Ever wondered about the receding frequency of your visits to stores for your retail fixes? Or considered your instinctive reaction to compare reviews and prices before purchasing your next phone online? What about the almost thoughtless transfer of money via the mobile app of your bank using just a phone number?
This seemingly intuitive behavior is a learned pattern over the last decade, owing to the dramatic effect of technology on human behavior and attitudes. It is this effect that marketers need to master, to craft highly effective brand strategies that can skyrocket their business graphs.
Digital is booming
Today’s customer (yes, we mean you too) feeds on digital gluttony and thus suffers from time deficiency. But customers also control their own purchasing decisions more strongly owing to the easy access to information.
How does that affect businesses? It makes it crucial to put the customer at the center of your marketing to gain his loyalty. Marketers often turn to Usage and Attitude studies (U&A) as a tool to find the light to understand consumer behavior. What motivates your consumer however, can no longer be determined with traditional U&A formats of unending surveys.
So what can?
We looked at what’s influencing consumer decisions today and made a quick checklist for your business:
- Get Smart
Smart devices that make your life resemble the futuristic Jetsons cartoon are actually a trending focus point. Anticipate your costumer’s needs and design your product to make it intuitive. (Think Alexa, your smart home device controller). Keep the pulse of audience feedback firmly in your grasp and be quick to adapt as needed. - Get digi-shopping friendly
Want to increase customers? Streamline your shopping experience to include top-notch end-to-end customer service. Factors like shipping charges, return policies and order tracking impact customer choices far more than they did a few years ago. This competitive edge makes you stand out within the customer’s e-browsing cycle. - Get ads (that are) friendly
Making your ad content relevant and engaging is the only way to get your target audience at the right moment in their consumer journey, within the channels they are most accustomed to. Experiment with content and formats but ensure you don’t get relegated to spam by keeping your messaging clever and pertinent. - Get Tech-tracking
Conduct behavioral research using machine-learning to capture online behavior and digital activity. These enable you to build sharper consumer profiles and thus optimize your digital presence.
Every industry today has to nimbly reinvent itself to stay ahead in the game. Identify growth opportunities early and stay informed of what’s new and relevant.
Don’t make a Kodak Moment out of it.
Source: IPSOS – Mar 2018 – How technology can fuel behavioral research – and enrich your insights
