Unobtrusive triggers or how to avoid «pressure» on the audience

Developing a comprehensive business development strategy requires an extraordinary creative approach from the performer, a thorough elaboration of a lot of details, focus on the interests of the target audience and more. If you already have experience in marketing, then you probably know that attracting this or that person to the official representation of the business does not guarantee that the order will be placed. Those people who visit your site, with a high degree of probability, do so simply out of curiosity, interest, that is, they do not initially pursue the goal of purchasing a particular product or service from you. There is a risk that they will no longer return to your catalog. But in order to increase the chance of concluding a deal, you need to captivate and retain this person with something, to help him have a desire to purchase your product.

To achieve this goal, many marketers take a number of measures that push a potential client to subsequent interaction. In this case, we are talking about the use of so-called triggers. As an option, this can be an imitation of a shortage, writing in product cards such phrases as “1 hour left until the end of the promotion”, “Only the last 2 items are available for order” and so on. This is all that is intended to demonstrate the value of your offer to a potential buyer, to make him think that he can miss out on an extraordinary benefit for himself.

In theory, such strategies should work, but practice, alas, shows the opposite: such phrases have become less and less attractive to buyers. The whole point here is that people are simply tired of such pressure, the imposition of unnecessary goods or services. According to recent studies, such influences lead to more frequent returns, contribute to the formation of an unpleasant impression. This causes serious damage to the business, people stop trusting this store.

We will talk in detail about how to motivate potential buyers to leave an order and minimize reputational losses in today's review. In particular, we will consider what triggers are used in modern marketing and why they should be used in practice. We will describe in detail the main types, and also indicate which solutions can be considered irrelevant today. Let's talk about how to get away from the classic imposition of products in the product card, but at the same time ensure stable sales figures. We will provide a number of practical recommendations that will allow you to perform the upcoming work as professionally as possible, eliminating negativity from the consumer audience.

Marketing triggers: what they are

Marketing triggers are special psychological techniques that modern marketers use to exert psychological influence on a person's subconscious and stimulate him to perform a particular target action. Such calls are widely used in the design of product cards. They are added to the text of the picture, to the video accompaniment, to graphic elements, sound clips, etc.

That is, by the term triggers we will mean incentives that encourage people to interact with the business, which will ultimately lead to placing an order, subscribing. It is designed to evoke various emotions, be it joy, anger, fear, desire, surprise. Such psychological techniques affect the subconscious, awaken an uncontrollable desire to perform a target action literally here and now. They form various associations in the head, evoke pleasant or, conversely, negative moments.

Using such triggers in practice, a business can achieve a number of specific goals:

• Obtaining the desired conversion actions from the audience. Alternatively, this could be stimulating a person to place an order, leave contact information, comments under publications, subscribe to a newsletter, etc.
• Increasing sales figures and, as a result, income levels. These are interconnected things, since the more people come into contact with your products and services, the more likely they are to be interested in them so much that an order will be placed and the business will make a profit.
• Removing various objections, barriers to interaction between the company and the audience, eliminating fears. As soon as the audience believes you, they will have greater trust in your organization and the products and services it provides.
• Assistance in drawing up a portrait of the target audience, as well as building long-term and fruitful relationships with people. By launching certain triggers on your potential clients, you will be able to understand which moments produce the most positive reaction, and which, on the contrary, cause negativity. The information obtained can be used to develop subsequent strategies, effectively developing your own business, attracting an audience that is set up for maximum long-term interaction.
• Attracting additional traffic to the company's official website from recommendations left by those people who have already interacted with your business. Surely it is no secret to you that the modern audience trusts reviews and is more willing to interact with companies that have user online reviews.

As you can see, triggers are quite powerful marketing tools. Looking a little ahead, we note that they should still be used wisely, because otherwise you can get the opposite result to what you expected. But initially it is still important to know what types of triggers exist in the arsenal of modern marketers, to understand. which of them are relevant, and which, alas, are better not to use today.

The main types of marketing triggers

There are quite a lot of trigger options that modern marketers can use in practice, but the following 17 types are still most often used:

