| This article is written to present primary principles for | | | | experience can also improve their feelings towards |
| attracting customers and persuading them to buy | | | | buying from you. Nobody likes to pay for something |
| within a high street shop, website or anywhere | | | | they do not feel like buying, even if they should. |
| transactions are made. Attempting to sell in a manner | | | | Your advertising should make use of these facts to |
| that lacks persuasion limits sales, this is because | | | | make a customer feel like buying from you. For |
| people need to be persuaded to buy from you | | | | example, owning a prestigious car will make people |
| rather than your competitors. People often make up | | | | feel more prestigious. Highlighting the quality of the |
| their minds to go out and buy something; you can be | | | | car to such ones will achieve more sales than |
| the one that they frequently buy from if you heed | | | | highlighting its performance. For a person who wants |
| the guidance in this article. Avoid persuading people to | | | | to drive a fast car, they would respond more if you |
| buy elsewhere, whilst increasing your customers and | | | | highlight its performance. |
| sales right now. | | | | Remember your most recent purchase. How did you |
| A thought about customer experience | | | | first find out about the shop, and the product? Were |
| The experience you gain from making a purchase | | | | the product benefits clearly highlighted to you? In |
| from a store determines whether you return to buy | | | | certain cases, you already know the benefits, but if |
| more or seek to buy elsewhere. | | | | you did not, what would it have taken for you to be |
| You need not look any further from your own | | | | persuaded to make the purchase? |
| experience of shopping to learn what generally | | | | Effective advertising presents the business as |
| makes a good shopping experience. Think of the last | | | | trustworthy enough for the majority of people to |
| thing you purchased recently and ask yourself the | | | | get into contact, and it highlights the benefits which |
| following questions. | | | | customers feel they need. |
| - Was it easy to find the shop / website? How did | | | | Primary principles for effective merchandising / web |
| you find it? | | | | design |
| - Was it easy to find the product in the shop / | | | | Effective merchandising involves using location, |
| website? | | | | displays, product design, shop layout, seasons, labels, |
| - How did you know the store sold what you | | | | tickets, bags, tags, packaging, illustrations, prices and |
| purchased? | | | | anything visible before customers in order to |
| - Was it easy to make a good selection, or did you | | | | maximize sales potential, thus making the business |
| have trouble making a choice? | | | | more profit. For those selling online, merchandising |
| - What made you choose the product over an | | | | isn't really an internet term; but the same principle |
| alternative? | | | | applies to the use of site layout, accessibility, web |
| - Was the product well priced? | | | | standards, browser consistency, illustrations, content, |
| - Was the product well labelled and packaged? | | | | animation, logos and submission forms which |
| - Was it exactly what you needed? | | | | maximize sales potential rather than minimize it. |
| - Did you buy something else you did not initially | | | | All of which makes up the customer experience, |
| intend to? If so, why did this happen? | | | | what they see and what they feel, will either make |
| - What made you purchase from the store and not | | | | them more likely to buy a lot, a little or nothing |
| elsewhere? | | | | whatsoever. Merchandising / web design makes up a |
| - Were you satisfied with the experience as a whole? | | | | significant portion of the customer experience and |
| - Where you comfortable with the carrier bags / | | | | deserves a significant portion consideration. |
| packaging, or were they cheap and shameful to | | | | Everything you experienced when you entered the |
| carry in public? Or did it not matter to you in this | | | | shop / website and when you left in your recent |
| case? | | | | purchase, represent primarily, the merchandising or |
| - Did you require and receive a receipt? Did your | | | | web design. |
| transaction, the store name and address get clearly | | | | Customers need to be drawn into your shop |
| printed on your receipt for you to deal with possible | | | | website, they need to buy, and they need to return |
| issues? | | | | over and over again in order for you to get the |
| - Do you remember the name and logo of the store? | | | | most from them. Ideally, they will also tell their |
| Or is the logo hard to memorize or was the store so | | | | friends about their experiences gained from your |
| unremarkable that you did not bother to make a | | | | store. You want your customers to be making |
| mental note of its name? | | | | comments such as: "What a lovely shop", "a very |
| Now if you had a superb experience, this is the | | | | useful shop indeed", "an easy to use website". You |
| model which you need to aim for, and perhaps | | | | do not want people saying: "What a dirty looking |
| improve on to compete well. If it was a bad one, it is | | | | shop", "the store shelves look empty" or the |
| an experience you do not want to present to your | | | | "website doesn't work very well". |
| customers; but bear in mind that you still found the | | | | An effective advertising campaign can be completely |
| store and made the purchase. If you wish, you may | | | | wasted by a shop display that turns people away or |
| ask the same questions about other experiences and | | | | a website that 'bounces' visitors away to another |
| document them. You may perhaps ask other people | | | | website. There are a number of reasons for different |
| to share their experiences for research material. For | | | | people to avoid buying from a store. Some reasons |
| now, keep this experience and your answers in mind | | | | are unavoidable, a person may visit to enquire on a |
| while you read onward in order to get the most of | | | | product you cannot sell, or 'window shoppers' may |
| this article and fully understand what it takes to find | | | | not have money to buy something at this time. But |
| customers and make more sales. | | | | there are certain reasons for avoiding your store that |
| A successful business | | | | you want to prevent. |
| There exists no business without sales, no sales | | | | No one wants to be confused as to what to buy, |
| without customers; and usually; no customers | | | | where to find things or about anything for that |
| without advertising. Customers need to find a | | | | matter. A confused person will most certainly feel |
| business in order to benefit from it, and the product | | | | reluctant to buy anything. Using signage, product |
| needs to be what the customer really wants. | | | | categories, useful attachments and store guides will |
| A successful business maintains high amounts of | | | | aid customers in finding what they need, so they do |
| profits and low amounts of costs; in other words; | | | | not need to look for a different store. You want to |
| costs reduces profits, and may completely remove | | | | sell attachments, such as batteries for a clocks and |
| profit whenever earnings fail to cover costs. Poor | | | | gift boxes for gifts, rather than having customers |
| advertising and merchandising increases costs without | | | | buy the batteries elsewhere, or missing out on the |
| achieving the required profit. While the effective form | | | | idea of using a gift box. You want to make it as |
| of advertising and merchandising right for your target | | | | easy as possible for customers to buy from you, and |
| audience, will help achieve maximum profits with | | | | to buy more. The harder you make it, the less profit |
| minimal costs. | | | | you will earn and the more advertising costs you will |
| Primary principles for effective advertising | | | | waste. |
| If you do not know who your real customers are, | | | | The time in which people shop in a store and on a |
| you will have a hard time finding them. If you do not | | | | website differs. It is more important to make a good |
| know what benefits you want to put across about | | | | first impression online, than in a shop; and it is more |
| your products, neither will most your customers. You | | | | rewarding to try and attract visitors to stay and |
| need to know who will buy, and why they will buy. | | | | browse for as long as possible in shop, than on a |
| Furthermore, you need to ask yourself, what is the | | | | website. Many people are short on spare time. |
| best way to reach these customers and put the | | | | Certain employees only get a few days off each |
| point across? The answer will help you make good | | | | week, so they need to fit in a lot of activities in that |
| decisions in selecting effective advertising methods. | | | | time; especially parents. Particularly with websites, |
| Avoid useless, costly advertising by determining | | | | you want to make the buying process as quick and |
| which methods will work best. Think about your | | | | easy as possible. The attention span is far shorter on |
| purchasing experience and how you responded to | | | | the internet than in a shop. Visitors will need to walk |
| the advertising or came across the shop. Keep in | | | | a distance to the next shop on foot, and so might as |
| mind that if the product you sell differs to the one | | | | well browse your store for a significant period of |
| you bought, it may not be advertised and sold the | | | | time while in it. Once they leave, it will take effort to |
| same way. | | | | return again. But on the internet, it is just a matter of |
| There are numerous advertising methods out there | | | | a single click to leave your website, which your visitor |
| such as direct mail, shop location, search engine | | | | will have no hesitation of doing the very second they |
| marketing, e-zine marketing, business card / leaflet | | | | feel that their time is being wasted by things such as; |
| handouts, word-of-mouth, CDs, DVDs, showroom | | | | slow loading animations, an overload of submission |
| displays, telesales marketing and others. To select | | | | forms, irrelevant content and long sales pitches. |
| the effective method, you need to put yourself in | | | | Internet users are becoming wiser in differentiating a |
| your ideal customer's shoes. Imagine what you would | | | | genuinely useful website to a website which is a |
| do to find your product as a customer. Where would | | | | complete time waste, and may recognize this within |
