How to design a community with high conversion rate?

The addiction model is a set of standardized model methods for cultivating user usage habits. It consists of four stages: trigger, action, variable rewards, and investment. This method can also be used for conversion in community operations to make users "addicted" and thus increase the conversion rate.

Recently, I read a book called "Addiction" and benefited a lot from it. Today I would like to share some of my inspiration with you.

This book proposes an interesting concept, namely the "addiction" model. I found that this model is actually the underlying logic for improving retention and conversion rates. As long as the key points from "trigger" to "investment" are grasped, the conversion rate can be effectively improved.

The topic I want to share with you today is "How to use the four key points of the addiction model to design a high-conversion community?" The main outline of this sharing is as follows:

• High conversion rate communities need to make users develop habits
• Analysis of the 4 key points of the "addiction" model
• How to use the 4 key points of the addiction model to design a community with high conversion rates?

1. High conversion rate communities need to make users develop habits

First, let’s talk about what habits are. A habit is an unconscious behavior that occurs under situational cues. It is an action that we can perform directly without being reminded.

So, when users develop the habit of using a product, using the product becomes a natural thing. What are the benefits of letting users develop habits?

1. It can increase the lifetime value of the product to the user

The longer users use a product, the more frequently they use it, which in turn increases their dependence on the product, creates reinforcing positive feedback, and thus forms a habit.

Once this habit is formed, it will be difficult for users to change it, and the product’s lifetime value to users will be higher.

2. Accelerate the growth of products

If users have a good experience using a product, they will trust the product, become loyal fans, and eventually become promoters of the brand, spontaneously helping to promote the product for free. This allows users to develop habits and easily attract new users without spending any promotion costs.

A key factor in increasing growth rate is called the "viral cycle", which refers to the time it takes old users to invite new users.

The factor that affects the viral cycle is the number of old users. The more old users there are, the more new users will be attracted. The shorter the viral cycle, the faster the product will grow.

3. Improve competitiveness

Users' dependence on products is also a competitive advantage. Once a product can enable users to change their lifestyle habits, other products will pose almost no threat.

Once users start using a service frequently, they are likely to make using this service a fixed behavioral habit that will be difficult to replace.

When it comes to products that allow users to develop habits, there is no doubt that the WeChat APP comes to mind. Almost most users are highly dependent on this product.

Like QQ in the past, although many people used it, the age range involved was still not that wide. However, WeChat’s users cover a wide age range, and even the elderly have begun to become loyal users of WeChat.

From the very beginning, WeChat has been changing users' usage habits bit by bit, adding many functions such as Moments, official accounts, red envelopes, WeChat Sports, shopping portals, video accounts, etc., allowing users to gradually integrate WeChat into their lives, gradually develop dependence, and habitually open WeChat every day.

Nowadays, communication between users basically relies on WeChat. There is currently no other product that can replace WeChat. WeChat has become an APP used by users in daily life.

2. Analysis of the four key points of the addiction model

Now that we understand why we need to let users develop habits, let’s analyze how to make users become “addicted”?

Here we will analyze the 4 key points of the "addiction model":

1. Trigger the user

"Trigger" reminds people to take the next step, which can be divided into external trigger and internal trigger.

External triggers mainly prompt users by issuing calls to action. There are four main types:

a. Paid trigger

Advertising or promotion through search engines are common paid triggers that attract users and trigger their next action.

For example, the “PuPu Supermarket” advertising promotion in Douyin, with the eye-catching “New users can get a 188 yuan red packet”, attracts users’ attention and triggers them to click to download the APP.

Furthermore, in WeChat Moments, which users use frequently, you will often see brands promoting themselves through WeChat Moments advertising space. While browsing WeChat Moments, users will also see the brand’s event promotions, and interested target users will spontaneously click to learn more.

b. Feedback trigger

Feedback triggers don’t require you to spend money, because they rely not on money but on the time and energy you spend in the public relations and media fields. For example, merchants use positive user feedback to promote their products. Users can gain knowledge and receive good services through courses and daily community services, so they are willing to give positive reviews to products or services.

The praise given by users in the community or the affirmation given through Moments can also trigger other users to use paid products or join paid communities.

c. Interpersonal triggers

Interpersonal triggers can lead to “viral growth”; sometimes people are always willing to share their favorite products with others.

