Suze Bragg

Part 11 (of 12) of social media marketing: use the 22 psychological needs to make a difference
May 28, 2008

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There are 2 ways to leverage needs:  stimulate them or satisfy them.  When it comes to your marketing, you already know that (1) people hate being sold to and they will avoid your business as much as they avoid used car lots and (2) the more you give (information, advice, tips, freebies, sales, etc.) the more you will receive in return. It's the law of Quantum Mechanics.  

There has been a lot of discussion online about Brian Clark, also known as Copyblogger, and his reference of ChangingMinds.org's list of 21 psychological triggers that help an individual make a decision about you.  Or, as Changing Minds says, "how we change what others think, believe, feel and do" (I recommend reading their site; it's pretty interesting).  

As you seek to relate to your customers, there are 22 ways to help them relate to you. Many sites tout them as the best psychological way to get people to BUY NOW and they're usually featured with annoying flashing banners and lots of text about how important they are (my immediate reaction is to click off their site immediately, so they're obviously not using these needs properly. As an FYI, here are some examples of what not to do on your website: example 1 and example 2. )

The following needs that will help you with your social marketing, and with your branding in general.  They are:

1. Beauty
2. Belonging
3. Certainty
4. Challenge
5. Completion
6. Conforming
7. Consistency
8. Control
9. Curiousity
10. Esteem
11. Explanation
12. Fairness
13. Health
14. Identify
15. Novelty
16. Prediction
17. Rationality
18. Repetition
19. Safety
20. Self-Actualization
21. Understanding
22. Winning

Let me know if these work for you (I believe they will).

Posted by Suze Bragg on May 28, 2008 | Comments (4)