With the upcoming holiday season, many companies will double their profits thanks to marketers and people like you and I. Black Friday and Christmas day are the perfect excuses to buy things, a lot of things, even without needing them. Companies spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in advertisement, marketing, social media ads, to make you buy something that perhaps you don't really need.
In this post, I share some of the things that I have learned as a digital marketer throughout my career, to help you filter through the noise and make better educated decisions. Being conscious consumers not only helps our wallets, but also contributes to the welfare of our planet and the sustainability of our natural resources.
1. Marketers Create the Need for you to Buy
Marketers are paid to create the need for you to buy things, this is called demand generation. As a marketer and as a consumer, I always ask myself two questions before purchasing something: do I need this product? or do I desire this product? These are two different questions with different outcomes. We need to buy food to eat every day, that is a need, but we don't need to purchase clothes or shoes every month to survive, that's a desire.
2. Marketers Analyze your Behavior
Marketers are like spies, they know what you search for on Google, for how long, how much time you spend on a site, if you open an email, what you read and where you click. Marketers have ways to study your behavior on different platforms including mobile, web, and social media. Common tools for this include Google analytics, e-mail tracking tools, Moz Pro, and others. Marketers have also become experts in Search Engine Optimization (SEO). This means they create content using keywords you are likely to use on a Google search, in order to increase the chances you will click on the topmost link, and get as many eyes on their websites as possible. Once you click on the link, marketers can track your behavior and associate that to a Cookie which they can use to later offer you the same product with a “promotion” personalized to you.
3. Marketers Use Psychology
Successful marketers employ psychology in appealing to consumers, this is call marketing psychology. Marketers study your needs and behavior in order to create products that will most likely be appealing to you. This includes analyzing your responses to different colors, sizes, textures, flavors, etc. The objective is to attract and engage consumers and compel them to buy more. Marketers can also appeal to your feelings and emotions; Coca-cola promotes “happiness and friendship” instead of sugary drinks.
4. Marketers Create Experiences
Marketers want you to be happy. This is the most common desire in all human beings, and they used it to their favor. A common example is McDonald’s happy meals for kids. They show happy parents taking their kids to their restaurants to play, they just don’t sell fast food they sell experiences and family moments. Some products have the capacity to make you experience happiness, fulfilling and a feeling of accomplishment.
5. Black Friday, Christmas Day, Mother's day and Valentines are Key Targets
These days are the busiest shopping days in the year and for a good reason; marketers know how to target your emotions and make you feel compelled to buy more. For example, marketers can create the feeling of something special by using images of Christmas trees and wrapped gifts. Mother's day should be all days, and all days are opportunities to show someone that you love them, not just with things but with your actions and attitude towards them.
I hope this article helps you to start making more conscious buying decisions, spend your money wisely and reduce waste for the welfare of our planet and the sustainability of our natural resources. Enjoy the holidays with your families and friends!