1. Indicating a time limit for the promotion in the product card. In this case, the impact on the audience will consist in instilling in people the need to buy this product literally now, otherwise tomorrow there will no longer be such an attractive offer. Surely, you have already encountered in practice such triggers as “Only today get an additional discount on the product”, “The last 2 days of the promotion” etc. Along with such an inscription, a special timer is built into the product card, counting down the time. Looking at these numbers, a potential buyer will most likely decide to place an order more quickly.
2. Demonstration of product shortages. In most cases, such shortages are created artificially. That is, in fact, there is none, but marketers are trying to create such an appearance, telling people that they can miss the opportunity to purchase a valuable and useful thing for them. This will be especially relevant in the case? If a particular person has already contacted your business, knows that your goods or services fully satisfy his needs. It is clear that he has a natural desire not to miss such an opportunity. The most frequently used phrases in such cases are “Only 3 free seats left for the webinar”, “Last chance to get a personal discount: 1 available offer”, “The number of goods is limited” and the like.
3. Formation of a sense of fear. Each person has their own concerns, worries: for themselves and their health, for their loved ones, the safety of their home, the security of personal data, etc. Such a trigger can be focused on them. Alternatively, you can add to the description of the antivirus program the phrase “According to statistics, 90% of hacker attacks are successful” or this: “The lack of reliable antivirus software can lead to you losing access to your bank account” etc. In practice, such triggers also show themselves well when working with various medical examinations, tests, etc.
4. The opportunity to get an exclusive product or service. This trigger is aimed at creating a desire to stand out from the general audience, to attract attention to oneself. In this case, marketers will present the product in such a way that the potential buyer believes that after such a purchase he will become special. Quite often, such a solution is used in practice in advertising premium cars, designer jewelry, accessories, elite perfumes, etc. It is also widely used when working with services. Alternatively, you can offer a subscription to a selection of applications for creativity, author's courses for learning foreign languages, etc.
5. The desire to become a part of something bigger. Such a solution is mostly used in cases where it is necessary to attract the attention of the audience to large-scale, serious, global projects. Alternatively, this may be related to the fight against racism, ecology, saving animals. The emphasis is on the visual effect. It should evoke strong emotions and a sincere desire to provide all possible assistance. Alternatively, videos or pictures of forest destruction, as a habitat for many animals, will definitely have the desired effect, that is, they will arouse sincere sympathy in the audience.
6. A trigger aimed at causing a feeling of greed. Most often, it is used in cases where a store launches discount promotions or holds sales. As a result, a potential buyer gets the feeling that such a purchase will provide him with good savings. And if the desired product is also included in the promotion, then the chance of placing an order will increase significantly. The most frequently used triggers here are “Buy 2 items and get 3 as a gift”, “Additional 30% discount on sale”, “Discounts up to 90% are already included in the price”. Such and similar phrases will definitely cause a desire to buy as much product as possible. Moreover, these may be not only the necessary products, but also related ones, especially if the benefit turns out to be significant enough.
7. Formation of a feeling of gratitude, mutual reaction. Here we are talking about a trigger that will cause a sense of duty in the audience. Let's assume that you offer your potential buyer a gift, a product sample or a free subscription. As a result, he feels obliged to return to your site and make a full purchase. Alternatively, a cosmetologist can make a selection of skin care products for girls, and they will ultimately choose the right option for themselves and place an order. Or you can provide a set of samples. A fashion stylist can offer a free selection of outfits for everyday wear, special events, and the buyer will decide on the optimal combination and buy it.
8. Creating intrigue. Such an offer will certainly attract the attention of curious people. Initially, some mysterious new product is presented to the audience that can guarantee a wow effect. The main thing here is - do not reveal the whole essence at once, but write something like “Find out the details in 2 days”, “Details in the next post”, “I’ll tell you soon what it’s about”. You can also publish a link to your official website, adding the phrase “You can read more details about the new project here”. Such intrigue will definitely attract the attention of potential buyers and will contribute to their more active interaction with your business.
9. The opportunity to be the first. Here we are talking about forming in the audience the desire to be the first to purchase new products or use a new service, to learn important information before others. Humanity has always been interested in new things. People get joy and satisfaction from new things. These feelings become more vivid if a person becomes one of the first to own a new product. This is exactly what this trigger emphasizes. Alternatively, you can announce the release of a new model of branded sneakers, another version of a cult smartphone, indicating that the first batch will consist of only 10 units. It is clear that every person interested in this product will want to get into the top ten.
10. Focus on social proof. The so-called "herd effect" plays a key role in marketing. If you indicate on the product card that 500 people have already purchased this product and 90% of them left positive reviews and recommendations for purchase, then with a high degree of probability you will still be able to attract your buyer. This is social proof in action. Surely, you have seen this more than once on websites "2500 satisfied customers, 1800 repeat requests, 1000 people use our services daily", etc. But it is optimal to supplement this with real reviews, because otherwise users will not be able to understand whether you are telling them the truth or just throwing out loud numbers. That is, it is important for you to give potential buyers the opportunity to evaluate all the opinions and only then decide to place an order.
11. Convincing potential buyers of your expertise. This trigger is aimed at forming trust in the brand among the target audience. This can be done by publishing real user reviews, diplomas, certificates and other awards confirming experience and development in this area. Alternatively, it would be a good idea for fitness centers to show the relevant certificates of their trainers, photos of clients in the “before and after” format (with their consent). If we are talking about selling goods, then here you can show how many years the company has been operating on the market, who its regular customers are, add certificates for materials, finished goods.
12. Storytelling is the focus. In this case, you can tell the audience about your company, how it appeared on the market, how it broke up, what its achievements are. It is important to involve people in your story, to evoke pleasant associations in them, be it memories from childhood, travel, familiar nostalgic melodies, the taste of food, etc. In any case, you will get a fairly voluminous story here. And your task is to make it as interesting as possible, so that a person would want to read it to the end. Let's say you have a chain of hotels. You say that the idea itself came to you because you personally love to travel and would like to live in comfortable conditions. Describe the criteria by which you chose the places to stay, emphasize natural beauty, attractions. This is something that will definitely evoke memories in people who also love to travel.
13. Solving the user's problems and pains. Such a trigger is designed to show potential buyers that you are ready to relieve them of various difficulties as much as possible. That is, the person will not have to do anything, because you take care of everything. Such a trigger works great in cases involving the organization of various events. Let's say that your client is a future hero of the day. You offer him a full range of services, including choosing a restaurant, creating a menu, inviting a host, sound engineer, photographer, preparing invitations for guests and all related work within his budget. If desired, such a trigger can also be used in the sale of goods, such as a food processor, a robot vacuum cleaner and other products designed to simplify the life of a modern person.
14. We offer simplicity to the audience. Most modern consumers live in a very active rhythm. People simply do not have time to sit down and choose clothes in an online store, a hotel for a vacation, or even just fill out a form to call a taxi. Therefore, it is in your interests to make all these processes easier and faster. As an option, you can use techniques such as “Buy in one click”, “Get a selection of options for free”, “Online form for quick ordering”, etc. If you focus on this, then many people who value their time will definitely take advantage of such an offer.
15. Betting on stereotypes. In modern society, many different prejudices have developed. As an option, many people are sure that Chinese products are of poor quality, therefore they are cheap. But if you buy European products, you can get a premium quality product. Another example is the presence of GOST markings on the packaging. People are sure that GOST products are good, and those manufactured in accordance with TU are low-quality. This also includes phrases such as "German quality", "original recipe of a French chef" and many similar ones. These are all stereotypes that exist in modern society. And you can play on them, convincing buyers of the reliability and durability of your products, the premium quality of your services.
16. Providing reliable guarantees. Such an offer is aimed at building trust in a particular product or brand as a whole. As an option, this may be the provision of certificates of conformity, free service, hassle-free returns for a certain period of time, the ability to change the size if it does not fit. That is, here we are talking about all those moments that will help the audience feel safe and minimize risks. Let's say that a person ordered shoes from you, but they turned out to be small for him. If he can exchange them for another size for free, then the risk of making the wrong purchase will be minimal. At the same time, the likelihood of placing an order will increase: the person will understand that in any case, he will receive shoes that will suit him.
17. Emphasis on contradictions. It so happened that most people are used to doing things their own way. That is, if you write “Close this page right now”, “Do not order this product”, “Do not open the letter”, then with a high degree of probability they will do the opposite. Here it would be appropriate to add the word “if”. As an option “Close this page right now if you do not want to know about a special offer”, “Do not order this product if you are not interested in a 50% discount”, “Do not open the letter if you do not want to receive a promo code for your next purchase”.

