Limited period offer! Hurry! Offer Valid till stocks last, Sounds very familiar right? You might also be wondering what is the product we are talking about so you don’t miss out a chance. Well, here we will talk about the reason for the feeling behind this curiosity, i.e. Sense of Urgency.
Let’s understand the science behind it and how to use it in marketing to skyrocket your WooCommerce store conversions.
Principle of Urgency
Psychology plays a vital role to determine consumer behaviour and is a part of every successful marketing strategy. Creating urgency is a proven psychological tactic to increase sales by urging customers to complete a purchase swiftly. It leaves customers with little or no time for hesitation or distraction before a purchase. Urgency undoubtedly yields incredible results by taking away all the possible delays in a conversion.
Importance of Urgency in Marketing
The ultimate aim of every business is to increase profits through conversions and creating urgency is a great way to achieve it. Completing a transaction involves various steps and can often be a lengthy process. That’s where creating urgency comes to the picture as it persuades customers to take action instantly. In the competitive world, where the Internet has spoilt customers for choices, expediting the purchase process can be tremendously beneficial. Besides increasing engagement, urgency also increases the demand for a product and thus the profit.
How To Use The Urgency Principle To Increase Conversions
Scarcity is an excellent psychological trigger that motivates an individual to act promptly. Using scarcity as a marketing tool works on the principle that when a product is rare, it becomes more attractive. This leads to an increase in the perceived value and demand of a product.
The anxiety and fear-of-missing out encourages one to grab an opportunity to purchase a product before it’s too late.
For instance, websites like Amazon displays the number of units left in stock to show scarcity. Another example is airline ticket booking websites highlighting limited seats left for booking. This creates a sense of urgency and users will be compelled to book the tickets as soon as possible. Scarcity can be created by intentionally restricting the production and supply of products to limited quantities. Mobile phone companies use this tactic to increase demand and it often proves successful.
Countdown Timers
Counting down to a deadline is another effective way to create a sense of urgency. Besides being eye-catchy, countdown timers compel people to respond quickly to a call-to-action.
A ticking clock can be used to lure users to take advantage of a rewarding purchase experience immediately. For example, websites can display the time left for a discount coupon, free shipping or even end of a sale. With every passing second, users will feel the anxiety of running out of time and this will create urgency.
Create Anticipation
Creating anticipation is an interesting tactic to raise the urgency for a product even before it is launched. The curiosity about a product will lead to increased demand as soon as the new product comes to the store. The key is in creating excitement through creative advertising campaigns. Direct the marketing efforts to make the product the talk of the town even before it hits the store.
Loss Aversion Response
The desire to not lose something and the tendency to avoid such a situation is termed as Loss Aversion. The pain of losing is a much stronger emotion than the happiness of gaining something. In marketing, it is can be used as a powerful psychological technique to create urgency and facilitate decision making.
The idea is to make someone feel the pain of catastrophic results of not taking action on time. Creatively framing the marketing emails by keeping loss aversion in mind can do wonders in increasing sales. For example, a subject line like “Last chance to buy” or “Offer valid till midnight” will entice users to respond quickly.
Sense of Competition
The sense of competition is an efficient factor to trigger a quick response. Travel websites often highlight how many times a hotel has been booked in the past 24 hours. It also displays how many users are viewing the room at the same time and thus creates a sense of competition. A user would not want to lose the room he is interested in, to another viewer. The fact that the particular room is in high demand will motivate him to complete the booking immediately.
Use Time-Related Words
A marketing campaign is incomplete without a well- written and urgency focussed copy. Not only does it play a key role in attracting customers but it also encourages them to complete a purchase. Besides mentioning attractive offers, using time-related words can lead users to take swift actions.
Some of the popular words that impressively creates a sense of urgency are Hurry, Fast, Now, Approaching, Instant, etc. Incorporate these words throughout the copy to increase conversions.
Responsiveness Instinct – Reward for Promptness
Pointing out to the customers that they are responsive can have a positive impact on increasing sales. The Early bird offer is one such example where users are rewarded for their promptness. A bonus incentive for the first few buyers creates a sense of urgency. People would want to have their hands on the exclusive discount or gifts and will thus react quickly. For example, an advertisement of a gift for the first 50 purchases will easily persuade users to buy the product immediately.
Display Out of Stock Products
It might seem unconventional, but showing products that are sold out on the website can boost conversions. A negative situation like this will lead bring positive results for the business if used effectively. It will give rise to the feeling that related products might also go out of stock soon. In such a scenario, users will be compelled to respond with greater urgency to grab the related products.
Announce Ending date of an Offer
Urgency is bound to happen if something good is going to end soon. This principle can be put to use in marketing to increase demand and sales. To make customers respond in a hurry, marketers can announce that an offer will be taken away soon. For example, a line like “Never again Sale” or “Last day of offer today” can attract more customers to act quickly.
Conclusion
Creating urgency can be used as a powerful marketing tool to uplift sales. All you have to do is to carefully choose the tactic according to your business and let psychology do the rest for you.