The truth about the 6.18 promotion: users are anxious, and the conversion rate goes up

The truth about promotions is: when users are anxious, the conversion rate goes up! The constant urging, the constant accumulation of anxiety, and the ever-increasing conversion rate. So how can you design out anxiety? The author of this article teaches you 10 methods.

Let’s first think about a question that e-commerce people have always been concerned about:

How to improve product conversion rate?

This question is actually not that easy to answer because the topic is quite broad.

So, let's change our perspective and think about a simple one:

Why is the conversion rate during promotional periods generally higher than usual?

I guess many people will immediately think of: because the price reduction brings benefits.

Well, price is a factor, but it’s not necessarily a real price reduction.

Many operations often fall into a misunderstanding:

• Promotion = price reduction;
• Designing a promotion = asking your boss for a lower price.

In fact, there are many ways to make users feel that the product is affordable.

However, be careful not to fall into another misunderstanding: Does affordable pricing necessarily lead to high conversion rates?

Obviously, there is a problem here. So why do promotions often increase conversion rates?

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The truth about promotions: when users become anxious, conversion rates go up!

In a well-designed, high-quality promotion plan, price is definitely only the protagonist on the surface. The real big boss behind it is actually:

How to design out user anxiety.

This anxiety will constantly urge users to place orders quickly:

If you don’t buy it now, you will have to wait until next year’s Double 11!

Why not grab the coupon for 100 off for purchases over 200?

The activity will end in 1 minute, it's too late!

The super low-priced iPhones are almost sold out and the stock is running out!

…

All of the above scenarios are very familiar to us.

The constant urging, the constant accumulation of anxiety, and the ever-increasing conversion rate.

This is the truth about promotion.

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Only by finding the right entry point can we see the essence of the problem.

After each promotional activity, operations generally require analysis and summary.

However, what is often written in these analysis reports is: whether the data is good, whether the poster is beautiful, how many promotion channels are used, who has the lower price, etc.

However, if we reanalyze it from the perspective of anxiety, can we see some differences?

Take JD.com ’s “ 618 ” event page as an example.

The main color is red, which represents excitement and impulse;

Use inflammatory words such as "carnival", "crazy rush", and large cash back;

All three models had exaggerated expressions that were anxious and infectious.

…

Did you notice that after changing the angle, we can see the real trick from the poster: using multiple elements to combine to create a promotional page that hides a sense of anxiety.

Do you feel it now?

You can think about this Tmall 618 event page again. Keep an eye out for money flying around, rockets radiating outward, and rays of light.

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Next, let’s talk about the main topic, which may be of more concern to you.

How can you design out anxiety?

I have summarized 9 methods.

Method 1: Time is of the essence

There is little time left, and time is passing by quickly.

Why should there be a countdown on the group buying page?

And why count in seconds, or even milliseconds, instead of minutes?

That's the reason.

Let consumers see that there is not much time left and it is passing very quickly, so they will have the urge to buy it quickly. If they don’t place an order, they will not be able to buy it.

From 0 to 1 o'clock on Double Eleven Day, many merchants launched flash sale products: 20% off in the first 11 seconds, double discount in the first 60 seconds... The time is set very short.

The shorter it is, the more anxious the user will be.

Because there is no time to think about anything, just grab it quickly.

This approach of merchants not only has a boosting effect on their own stores, but also creates an atmosphere for the entire Taobao Double Eleven event.

So, did the merchants really think of this themselves? In fact, Taobao encourages it. For merchants, the greater benefit is that they gain traffic from the Taobao platform.

Second method: limited quantity

Stock is running out, sales are limited, and purchases are limited.

During TV shopping, the host always repeatedly emphasizes how many people have called in and that there are only a hundred items left in stock, so people should hurry if they want to buy.

The hunger marketing that Steve Jobs used very well is also this method.

From a psychological perspective, hunger marketing can not only create a sense of anxiety and make people act earlier, but also increase the value of the product in the minds of consumers.

In fact, not only is inventory shortage effective, but limiting the purchase quantity will also be effective, such as limiting the purchase of 2 items per person.

A foreign study found that limiting the quantity customers buy can often increase sales by 50%.

Even if you write that the purchase limit is 20 pieces, it will still be effective.

The third method: quick tone

Hurry, quick, immediately, right away, quickly...

This urgent tone will urge users to act quickly, leaving no time for thinking.

And if appropriate, add a few exclamation points! ! ! Anxiety is rising again! ! !

The fourth method: keep the copy short and sharp

Rob!

Grab it now!

Obviously, short copy will appear more urgent than long copy.

In addition, it has another advantage, which is that it is easy to read and will not cause reading difficulties.

Sometimes, even if you write a lot of product benefits, users are just too lazy to read it. Therefore, the completion rate of short copy is generally higher than that of long copy.