| you look? How may you unintentionally find the | | | | less than 10 seconds. For example, a long essay on |
| business? | | | | why a certain ink cartridge website is so cool, taking |
| There are also a number of questions which will help | | | | up the entire first page isn't really going to help |
| you when creating advertising strategies, such as: | | | | someone who is only interested in the prices; and |
| Where would you live as a potential customer? What | | | | they can recognize that within a few seconds. It will |
| kind of benefits would appeal to you? How much | | | | be just as easy for them to search for prices on a |
| money would you have available? How often will you | | | | search engine and other websites, than to click |
| need to buy the product? Would you buy on | | | | through numerous links on a poorly designed website. |
| impulse? Would you buy the product online or would | | | | Thinking back to your recent purchase and the |
| you prefer to buy off the shelf or face to face with | | | | question about how easy it was to choose the |
| a representative? The list of possible questions goes | | | | product and make the purchase; you more than likely |
| on. The primary purpose is to determine what | | | | had no problems getting what you came for, and |
| advertising methods are going to be worth their | | | | perhaps purchased more. If so, the store managed |
| costs, and what methods are worth avoiding. | | | | its merchandising / web design effectively. If you do |
| A practical principle for producing advertising | | | | not intend to shop at the store again, if you now |
| printouts, websites or speeches is to promote trust | | | | need to buy a product attachment the store does |
| and to highlight the benefits of your product. | | | | not sell, or if you do not really feel like telling friends |
| Good relationships lie on trust, and business is about | | | | about how good the store is; the merchandising / |
| the relationship between buyers and sellers. A | | | | web design was probably not effective and your |
| customer is not going to buy from an untrustworthy | | | | experience was not impressive. |
| seller. Did you fully trust the company you recently | | | | Effective merchandising involves the use of good |
| purchased from? Most likely yes. Trust is more | | | | location, displays, signs, packaging, labels, tags and |
| difficult to maintain online, and is thus more important | | | | guides; in a similar way web design uses its |
| for internet businesses. Advertising material and | | | | accessibility, layout, design and functionality to |
| methods that fail to present the company and | | | | persuade customers to make purchases, giving them |
| product as trustworthy will spoil profits, by repelling | | | | remarkable experiences which persuades them to not |
| potential customers. Logos and other design features | | | | only come back again, but to tell their associates |
| which do not reflect a professional trustworthy | | | | positive words about their experience of your store. |
| image will repel potential customers. Would you trust | | | | Summary |
| a delivery company with a high portion of your stock | | | | The amount of customers you attract, the |
| if they did not even have a logo on their vehicles and | | | | pleasantness of feelings you make your customers |
| their delivery notes? Would you trust a website with | | | | feel and the amount of advertising costs you reduce, |
| no security notes, pictures, logos or design features | | | | all aid your efforts in making more sales. Building a |
| with your credit card details? Think back to the | | | | trustworthy and attractive image makes your |
| recent purchase you made, and how the website or | | | | customers remember you, rather than your |
| staff uniform, packaging, business stationery and | | | | competitors, and brings them back to you for more; |
| labelling affected your decision to buy. | | | | and may even tell their friends and family about your |
| Poorly written copy and speeches will not make your | | | | service. |
| product and company seem trustworthy. There is | | | | Decorate your business and products in a way which |
| more to building trust than writing and designing good | | | | makes you standout in the mind and memory of |
| advertising material, but before you can build a | | | | your potential customers; as they picture the range |
| relationship with the customer, they need to be | | | | of choice between your products and your |
| persuaded by first impression to trust you enough | | | | competitors within their minds as they decide which |
| even to think about dealing with you. | | | | purchase feels best and is more convenient; you are |
| Customers are always more likely to purchase | | | | more likely to be chosen with the more trustworthy |
| something that they feel they will benefit from. At | | | | image, superior benefits and remarkable design. |
| times we all end up buying something we don't | | | | Make sure your business and products create no |
| logically need because our feelings persuade us to | | | | confusion, maximize persuasion, and appear visually |
| buy, often impulsively. Highlighting real benefits that | | | | attractive or suffer the consequences of producing |
| appeal to your target audience can make them feel | | | | unremarkable customer experiences. |
| like buying from you. Creating an enjoyable customer | | | | |