Marketing is largely psychological, with emotion playing an outsize role in our purchasing decisions. With each generation, marketers need to pivot somewhat in order to be successful. Although human nature as a whole does not change too much across generations, each generation has different preferences for the products they want to buy and which marketing tactics work best.
Generational Differences
When it comes to marketing, different generations have been shaped by the cultural forces surrounding them. Gen X, for instance, is more likely to stay loyal to brands than Millennials and prefer email communication from companies to other marketing methods. Gen Z, however, which was raised in the digital age, often looks to social media for new products and wants to pay for their purchases digitally, though they prefer in-person experiences.
Marketers need to understand the psychology behind these differences and conduct market research. Understanding what makes an ideal customer click “buy” or head into the store requires seeing the world from their perspective and catering to their preferences.
Psychology Principles for Marketing
In marketing, there are several psychology principles that can be used to help companies reach their goals, whether that’s getting someone to book a consultation or buy a product. These tactics can be used in different settings and campaigns for optimal success. The 10 most important principles are:
- Priming – building brand recognition through design
- Reciprocity – giving something away to increase sales
- Social Proof – word-of-mouth marketing online
- The Decoy Effect – a price used to get a person to buy a more expensive item
- Anchoring – setting a price, then having a sale to create a sense of value
- Scarcity – creating the sense that a product is limited and rare
- The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon – creating the impression that a product is everywhere
- Clustering – increasing memory by grouping related information together
- Loss Aversion – building in “extras” for signing up early that become unavailable later
To learn more about each of these principles, see this infographic from Maryville University.
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