More importantly, if the layout is done well, it will have a very good effect in attracting attention.

However, it does not mean that only short copy must be used everywhere. This may not be a good idea. Making short copy appear in long copy can have a more eye-catching effect.

Fifth approach: Emphasize loss

If you miss it, you have to wait another year and the coupon will expire in 1 day.

Emphasizing losses often attracts attention and also awakens feelings of anxiety.

The greater the loss, the greater the anxiety.

In 2012, the doomsday theory was very popular.

The Mayan calendar predicts that after the night of December 21, 2012, the dawn of December 22 will never come.

Such news spread widely at the time and "scared" many people.

The principle behind this is the "loss aversion effect". When faced with the same amount of gains and losses, the losses are more unbearable.

That is, people are more sensitive to losses.

In fact, price cuts and discounts are also a way of emphasizing losses - if you don't take advantage of a bargain, you're losing money.

The sixth method: set unfinished items

The "waiter effect" tells us that unfinished tasks are more likely to be remembered.

Restaurant waiters often have good memories and can remember the dishes ordered by all tables. However, once the guests have paid, when you ask the waiter what dishes they ordered, they will no longer remember.

This is the "waiter effect".

People often worry about unfinished tasks. During this period, the more times you think about it, the stronger the anxiety will be, until the task is completed.

By taking advantage of this effect, we can design tasks that users cannot complete in one go.

For example, in a pre-sale event, you pay a deposit first and then pay the balance on the day of the event.

The seventh method: behavioral imitation

When we see others yawning, we tend to yawn too.

People have the habit of imitating. Some behaviors are very contagious, such as yawning; some behaviors are not obviously contagious, but that does not mean they have no impact.

There are many scenes in the movie that create a tense atmosphere simply by relying on the characters' expressions and actions.

The actors in the movie were nervous, and the audience became nervous too.

So not only can behaviors be imitated, but emotions can also be contagious.

For example, at the beginning of the article, we saw that in the JD.com 618 poster, the model made an anxious expression, and this emotion would be conveyed to users.

In addition, the "herd effect" we are familiar with is also a kind of behavioral imitation.

When you see that 98,077 people have paid, you will often follow suit and place an order. This is the herd effect.

The eighth method: speed up

Acceleration can mobilize "high arousal emotions".

What are high arousal emotions?

In psychology, emotions are divided into high arousal and low arousal.

Emotions that can make your heart beat faster and your blood flow faster are called high-arousal emotions. In this emotion, people often have the desire to do something, such as jumping when excited, trembling when nervous, and punching hard when angry.

Low arousal emotions, on the other hand, make people feel like doing nothing, such as feeling depressed or satisfied.

In fact, high arousal emotions can increase the probability of placing an order. Increasing the speed can mobilize "high arousal emotions".

Apple has used this approach.

At the Apple 7 launch event in 2016, a video with flash text was made.

The text in the video flashes quickly with a strong sense of rhythm, quickly focusing attention and making the viewer's heart beat faster.

In addition to text acceleration, speeding up other things can also achieve this effect.

for example:

• Look at a GIF of running at 4x speed;
• Play a fast-paced, dynamic music;
• Several fast-moving rocket images are inserted into the poster;
• …

Method 9: Color Psychology

Color psychology is a very practical field.

The color scheme of the promotional page is very helpful in creating a sense of anxiety.

But I'm not good at it, so I just picked a well-matched color scheme from Qiantu.com for you to see.

Method 10: Create Trouble

Counterintuitively, creating trouble can sometimes increase conversion rates.

Various tutorials tell us that the shopping process must be very smooth and there must be no jams, because every jam will cause user loss .

But in fact, trouble also has positive effects.

It can create a sense of anxiety, but it can also stimulate the desire to conquer, putting the brain into an emergency state and focusing attention.

This method is frequently used in game design. Every game level creates a kind of trouble.

It can also be used in promotional activities.

For example: Only by becoming a member are you eligible to purchase promotional products.

For members, this design is a recognition of their identity; for non-members, it is a hassle as they can only look but not buy, and this creates anxiety. In order to eliminate this unpleasantness, I had to become a member and start shopping.

From this example, we can also see that this method has two characteristics:

● Often used in conjunction with other methods (such as VIP special offers);

● It may not be effective for everyone and has limitations.

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Talent belongs to a few, but routines belong to everyone. ——Kangxi's Master

Finally, let’s summarize today’s article:

1. Why is the conversion rate during promotions generally higher than usual?

The truth about promotions is: when users are anxious, the conversion rate goes up!

The constant urging, the constant accumulation of anxiety, and the ever-increasing conversion rate.

2. How can we design anxiety?

Teach you 10 methods.

The author of this article @康熙师爷 is compiled and published by (Qinggua Media). Please indicate the author information and source when reprinting!

Product promotion services: APP promotion services, advertising platform, Longyou Games