psychology in marketing

The influence of psychology in marketing

* Today's article was written by Jonathan Cohn

When it comes to marketing success, you can't get anywhere at all if you don't develop a relationship with the other person and, over time, build trust, credibility, and a perception that you are the expert in your field over time. Without the relationship, there is nowhere to go. It is important to understand here that psychology plays a significant role in your ability to succeed.

When you first meet a person (in a professional context), you begin to connect with that person on an emotional/human level. With a lot of effort and a little bit of luck, you will eventually share a relationship with the other person that is satisfying and mutually beneficial. Those qualities as well as the others that were previously mentioned here are the makings of a solid, meaningful relationship. Of course, before you can actually connect with anyone in any sort of meaningful way, you need to understand the way that the person thinks as well as having a keen sense of that person's wants and needs. You need to wrap your mind around all that you can about the person so that you have a chance at a meaningful relationship together. It is at this point that psychology enters into the conversation (and into your thinking). If you don't understand how the other person thinks (at least, to some degree), you will not succeed.

If you think about your own marketing strategy, you will begin to realize that without the psychological aspect of it, you would probably be struggling to make anything happen. The reality is that you are in a world in which you have fierce competition and if you are going to be the one who the other person chooses, you will need to solve whatever issue the other person is experiencing. It goes just beyond being able to solve a problem. You need to grasp how the other person feels and the actions that he or she may take based on those feelings. If you look at two businesses that supply exactly the same product and/or service, what makes the customer choose one business over the other has nothing to do with what is actually being sold. What makes that person choose is based on how you (or the other business owner) makes that person feel. That is your edge. In order to determine that successfully, you need to have a clear understanding about what influences the other person into making certain decisions.

Successful marketing is actually quite simple a concept. In order for you to get from Point A to Point B with the other person, you need to convince that person that he or she will be better off if he or she chooses you over anyone else. Okay, at this point, you understand that there is emotion behind any decision that a person makes. Interestingly, because not all human beings are exactly alike, they don't all arrive at a decision at the same time or have to put forth the same amount of effort in order to arrive at a decision. Some people make decisions easily and quickly (those decisions are the right ones sometimes and the wrong ones sometimes too). Other people labor over the decisions that they are faced with making. A third type of person has an almost-impossible ability to make decisions and does his or her best to avoid being put in that position.

The reality is that there will be times when it is difficult to make a decision. If you are in that predicament, it may be helpful for you to pay attention to what other people would do in your situation and go with that. Of course, you need to make sure that you don't sacrifice yourself in the process. Imitating what other people decide can really make your decision-making far less intimidating. If you see that it isn't so difficult to make a decision, you will not shy away from making a decision the next time. The more decisions you are able to make, the easier it will become for you. Just remember to think about your decisions before you make them. The last thing that you want to do is to have regrets that can negatively influence any aspect of your business.

Don't always do what is easiest: Sometimes, the easy decision is not the right decision for your business. Sometimes it will work out that you don't have to labor over your decision. If you feel that making decisions on the whole requires a great deal of effort, so what? Nothing bad ever came from working hard. And it is good practice for you. Instead of having a fear about making decisions, you need to try to embrace your ability to make informed, educated decisions. It will help you to grow as a business owner and as a person. One thing that you should always keep in mind is that whatever decisions you are faced with making, you should do the research first so that you have a good sense of the results of that decision. Even if you can't predict every last detail, you will still be better informed than if you don't do your homework.

There will be situations in which you are faced with several different choices and you are not sure in which direction to go. That may feel overwhelming for you. If you approach it in a simplistic manner, you may not feel so intimidated. It may help you to create a list of pros and cons for each scenario. After that, your decision-making will be easier and it will become clear to you in which direction you need to go. Sometimes, the optimal situation is one in which you are only faced with one decision so your choice is easy. However, life doesn't always work that way. You just need to make the best of what you can and do what you need to do.

Don't be influenced by the wrong things: Sometimes, you are faced with a decision that is extremely appealing and it resonates with you. Unfortunately, it might not always be the right decision for your business. It is still a good idea to slow down, weigh the pros and cons, and then make an informed decision. One question that you should ask yourself is if you would be better off after having made the decision that you are considering.

Psychology plays a tremendous part in influencing decisions and, thus, in helping you to succeed in business. As a business owner, you can use psychology (human behavior) as one of your drivers for having a deep understanding of the other person. Your marketing materials should reflect the human quality that we all have in common. If you can wrap your mind around how the other person thinks, you can get a handle on what they want and need and figure out how to solve their problem.

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