The Science Behind Successful Digital Marketing Campaigns (Part 2)

How principles of behavioral science can positively impact marketing campaigns, leading to increased conversions and ROI.

In Part 1 of this series, we proposed that behavioral science is the driver behind every successful idea.

Put it in a different context, marketing is a creative profession but so is architecture. Architects design iconic buildings like the Petronas Twin Towers or the Sydney Opera House, but within the framework of physical laws. (This illustration is referenced from How Brands Grow, by Bryan Sharp).

Marketing operates under the laws of behavioral science. Marketing is far less unpredictable than we assume. These behaviors can be best understood by understanding how buyers buy. As a recap, we covered the Fear of Missing Out, the Paradox of Choice, and Call To Action in our first article in the series. Read Part 1 here.

At BRICKS AND CLICKS, we have run hundreds of marketing campaigns for our clients, generating effective results through the use of these principles.

Let’s dive in.

Social Proofing

When shopping online for a product on Amazon or Lazada, the one thing we always check is the reviews. What buyers are doing here is that when uncertain of the right action or decision to make, they are looking at what other people are doing.

Social proof is the phenomenon where people assume the actions of others in an attempt to reflect correct behavior for a given situation. We assume that the people around us; friends, family, and even celebrities, have more knowledge about what should be done.

In delivering campaigns for our clients, we found that social proof is highly effective in moving people down the funnel in the buyer’s journey to the decision stage. A great application of social proof is in case studies. Take this example which we did for a client in the B2B space. Out of the 8 ads that we ran for them, which includes those with case studies and without, the ads that performed well with the highest click-through rate and conversion rate were those that had case studies.

For every ad with a case study as social proof, we found they performed on average 30% better in Click Through Rates, and 20% higher in conversion.

Point: Supply evidence from past customers to encourage consumers towards a decision.

Framing Effect

The framing effect refers to how our decisions are influenced by the way options are presented to us. That’s how our brains work, we don’t make decisions based on just the facts. Options can look more or less attractive by how it’s ‘framed’, using words or symbols to reflect a positive gain or a negative loss.

In our previous article, we shared how loss aversion, or the Fear of Missing Out, can drive behaviors from buyers to not miss out on a deal.

For the same campaign, we used the framing effect that added further emphasis on the loss that potential buyers might miss out on. This was achieved by simply using the three brands’ iconic logo in the ad campaign.

The positive brand associations not only increased the positive attitude towards the sales event. But the option of missing out, framed in the context of missing out on some great deals with great brands, generating a two to three times increase in sales overall.

Point: Frame your offers positively or negatively, to change people’s minds.

Information Gap Theory

The information gap theory is the theory about making decisions under deep uncertainty. First developed by George Loewenstein in the early 90s, he states that we are most curious when we know a little about a subject (our curiosity has been piqued) but not too much (we’re still uncertain about the answer). In simpler terms, the right amount of information can greatly increase one’s curiosity.

This information gap theory finds its most obvious use in landing pages. Using this theory, we tweak landing pages to contain just the right amount of information to pique a consumer’s desire or curiosity, but just enough to take action such as submitting a form.

At BRICKS & CLICKS, we have used it in good measure for our landing pages and website content. What we aim to do is to present just the right amount of information that’s sufficiently important, appealing, and encourage the audience to act. Actions that we encourage audiences to take could be for example; to enquire, to stay tuned, to follow a brand’s social media account, to place a reservation, and more.

When applied to our campaigns, we observed higher re-engagement and conversion rates overall.

Point: Provide just the right amount of information to make even Goldilocks curious.

Recap

Let’s recap the 3 main points and the relevant questions to ask:

Social Proofing – Are there testimonials, case studies, or social proof from customers?
Framing Effect – What angle are you framing your offers to consumers?
Information Gap Theory – Are your ads piquing consumer’s curiosity?

If all of this seems like rocket science to you, let the digital marketing experts at BRICKS AND CLICKS help you deliver results on your marketing campaigns. Click here to get a free consultation with us.

Here are more useful links: