Jane Austen knew all about pride and persuasion. This world-famous author wrote many books on these two subjects and how they affected people’s lives for the better or worse. It struck me the other day just how relevant these two motivators still are in modern times and how much they can relate to consumerism.
If you are selling a product or service online then you need to understand the psychological motivators that drive sales. The real truth of modern living is that the vast majority of things for sale are unnecessary to basic living. This means that people are buying things they don’t actually need to survive. So the questions you need to ask yourself is why do people buy and how can you take advantage of this for your online business.
Pride Purchases
The basic fact of the matter is that many people buy things because they think they represent the lifestyle they live now or one they aspire to. So many purchases are in fact pride purchase. The desire to obtain objects that have perceived value is very strong and is a powerful motivator for purchasing.
Jane Austen often wrote about the power of pride and how it could motivate people to take actions that were sometimes against their best interests.
In ‘Pride and Prejudice’ both Darcy and Elizabeth are guilty of the sin of pride. Elizabeth is angered when Darcy proposes to her despite his ‘sense of her inferiority’ and in her prideful anger she spurns the man she has come to love. If pride can get in the way of true love then it truly is a force to be reckoned with!
It is important you understand how pride can motivate consumers and encourage them to buy things they perhaps don’t really need.
If you want to tap into pride purchasing power then you need to show just how your products can enrich the lives of consumers and help them to achieve the kind of lifestyle their aspire too.
Persuasion
Sales is all about persuasion. When I am promoting a product on my website I am trying to persuade people to buy it. There are many ways in which I can do this and the whole field of marketing is focused on the art of persuasion.
In Jane Austen’s book ‘Persuasion’ the heroine Anne Elliot is persuaded by her trusted godmother not to marry the young man (Frederick Wentworth) she has fallen in love with.
Lady Russell points out all the benefits for not marrying Frederick and makes Anne see how much better her life could be if she married a man from her own class and situation.
However, as we see from the book, this decision is not in Anne’s best interest and in fact she remains single and alone until a chance meeting years later brings her back to Frederick.
The point is that Lady Russell persuaded Anne to avoid the marriage not with brute force or threats but by making sure she understood how she could benefit from choosing another man over Frederick.
This is a powerful tactic that worked even when true love was involved. Just think how powerful this could be for your marketing campaigns!
Persuasive techniques in marketing
When you persuade someone to buy something you should be showing them all the great reasons why they cannot afford not to buy.
What I have found very successful in press release writing and other sales literature is informing the potential customers just how the product can benefit them (by giving examples) instead of just telling them how good the product is.
This powerful form of persuasion can be so much more effective than ‘in your face’ marketing and sales tactics.
As you can see pride and persuasion are still powerful motivators now just as they were in Jane Austin’s time. By learning how to use these to your advantage you can improve your marketing campaigns and boost your sales.
Persuasive Marketing and The Way of the Jedi
I am not the only person in the world a little bit obsessed with Star Wars. However, if you are not a fellow Lucas fan then here is a quick overview to the way of the Jedi:
Basically in Star Ways Jedi knights are trained to use the ‘Force’. This is described as a powerful energy field that surrounds all living things in the galaxy and ties them together.
By learning to tap into this energy Jedi knights can influence the world around them in a number of superhuman ways.
For example in the Revenge of the Sith everyone’s favourite Jedi Master Yoda uses the Force to lift a huge platform by telekinesis.
The Force can be used to provide Jedi knights and masters with superior powers including telekinesis, levitation, precognition, hypnosis, telepathy and enhanced strength and speed. How cool is that!
Jedi Mind Control
However, you don’t have to be a Jedi to influence and control the actions of others. If you understand people and what motivates them to spend their money you can exert a significant amount of influence onto their purchasing choices.
If you do run your own online business then it is important to do some research into marketing. To help you understand what you are trying to achieve it is a good idea to learn the various marketing techniques available and how they can influence others. Here is my quick Jedi-influenced guide to mind-bending online marketing.
Persuasive adverting and using the power for good
The essence of the Jedi way is to use power for peaceful purposes. You don’t want to be straying over to the dark side with overly aggressive selling techniques.
Consumers these days are very sophisticated. Hard-sell tactics can be far too obvious and will put many people off your product.
This means if your website or online marketing is too aggressive, you could be losing customers rather than gaining them.
Opt for subtle marketing messages that tell your customers what they need to hear without shouting it in their face.
For example, instead of telling customers how fantastic your business is tell them how you could benefit them instead.
Show them how their purchase will enrich their lives.
Believe in Your Business
In order to persuade someone to buy your products or services you need to have a passion for your business. You need to believe in what you do.
People who are passionate about their business are much better at selling as they can present a very genuine and believable ‘front’ to their marketing. This can help to convince people to buy very effectively and no Jedi Mind Tricks are required.
Persuasive adverting and getting help from the master
If you are a Jedi knight in training (or trying to learn more about marketing) then it will help to get expert advice from a master. A professional copywriting team can provide some excellent examples of powerful selling techniques and content for your online business. This can really help to give your business a boost and help you to become a master too.
Successful online marketing is about finding powerful ways to influence and control others. You don’t have to be a Jedi master like Yoda to reach out to customers and encourage them to buy. With powerful marketing techniques, you too can learn the art of persuasive and mind control.
Check out our other blog on marketing psychology.
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