Setting up an online store is way easier than setting up a physical store. All that you need for an online store is a niche, inventory, good product photography, and a few clicks. That’s it…your store is ready to sell.
Online stores surely save a lot of time in establishing and running the store. However, when it comes to making a sale, the job becomes tougher as compared to the physical store.
When a customer enters a physical store, he is not left alone to shop. He is assisted by the seller, salesperson, etc. He can also look at the product, touch it, feel its texture, weigh it, smell it, or even try it on in case of footwear and apparel, etc.
Can a customer put all his 5 senses to use while shopping online?
The answer is no.
When the customer is shopping in an eCommerce store, his sense of sight is put to use. Because, of this reason, an online seller has to step up his game to carefully curate their eCommerce sales strategy. To persuade the customer into making a purchase just by looking at the product and its description.
So, how do famous brands make huge sales online, even though they cannot trigger any sense other than the sense of sight?
By understanding the psychology of their consumers and the targeted audience they’re able to fetch hefty revenue from their sales.
Now you can do the same with your online store too. Implement the strategies that trigger the psychological appeals of the users on your online store. Using psychological tactics makes the buyer think that the seller is doing a favor to them by putting up goods on discount, and deals. However, it is the buyers that are doing the favor to the seller by making a purchase.
Below, we have compiled some very common psychological tactics that are used by famous online retailers to boost their sales by making sure that their customers don’t leave empty-handed.
It’s time that you learn and implement these psychological sales tactics too. It will improve Ecommerce Sales and will result in increased revenue for you.
Let’s begin…
14 Psychological Tactics You Can Use To Boost Your Ecommerce Sales
1. Instill The Sense Of Urgency
What happens when the last slice of pizza is left and 4 people are eyeing it? Each of them tries to grab that last slice, why? Because they know that after this slice there will be no more slices available to them. Even though they can order more, at that time every person wants to have it.
Make your products just like the last slice of a delicious pizza that will create a sense of urgency for the user to buy it before it finishes.
There are several ways to implement this psychological sales tactic to improve your Ecommerce Sales
A. Offering Daily Deal
By offering deals that last only for 24 hours or less, is a great way to arouse a sense of urgency in the buyer. Also, mention the original and the discounted prices together, along with a timer to show how much time the customer has to make a decision.
B. Limited Stock
For an online buyer ‘Out of Stock,’ is the shortest horror story ever. If they fail to get their hands on their favorite article, it haunts them for hours and they blame themselves for not taking the decision quickly.
Just like creating an urgency, make your customers feel that the article they’re eyeing on since the last few minutes are limited and will finish off soon. It is a very common practice by the successful online store to mention the number of pieces of each article left under each product.
C. Special Edition OR Seasonal Product Range
By making a category of special edition goods, your customer will be inclined to get something that is limited and not available for everyone. It makes them feel special and unique to buy something that a lesser number of people have.
2. Have A Good Story
Customers find it comfortable to buy from a store with whom they feel emotionally connected. If you want your customer to develop that relationship with you then you have to do more than just a store running for commercial purposes.
Show your customers that you are more than just a store and what is your ‘why’ behind the products you sell? Use your words beyond the product description, and target their emotions.
A well thought and developed story triggers emotions as a result it improves your credibility in the buyers’ minds. If they feel connected to your story, their decision to buy from your store becomes easier.
3. Do Not Complicate The Shopping Experience
Imagine yourself in your customers’ shoes. Would you like to buy from an online store that has numerous pages, a complicated menu, no proper navigation, etc.?
Understand that when a customer shops online he is looking for ease and to save his time. Making the experience complicated for him will only make him exit your store in a matter of seconds and go to your competitor.
Use a simple yet elegant layout of your website. Have a proper menu and easy navigation to move from page to page.
4. Make Use Of Color Psychology
The aspect of color psychology cannot be ignored when talking about psychological sales tactics. The colors influence an individual about how they perception of their surroundings.
Not only in physical stores, but also in online stores, colors play an important role in making it a success or a failure. Understand the impact different colors have on a buyer.
For instance, red color has been proven to catch the attention of customers and make things look appealing. The majority of the sale signs are designed with either a red background or fonts to make the customer attentive.
Similarly, the sale announcements or any other offers are made by using a yellow color which helps in remembering things.
Read our guide on "Ecommerce Branding: How To Choose The Right Colors For Your Online Store" to learn how to choose the right colors for your online store.
