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I just bought six square pieces of spongy fabric for $20 and walked away happy – “victim” of an impulse purchase. I walked past a demonstration booth at one of those big show events. I even knew it was coming. About 50% of the people walking out carried two bright yellow cylinder things.
As we walked toward the convention center, I told Tim (my other half), “There’s one of those guys with a microphone in there, doing a demonstration. He gets people so excited they think they have to buy those things. They over-pay then never use them.” I said this a bit smugly. I know of such things, so I wouldn’t succumb.
Yeah, right. This guy was good. It is so good that I came up with five ideas for increasing sales from impulse purchases. Next time you evaluate short-term sales and marketing strategies, think about and apply these five impulse purchase lessons…
Table of Contents
1: Demonstrate an impressive, relevant feature.
If the product is chocolate, sold at a retail checkout stand, you have no need for this one. Human nature takes over. When you are selling unrecognizable cylinder things, people need some encouragement.
You would never know it to look at them, but these things were super absorbent shammies. They can suck 8 – 10 ounces of soda out of your carpet in nothing flat AND it makes for an impressive demonstration. When the demonstrator mentioned they could dry a sweater in three hours, I was hooked. Never mind we have about two spills a year in my house and I don’t own any “lay flat to dry” sweaters.
This ability to get people to “live in the moment” is one key to a successful impulse purchase demonstration. The salesperson has a lot to do with it, of course. Repetition of an incredible, attractive feature, however, is key as well.
Think of any infomercial or “Billy Mays” product. There is always an “AMAZING!” feature – it cooks in minutes, instantly removes stains, easily pulls dings from your car, etc.
2: Try to “time it right”
One of those semiannual spills in my house happened the day before I bumped into the yellow cylinder guy. I thought, “If I’d had these yesterday, right now, we wouldn’t have books stacked in the middle of the living room floor.” By accident, he had related to something that was top-of-mind for me.
Fortunately, you do not have to rely on coincidence. There are usually six or eight generally popular “themes” you could tie into at any one time. Better yet, your target audience is likely to have its unique interests.
You can “time it right” by associating complementary products or services on the Internet. For example, if someone is researching monitors, perhaps they need an ink cartridge for their printer.
Showing or highlighting ink cartridges on the screen along with the monitors may incite an impulse purchase. Better yet – and this is impossible unless you have order histories or detailed profiles – show them the exact cartridge they need.
3: Make it easy.
It turns out the cylinders cost a flat $20. There was no change to mess with, no stopping to fill in order forms, and no multiple pieces of currency. As people pulled $20s out of their pockets, the demonstrator took them and handed over the shammies in a single motion.
You can make it easy on the Internet by ordering and delivery.
Make the order process as simple as possible. Amazon’s “Quick-Click” links are a good example of making ordering easy. Impulse purchasers click on the “Buy from Amazon” button and order straight off a pop-up window. You can see how it works here, in the left column under “Amazon ‘Quick-Click’ Example”: http://WebSiteMarketingPlan.com/Arts/ImpulsePurchase.htm
Easy delivery is another way to encourage impulse purchases on the Internet. Instantly downloadable digital items are an example. For physical items, quick delivery—overnight, same-day, or local store pick-up—can increase sales.
4: Give an enticingly presented discount.
A roll of three shammies was $21 something, but the guy was taking care of the sales tax, which made it an even $20 (But wait, there’s more!). Because it was early, he would throw in another three rolls for no additional charge. Caught up in the moment, we nodded in agreement. We were getting a deal—no sales tax plus three free.
How a discount is presented can make a deal sound appealing or “not such a deal”. Which sounds better?…
- “Buy One, Get One Half Off.” OR “Buy Two and Get a 25% Discount.”
- “3 for $5.00” OR “$1.67 each.”
- “40% Off Sale” OR “On Sale, $12.00 each.” (Assuming $20 item.)
Another way to encourage impulse purchases is to offer a discount by bundling. Offer to reduce the price on a second, related item (like in example #1 above).
I have seen this done with books online. Some booksellers offer a chance to save money on shipping and/or book prices if you also purchase a related item.
5: “Keeping up with the Joneses.”
Instead of putting the shammies in a bag, the demonstrator rolled them into a cylinder. This way, people at the show would see others carrying them around and wonder what they were missing.
The same concept can be applied to the Internet. I have seen messages like: “Others who bought ‘x’ also bought ‘y'” on order forms, at check out, and on product screens.
Recommended Books on Increasing Sales, including Impulse Purchase:
- The Psychology of Selling: Increase Your Sales Faster and Easier Than You Ever Thought Possible
- 501 Killer Marketing Tactics to Increase Sales, Maximize Profits, and Stomp Your Competition: Revised and Expanded Second Edition
- How To Avoid “Just Looking!”: And Other Ways To Increase Your Retail Sales
- At Your Service: How to Attract New Customers, Increase Sales, and Grow Your Business Using Simple Customer Service Techniques
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