Using interpersonal triggers can motivate users to actively share products with others.

Therefore, under the premise of interpersonal triggering, we need to improve the quality of our products or services so that users can be satisfied and share.

For example, if after purchasing a course, you ensure the quality of the course and satisfy the user through community or personal services, and the user makes obvious progress in the process, the user will naturally affirm your product and recommend the course to people around them who need it.

d. Autonomous trigger

The focus is to use life-like prompts to drive users to repeat certain behaviors, with the goal of allowing users to gradually form habits.

Internal triggers, which are the user's own internal drives, are mostly affected by some kind of positive/negative emotions.

When a product becomes closely associated with your thoughts, emotions, or existing routines, that’s an internal trigger at work.

There are two different types of internal triggers: positive and indirect.

Positive: pleasure, sharing, building relationships, relieving boredom, etc.;

Negative side: boredom, loneliness, frustration, confusion, indecision, etc.

For example, after signing up for a course, there is a special course study group. Through external triggers, during the learning process, you will gradually become familiar with the classmates in the group and establish relationships.

When you encounter confusion, you will think of providing feedback in the group and be eager to seek help; when you get results through learning, you will happily share your achievements in the group.

Internal triggers are a more stable and long-lasting trigger method and are the core factor in habit formation. Internal triggers remind users to take the next action by creating associations in their memory.

2. Make users willing to take action

After the user is triggered, he or she will receive the reminder and take action, but it is motivation that determines whether the user is willing to take action.

User motivations can be divided into the following three categories:

• Pursue happiness and avoid pain
• Pursue what you like, avoid what you fear
• Seek recognition and avoid rejection.

When using a product or participating in an activity, whether the necessary process is simple or cumbersome often determines whether the user is willing to continue to take action.

Therefore, when designing product paths or activity processes, it is necessary to understand the reasons for user participation and list the necessary links in the user experience. After clarifying all the links in the entire process, start to do subtraction and delete all irrelevant links until the usage process is simplified to the extreme.

For users, there are six factors that affect the difficulty of a task:

• The time required to complete the activity;
• Economic input;
• Consumed physical energy;
• Consumed brain power;
• others’ acceptance of the activity;
• The degree of compatibility or conflict with other regular activities.

Only by controlling these factors and setting up the path so that users can accept and be willing to participate, can we trigger users to participate automatically, master the effective methods that can stimulate users to participate in activities, and make users "take action."

The effect methods of stimulating users can be divided into the following four types:

1) Scarcity Effect

The scarcer something is, the stronger people's desire to buy it is.

The scarcity effect induces people's anxiety and aversion to loss, making them more likely to make purchasing decisions.

For example, in promotional activities, you can adopt a limited quantity method, such as "limited to 200 people, first come, first served", which will make people more impulsive and place orders quickly.

2) Environmental effects

Our minds make quick judgments in a short period of time based on the environment we are in, but sometimes these judgments are not accurate.

3) Anchoring Effect

If the price of a product is higher than the reference, users will feel it is expensive, but if the price is lower than the reference, users will feel it is a good deal and will make a purchase.

To increase the attractiveness of a certain option, you need to create anchoring, form conflict, and leave a "standard" impression on users.

For example, the original price or the expensive price of products in the same industry can be displayed in a promotional activity. By making their own comparisons, users can increase their recognition of a certain product.

4) Coupon effect

By giving users various coupons, we can stimulate user consumption.

If users do not use the coupons they receive, they will feel a loss, which will prompt them to use the coupons and result in consumption.

Therefore, on many e-commerce platforms, coupons are given away and have set usage times in order to entice users to consume.

3. Give users a variety of rewards

What is reward?

Your product will arouse users' stronger desire to use it because it meets their needs. This kind of thing that brings people satisfaction is called "reward".

Why do rewards need to be varied?

Because what drives users to take action is not the reward itself, but the urgent need that arises when they desire the reward. When the need is met, the user's sense of satisfaction will increase and even become dependent.

When we can predict what will happen next, we will no longer have the feeling of being “overjoyed”.