5. Use Of High-Resolution Imagery
What is your online store without good pictures? Good pictures are not only important to maintain an aesthetic feed and profile on Instagram and Facebook, but also if you want to encourage your customers to buy something from your store.
Users do not get to touch, feel, or even check the item on an online store. All they do is either look at the product pictures or zoom in. It is because of the pictures they decide whether to buy or not.
Upload high-quality product images with related backgrounds to appeal to your customers, for instance, capture a picture of pillows on a bed with beautiful bedding on it. It helps the customer visualize how the product would look in real life.
Also, make sure to take multiple shots of the product with different angles and under different lighting. It helps the customer to have a better understanding of how the product looks from each angle.
6. Promote Customers’ Feedback
Do you think reviews are unnecessary to be displayed on your website? Well, think again. According to research in 2019, 81 people out of 100 read online reviews before finalizing their purchase.
The number went up to 87 in 2020. The current epidemic situation in the world inclined people to shop online which means greater traffic on the store and more audience to read the reviews.
If a website has published reviews of its customers, it helps the potential buyer to put their trust in the brand and order something from them. Strategically place your customer feedback and reviews on a website so that it catches the attention of the users and he gives them a read.
However, make sure not to exclude all the negative comments. Having only positive and praiseworthy reviews often make users think that they are fake and written by the brand themselves. Keep a few negative reviews and reply to those comments professionally.
7. Highlight Your Bestsellers
Display your most sold product on the website under the heading of bestsellers. When a large number of people are buying something it compels the customer to believe that the product is good and liked by many people.
If lots of people have gotten that product for themselves a potential buyer feels the need to do the same so that he doesn’t miss out on a great product.
8. Price Anchoring Technique
Labeling the product as cheap or expensive is relative and varies from person to person. When a user is viewing the products on an online store, he automatically compares the prices of the goods that he likes and selects the one where he can save his hard-earned money.
For instance, if you want to sell something to a buyer, place that product next to an expensive one. Keep watch X priced at $1000 next to watch Y of $8000. It will trick the buyer into thinking that the price of watch A is reasonable.
9. Display Related Items
By displaying related items you make the person’s mind make the connection between the things he wants to purchase and the things that are related to it. For instance, if the customer is viewing the knives on your page, also display chopping boards with it.
You can also place them under the title of ‘popular with your purchase’, or ‘customers also bought’, etc. to make the buyer buy that related product too.
10. Make The Checkout Process Easy
Hurray! Your customer just added things worth thousands of dollars in their cart. But, has he checked out yet?
You can say goodbye to your new customers if your checkout process is long and tiring. Online shopping is fun, but filling up forms and providing details is not so fun.
Divide your checkout forms into small chunks. Ask only relevant details. Show a progress bar when the customer is filling out the form. It keeps him patient and ensures them that the process will soon be over.
11. Offer Something For 'Free'
Did someone say free? Customers love it when they receive something extra for which they didn’t even pay. Be kind to your customers and offer them something completely free of cost such as free shipping, a sample of your newly launched moisturizer, or even a free trial of your software, etc.
12. Employ Altruism
People love it when brands donate a certain percentage of their earnings to charitable organizations.
A study conducted by Cone Cause Evolution states that 85% of customers develop a more positive image of a brand when they support a charitable cause or for the betterment of society.
Whenever you partner with such organizations don’t forget to share it with your customers on social media as it will increase your reputation. Use phrases such as ‘10% of each purchase will be donated to feed the stray cats,’ etc.
13. Announce Your Partnerships
If you have partnered with a reputable brand or collaborated with a celebrity or a social media influencer announce it on your every social media handle to increase your brand awareness and attract more customers to boost your eCommerce sales.
14. Don’t Add Hidden Costs At Checkout
One of the common reasons why people abandon their loaded carts at checkout is because of the unexpected costs and taxes that are added at the checkout. It makes the customer feel irritated and angry.
Be honest about your prices. Do not add any other cost not mentioned on the product page or before the checkout.
Wrapping It Up...
The success or failure of any store is directly proportional to the number of sales it makes. Integrate psychological sales tactics with your other eCommerce sales strategy to improve the sales of your eCommerce store.
Try using different tips and techniques to observe how it affects the buying decision of your customer. Experiment a few times to finalize the ones that bring the desired results.
