It always pays to keep a close eye on customer trends and behaviours if you want to increase your sales and grow your business.
Sites like bullpreneur aim to bring you the latest news and views in that respect, and one regular topic of conversation is likely to be about retail trends and trying to gain an insight into how shoppers make their purchasing decisions.
Here are some key pointers to consider on that subject.
Reviews are key
Despite that obvious concerns about the prevalence of fake reviews and a degree of scepticism about glowing recommendations it is still crystal clear that reviews are a key component in the customer purchasing decision-making process.
It is estimated that at least 80% of shoppers will read a review of a product before deciding to buy.
That is why your business needs to focus on this aspect of the buying experience as it will make a difference to your sales volumes.
Recommendations matter
Another aspect of the selling process that has not really changed over the years is the power of recommendations and how they can help overcome any barriers to buying.
It used to be word of mouth on the street and that is still the same scenario when it comes to recommendations. The only difference is that social media and other online forums have joined the party.
It seems that shoppers will gather their buying recommendations from a wide variety of sources.
This means that it could be a positive mention on social media or old media, such as a good old-fashioned conversation.
What isn’t in doubt is that positive recommendations from any source are a proven way of generating sales.
Shoppers are not always as individualistic as they think they are
We all know our own minds and exactly what we want and why we want it, right?
Apparently, it seems that a great number of our so-called individual preferences are actually driven by crowd behaviour. In other words, we are influenced in what we consider to be our individual preferences by a crowd mentality.
Going with the flow and the general consensus of opinion happens to us more than we realize when making purchasing decisions that seem to be individualistic, but in reality, is not that personal.
No need to complicate things
It is no coincidence that some of the most simple sites are actually the most successful in selling terms.
If you make it very easy to understand what you are offering a customer and make it just as easy to complete the purchase in as few steps as possible you are onto a winning formula.
Our brains are wired to seek out what is known as cognitive fluency. In basic terms, we like to keep things as simple as possible.
If your site is simple and easy to follow it could make a big difference to your conversion rates.
None of these observations is exactly rocket science to understand but that is the fundamental point.
If you can tap into these natural human behaviours it can prove to be a winning strategy when it comes to giving customers what they really want.
Also Read: Best Shopping Tips to save Money and Time