We would like to draw attention to the fact that you can combine all of these solutions with each other, providing a comprehensive impact on the audience. But the main thing here is not to overdo it. If you put too much pressure on a potential buyer, you will simply discourage him from interacting with your business and even just visiting the company's website. That is, one of the mandatory conditions of modern marketing will be the absence of imposing your goods, services, and even your opinion on a potential buyer. Everything should be presented as unobtrusively as possible. It is important that your buyer understands that it is he who makes the choice. It is not for nothing that unobtrusive marketing is trending today.

Additional recommendations for using triggers

To increase the effectiveness of your marketing activities using triggers, use the following recommendations:

• Before developing a strategy, study your target audience. You must understand who you are targeting, take into account the pains and wishes of potential clients, their fears. Thanks to this, you will be able to determine which trigger should be used in a particular case to get the maximum result.
• Triggers should be launched not only on the official website of the business, but also on social networks, in advertising campaigns, in mailings, commercial offers. But the main thing here is not to overdo it. The golden mean is these are 3 phrases for each post: title, description, conclusion.
• Get away from obsession. Even if you need to use an aggressive trigger, launch it together with two others, softer and more unobtrusive. Otherwise, communication with you will leave only negative impressions and unpleasant emotions on the potential client.
• All the offers that you make to your audience must be sincere and honest. If you promise a gift, free delivery, an additional discount, then you are obliged to provide it. This is the only way you can count on mutual trust and fruitful cooperation.
• All the figures and data that you provide as visual evidence of your own success must also be reliable. This way you can emphasize your responsibility and expertise. It will be easier for your audience to trust you.