And when the causal relationships we are accustomed to are broken or things do not go as usual, our consciousness will relapse again.

Rewards can be divided into the following three forms:

• Social rewards: refers to the interpersonal rewards people get through interacting with others.
• Prey reward: refers to the specific information or resources people obtain.
• Self-reward: refers to the sense of control, accomplishment, and finality that people experience.

For example, in a community, users gain recognition and praise (social rewards) from others by communicating with others, giving them advice, and sharing in related fields.

Users can obtain demand matching and resource provision (prey rewards) through links within the group.

Users explore answers to difficult questions thrown in the group based on their own experience and gain a sense of accomplishment (self-reward) for solving the problems.

During this period, if limited and varied reward methods are provided, the mystery and appeal will be lost over time, and "infinite variety" is the key to maintaining users' long-term interest.

However, while attracting users through “variable rewards”, their needs must also be met/solved, otherwise they will leave when the rewards are lower than expected and become lost users.

4. Let users invest

The more time and effort a user invests in a product or service, the more they value it.

There are four ways to get users involved:

1) Change users’ attitudes

The amount of user investment is proportional to the degree to which they love something, so when users invest a lot of time, money and other things in it, the cost of leaving will be higher, which ultimately makes it difficult to leave, which is actually "addiction."

2) Drip investment

It requires users to make investment requests after enjoying the rewards, that is, the more they use (personal investment), the better the service, and the more rewards they get.

The above two points can be reflected in Pinduoduo. Pinduoduo has an activity called "free products for users". When you enter for the first time, you can directly bargain by nearly 90% of the amount. As long as you invite users to bargain, you can get the products for free.

Users are often attracted by this benefit point and continue to invest in it. When users continue to invite other users to participate in bargaining, they are also getting more free money, which is a reward.

When users want to leave midway, they will consider the cost and continue to invest.

3) Store value

The stored value that users invest in a product takes various forms, which increases the likelihood that they will use the product again in the future.

For example, some platforms will have some data and honor mechanisms, such as Zhihu's level, salt value, fan attention, answers, likes, etc., and can store content, data and information, and accumulate followers.

4) Load the next trigger

Leverage a user’s past behavior to create an external trigger for future initiation. In the engagement phase, users setting future triggers provides an opportunity to re-engage users.

3. How to use the addiction model to design a community with high conversion rates?

For WeChat groups, if activation is successful, the loss of group members can be avoided to a large extent, and retention will come naturally.

How to effectively improve conversion rate?

You can refer to the "addiction model", use the four major links of "trigger-action-variable rewards-investment", and take the course training group (check-in) as an example to design it.

Step 1: Trigger

During class, users are guided to check in through group announcement reminders, online check-ins, and other forms (external triggers). Users are influenced by the course content and quality, as well as interesting class modes and communication methods, to increase user interaction and participation (internal triggers).

Step 2: Action

Check-in is completed by triggering motivation (that is, users want to test their learning outcomes). During this check-in process, the designed process needs to be simple and easy, and does not require users to spend too much energy.

That is: the content of the check-in can be completed by ordinary users, there are specific check-in channels, and it is best to generate a personalized check-in poster after checking in.

Step 3: Variable rewards

The purpose of setting rewards is to promote user learning, which can be divided into three types:

• Social rewards: Provide opportunities for questions and interactive communication in the group so that users can understand each other
• Prey Rewards: Set up activities with rewards, such as team punching in, punching in for several consecutive days, etc. to get bonuses, learning materials white papers, etc.
• Self-reward: Set more challenging tasks to stimulate users' challenges, increase their enthusiasm and participation, and gain satisfaction while solving problems.

Step 4: Investment

To encourage users to continue learning spontaneously, tasks such as attending classes and checking in are gamified to keep users interested and involved.

For example, points can be earned by attending classes, checking in, speaking, etc., and the points can be exchanged for prizes; the higher the participation, the higher the level in the group, the check-in rankings will be updated in real time, and outstanding check-ins will be rewarded.

The above is how to apply the "addiction model" to design course training groups. As long as we start from daily operations and design strategic activities in the model, users will have enough trust in the community and the conversion rate will be greatly improved.

Author: Community Operation Research Institute

Source: Community Operation Research Institute