience the right quality and quantity of content they need to make a purchasing decision.
There are five influencing factors that determine your informed purchase marketing strategy:
Price, Longevity, Impact, Competition, and Urgency
When you understand how your brand’s products and services align with these factors, you’ll reveal everything you need to know to craft optimized, compelling content that’s just right for your audience.
Let’s begin with an easy one:
PRICE
Price is the investment your purchaser makes to obtain your products or services. In general, it takes more content to sell a higher price item than it does a lower price item.
Let’s say you’re shopping for a vehicle, as an example. You’ll likely perform a lot of research to determine which make & model is right for you, which dealer to purchase from, which specific package you want, and more. That’s because this purchase will probably cost a chunk of your bank account.
Now let’s say you want to buy a car air freshener. You may walk into the auto store, see “mountain fresh scent” and “long-lasting fragrance” for $.99 and grab-and-run to the register without a second thought.
Strategic tips:
If you’re selling a high price product or service, emphasize the value of your consumer’s purchase and the return on investment (if applicable). Give plenty of content up-front to help aid your consumer’s research process and understand why you offer the best choice. Consider creating detailed, thoughtful marketing materials that address frequently asked questions.
If you’re selling a low price product or service, take a simple, “less is more” approach to your content and offer 1-3 straightforward selling points.
LONGEVITY
Longevity refers to the length of time your product or service will make an impact in your purchaser’s life.
The rule of thumb with longevity:
Consumers spend more time and energy researching a product if they know it will influence their lives for an extended period of time.
Let’s say you’re shopping for your dog, as an example.
You may be selective choosing a big bag of dog food, because you know it will influence his health for months to come, or longer. You’ll likely spend more time reading the label and researching the product.
On the other hand, if you want to pick up a tasty treat for him during check-out, you know it’s a single-use product that only impacts his life for a short time (less than 10 seconds, if your dog is anything like mine).
Strategic tips:
If your brand’s product or service has a long-term impact, create content that establishes trust, addresses satisfaction guarantees, and backs your brand’s credibility.
If your brand’s product or service has a short-term impact, stimulate a sense of urgency, highlight the top 1-3 key benefits, and develop your selling process in a way that makes it easy to purchase and reorder.
IMPACT
Impact refers to the positive difference your product or service makes in your purchaser’s life. Impact ties into emotion, goals, and problem-solving desires that affect your audience.
Generally, high-impact products and services directly affect a consumer’s happiness, health, and lifestyle, or they serve as a solution to a big problem or deep desire. Low-impact products and services do not produce an emotional response or a great sense of desire.
Strategic tips:
If your product or service delivers a big impact, paint a picture of what the end or long-term result will look like for your purchaser, share reviews and success stories, and deliver content that evokes emotion.
If your product or service doesn’t make a huge impact, focus on the key selling points and explain why your audience should purchase from your brand specifically.
COMPETITION
Competition looks at your purchaser’s selection of options within your product or service category.
Marketing your products and services in a competitive atmosphere doesn’t mean you have to work harder or bash your competitors (actually, I strongly recommend you don’t do this).
Be particularly mindful of your special position in the market and narrow in on the key selling points that make you the leader in this niche.
Strategic tips:
If you’re in a competitive industry, focus on your unique difference, user-generated content like reviews and testimonials, and significant rankings or achievements.
If you’re in a low competition industry, educate your audience on why they will benefit from your products and services, explain your niche and who you serve, and illustrate the potential impact in their lives.
URGENCY
Urgency addresses the timeliness in which your purchaser needs your product or service. It’s important to leverage a sense of urgency in all marketing strategies.
Some brands, like emergency repair businesses, already have this sense of urgency built-in.
Other brands, however, have to get creative and develop a sense of urgency.
Strategic tips:
If your product or service requires timely action, focus on the solution to the problem your product or service solves, and leverage strong calls-to-action, and make it clear and easy to take the next steps.
If your product or service doesn’t require urgent action, you can create this sense of timeliness by highlighting the impact and solution your product or service delivers, and offer incentive to purchase now (like free gift with purchase, today only, for example).
When you understand informed purchase marketing, you can tailor your content to your brand and audience, and ultimately drive the greater decision to purchase.
Linda Walkowich 