That is, in any case, it is important for you to show what benefit a person can get from interacting with you, emphasize your own expertise, responsibility and take a number of measures that will help strangers trust you more. But in any case, do not overdo it with pressure: soft and friendly recommendations should always be a priority.

Why is it worth using unobtrusive motivators in practice?

We have already mentioned more than once that modern consumers are tired of intrusive advertising, aggressive recommendations, and coercion to perform this or that action. Therefore, when working with them today, it is recommended to rely on a softer impact, unobtrusive nudging. Try to win over the audience, tell them that your products match the style of a certain person, their interests. Tell them what points need to be taken into account when placing an order, offer your help in choosing the right size, color, combination of items.

By and large, pressure on the audience in practice is still more effective than unobtrusive recommendations. But the problem is that it works only in the short term. But the consequences in this case can be extremely negative. Moreover, they can significantly increase the return rates: this is true for all purchases that are made under pressure.

Unlike aggressive triggers, unobtrusive nudging gives much more impressive results. One of the latest studies was conducted on the basis of a large online platform, the audience of which is more than 10,000 customers. As a result, such a trigger as offering the audience simplicity increased the number of sales by 2 times, and the income level by more than 1.5%. By introducing social proof, it was possible to increase the number of sales, and with them income from 0.7% to 1.5%. Soothing motivators significantly reduced the bounce rate. The best results were observed in the case of orders made via mobile devices.

Among the main advantages characteristic of unobtrusive triggers, it is worth highlighting:

1. Absence of impulsiveness in purchases, which ultimately minimizes subsequent regrets and related returns.
2. Formation of conviction in the need to purchase a given product or order a service. This increases the level of satisfaction with the purchase.
3. The audience sees you not as a representative of a business wanting to make money on them, but as a friend, a partner who sincerely wants to help them buy the necessary products.

It is these moments that increase the effectiveness of unobtrusive triggers, providing a more positive user experience when interacting with your business.

Who should use unobtrusive triggers in practice?

All the studies that were conducted in this area mainly covered only specific product categories. The very essence here is that, unlike more common everyday products, such products are characterized by higher return rates. And this means that the negative effect of aggressive motivators in this case can be much more significant.

Another “blind” The link in the conducted research can be called the fact that to date, a comparison of aggressive and soft motivators has not yet been carried out. Here we can assume that a combination of 2 options can give good results in practice. But the fact that exclusively aggressive influence has an extremely negative effect on the target audience is a fact proven in practice more than once.

Today, the technique of non-aggressive marketing, which involves the use of soft triggers, has become the norm in everyday use for many brands. Even large and promoted sites have begun to use it everywhere, such as Amazon, Asos and many others. The massive dominance of aggressive promotion, which was relevant here a few years ago, turned out to be in the past. This is the strategy that your business should focus on if you want to increase the level of loyalty from your target audience, and win as many regular customers as possible who will return to you for purchases again and again.

Features of using soft triggers in practice

Now that you have realized the need to use soft triggers in practice, it is time to implement this idea, and as correctly as possible. And here the following recommendations can provide you with significant help:

• The entire process of pushing the audience to perform a particular target action should be carried out as unobtrusively as possible. This can be implemented by creating an emphasis on the key characteristics and distinctive features of your product, effectively highlighting it against the background of competitors.
• Create individual selections and special offers for a certain circle of potential buyers, taking into account their interests. These are a kind of personalized offers that can significantly increase the likelihood of placing an order.
• Add links to certain product items as examples. Alternatively, you can write a phrase like “Can a modern fashionista resist seeing such a blouse?”
• Provide practical recommendations on choosing a particular model of a product, where relevant - size, color, design. Be sure to provide practical recommendations on using a particular product.
• Get away from playing with the audience's feelings. The very essence of soft motivators is to calm people down, not to make them nervous or irritate them. All interactions with you should be free of anxiety and uncertainty. And this means that you should avoid phrases that provoke such feelings.

By and large, you can experiment with various tools and trigger options to your heart's content, choosing the combination that will prove ideal in your particular case. Much depends on the market niche you work in, the platform you use for sales and attracting an audience, and many other factors. In most cases, you will be able to choose the right option only in practice.

Let's sum it up

Regardless of what market niche you work in, what audience you are targeting, it is important for you to follow current modern trends and focus primarily on the interests of the target audience, their preferences, and wishes. And one of the current standards today will be unobtrusive marketing triggers. It is important for you to navigate the variety of available options and choose those that will best suit your segment of the target audience, orient it to make purchases of goods or services.

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