Importance of psychology in digital marketing
Psychology is influencing how marketers approach the rapidly changing landscape of digital marketing. Evidence indicates that in digital marketing, customer engagement is a major driver towards achieving the marketing objectives. Marketers need to appeal to a wider audience. But doing so requires that their marketing messages capture key elements that resonate with the target consumers. That is, focusing on aspects that appeal to consumer emotions, moving them from desire to intention to purchase, and purchase decision. This makes it vital to analyse the psychology and behavior patterns of consumers. The digital era means that consumers are faced by a wide range of products and services to choose from. Therefore, understanding consumer cognitive psychology has become a critical area of focus.
Psychology in digital marketing
In the digital marketing arena, people influence each other through product reviews, likes, feedback and sharing their personal experiences. Psychology is driving a new but pervasive trend: Fear of Missing Out or FOMO. This is a form of social anxiety that makes an individual to desire to remain connected in a network with others and benefit from the unfolding trends. In other words, consumers fear being absent from rewarding experiences that others are enjoying. For example, digital marketing channels like the social media platforms have become common avenues for consumers to express their experiences and views on the products they have used before. They retweet, share, comment and follow hashtags trends to learn more about the experiences of others. Thus, understanding the cognitive psychology driving their experiences could help digital marketers to position their products more effectively, optimizing collective experiences in the digital space to create positive viral marketing campaigns.
Digital Marketing Vs Traditional Marketing
The digital marketing environment is very different from traditional marketing. To get the information shared across the digital platforms can be challenging for marketers. However, this can be achieved by identifying and aligning the marketing content with the motives that drive individuals to share posts. The psychology is that people often feel compelled to share content that they believe will motivate and draw others in the same cause. The choice of the marketing content, for instance wording, colors, and contrasts, require an appreciation of cognitive psychology. The use of words like “limited stock”, “grab the only chance” or “last stock” create a state of urgency, drive customer engagement and move consumers faster to purchase decision. Marketers can also drive engagement through messages like “subscribe to be the first to know.” Such messages involve a deep appreciation of psychology.
Cognitive Psychology relation to digital Marketing
Cognitive psychology is core to building buyer persona. The digital platforms have provided a mass of information, meaning consumers are information-driven and any assumptions about their buying behavior must be based on facts. Creating halo effect requires that markets clearly and accurately capture consumer behavior in their product attributes and marketing campaigns; consumers are using the experience of one product to judge the whole company and its offerings. To increase traffic flow to a site, consumers must have a satisfactory response. Cognitive psychology helps to formulate the right message and the right features that increase interactivity and consumer engagement. Therefore, going forward, psychology is going to play even greater role in enhancing digital marketing and effectiveness.
