Pulling the ‘Trigger’

Seven Psychological Triggers Sure to Boost Your Customer Acquisition MarketingWould you like to know how to attract more customers by understanding what piques their interest in your laundry business?For several years, I have written that the key to successfully marketing of any business lies in the understanding of basic human psychology. Our minds decide what to buy (mainly the emotional section of our brains), so it follows that, if you know how the mind functions, you will have more skills to influence the buying decisions that potential customers make.Technically, these are called “psychological triggers.” Therefore, the logical strategy is that an effective customer acquisition marketing program must contain numerous psychological triggers built into it so that they can do their work and increase your customer base.Here are seven of the most powerful triggers:1. Connect with People’s Neurological SystemsIt is a behavioral economics truism that people buy on emotion and justify with logic. The emotions are controlled by neurotransmitters (biochemicals) floating around in our brains. One of the most influential ones is dopamine – which, when increased by what a person sees or hears and likes, will cause positive feelings surrounding what is being perceived. As a result, the more pleasant and stimulating your advertising, the more dopamine that’s secreted, thus producing positive feelings toward your service or product. So, make certain that your advertising accentuates positive and pleasant feelings with its recipients.For example, use passionate content within your marketing, such as “imagine how your friends and family will feel when they notice how fresh your clothes smell,” or “imagine how good you will feel knowing that you go to the cleanest laundry in town.” 2. Incorporate Uniqueness in Every AdvertisementUniqueness induces our brains to feel like there is a great possibility of reward, and the potential for a pleasurable experience makes prospective buyers seek it out. “Unique” can mean the use of humor, graphics, or photos, or just about anything that makes them stand out – even the size or font style of type used. What’s more, I would suggest someone within your advertising the use of the color yellow, which has been proven to induce optimism.3. Tell a StoryStorytelling has captivated people since the beginning of time. We tell stories in books, television shows and movies. We tell stories to our children at bedtime. And stories can trigger various emotions, lighting up our emotional brains. Stories actually enable us to feel an experience without having to directly live through that experience.The takeaway here is that it might very effective to share some sort of short story within each ad, describing a pleasant or unusual event that occurred in your self-service laundry, with which potential customers can identify.4. Employ the Law of Least EffortAccording to psychologist Daniel Kahneman, this law asserts that, if there are several ways of achieving the same goal, people will eventually gravitate toward the least demanding course of action.Therefore, create your advertising to illustrate how amazingly simple visiting your laundromat can be – due to your convenient hours of operation, your vast parking lot, your friendly and knowledgeable staff members, and your wide mix of all the latest laundry equipment. Above all, focus on the simplicity and ease of interacting with your business and getting the family laundry done quickly and easily.5. Pique the Curiosity of Your Target AudienceMake your advertising offers some sort of attractive, first-time-use discount, while at the same time enabling customers to leave behind the discomfort of using their current laundromat and see what your business has to offer.6. Be Sure to Use Credible TestimonialsReferences sell. It’s as simple as that. When people aren’t quite sure what to do, they imitate others. I suggest using current customers, and be sure to stratify the group. For example, use men, women, different age groups, and varying cultural groups. Social proof is extremely powerful.7. Introduce the Audience to Its EnemyIn the case of vended laundries, I believe the enemy is the dirty, outdated, neglected laundromat with a preponderance of small-capacity equipment, out-of-service machines, unfriendly attendants, few vending options, and relatively short hours of operation.So, there you have it. Seven human psychological triggers that, if used carefully, will bring you more new customers. These techniques can be used in any form of advertising – such as print, radio, or television. The key is to always utilize them.It’s somewhat challenging to create “knock their socks off” advertising, but it is certainly a worthwhile endeavor for every self-service laundry owner.Does it take a lot of thought? Certainly.Will it come easy? Nope.Does it take trial and error? Always.Are great results worth all of the effort? Absolutely.Does it come along with your title of “laundry owner?” You bet.After all, if you want to be the king or queen within your marketplace, you must be willing to wear a heavy crown.