The role of Choice Architecture is to present choices in the right light and context to influence decisions. The decisions to be made are conversion points or micro conversion points, these are points in the conversion funnel where visitors are asked to make a decision at a specific time and place and in real time. Here, at the moment of action nudge marketing is used to influence behavior.
Fact: the majority of purchases are irrational and driven by emotion, based on guesswork and gut instinct, such decisions can be influenced.
Nudge Marketing is based upon the idea that behavior and decision making can be influenced through ”nudges” and is the application of Nudge theory to marketing. Nudge theory when applied to behavioral economics influences purchasing decisions through the use of positive reinforcement or indirect suggestion. In ecommerce nudges are typically supplied through a range of triggering options which when activated to supply a website message overlay or as popups. Triggering is based on specific user or user group behavior. Timing of triggering is critical.
A conversion point is any decision or action elicited from the user/visitor, typically this refers to a sale, but not necessarily. If money is not exchanged then typically the term used is micro conversion. Here a choice is provided, and the decision made by the user/visitor, who answers by clicking a button or through some other interaction, like filling in a form. The message delivery design should be enticing, persuasive and the desired action is a micro conversion. With every engagement and action taken by a visitor, the more information is collected about the visitor. If correctly applied, a wealth of information can be obtained about visitors, both psychographic and demographic data. This can be used to create ever more personalized personas.
One crucial part of conversion rate optimization is the organization of the above process through the creation of a conversion funnel. In addition, a customer journey map is also generated. The micro conversions points should mark the various stages down the conversion funnel, asking more from the visitor the further they progress. Choice architecture is the linchpin and foundation of all message design and which can impact on the delivery of the message and its persuasiveness. Choice architecture is vital for nudge message design and AB testing thereof, as well as conversion funnel design.
What is a Nudge (Buyer Beware)
An unfurnished house is more likely to sell once it is nicely furnished, therefore the act of “staging the house” is a nudge, just as doing anything to improve the sellability. One common practice when selling a house in America is to bake a loaf of bread in the house before having someone around to view it, the smell evokes homely feelings, but it also hides any nasty odors or the damp smell, this is a nudge. Therefore, a nudge is something that is known to improve the odds of selling but without forbidding or enforcing, or by changing the economic incentives. In addition, the nudge must be easy to ignore or dismiss. Obviously, you can’t use this physical scenario for virtual ecommerce but the methodology still applies.
An ecommerce nudge would include:-
- A low stock notice. (There are only 2 items left in stock)
- A product viewer notice (There are 12 people viewing this product)
- A product review (this product is fantastic 5 stars!)
- Sale end date (count down timer to sale event end, see limited time offers)
A nudge, therefore, is an influencing piece of information typically delivered in the presentation of a choice to be made. The choice might be whether to make a purchase, subscribe to a newsletter or not or do download an info guide pdf. This is an exchange of something valuable, your something for their data or cash.
Understanding what Works
The above examples of nudges are pretty much universal, and even if the visitors are aware of these techniques. However, its effectiveness does decline somewhat with awareness. Consequently, it is better to deliver bespoke personalized nudges. In order to do this, you need to understand your customer motivations and their behavior and who your customers are in order to craft nudges and content that speaks directly to them.
Increasingly businesses are turning to Neuro Marketing to achieve greater insights.
What is Neuro Marketing
Simply put Neuro Marketing is the application of Neuroscience to marketing, but what Neuro Marketing represents is the cutting edge of how to understanding your customers.
NeuroMarketing takes medical science methodology to measure and quantify physiological + neurological responses to marketing stimuli, split testing reactions to find the most effective approach to get the desired outcome. On some level, you might think that this is what AB testing tools do, and you would be right, however, NeuroMarketing takes this to the next level, a sign perhaps about what the future holds. NeuroMarketing is what the major companies are now using, to determine their next marketing action, a field testing tool if you like.
Example of Neuro Marketing
An example of Neuro Marketing would be the use of a medical tool like Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to study the effect of any stimuli (ie visual stimuli, – picture of an item) on the brain to determine what parts of the brain are activating in response to that image. These are then compared to known neuro responses that occur when people decide to purchase, otherwise known as the right emotional mix, used to trigger the all-important buying urge.
This is easier said than done, typically an MRI scanner is not available in store – at the cash desk, or while someone is browsing or at that specific moment when the buyer makes the decision to buy an item. Today we are limited to simple split testing of images or video of the product in various situations and context. But in the future, when MRI scanners are miniaturized, – who knows, perhaps we might wear them like a hat, and in exchange for a 20% discount when entering a store.
For now, we are limited to asking rudimentary questions about how they feel about an image of a product such as:
- Do you like this product? or Would you buy this product?
- Or perhaps ask them to indicate how much they like a product on a scale of 1 – 10?
There is much that can be learned without a costly medical device, start with OptiMonk, a CRO tool with the functionality to collect feedback from customers. The benefits are many, you can set a product feedback message to trigger seconds after purchase OR, if they abandon the purchase, just before they choose to exit the product page (exit intent detection) or even later if they abandon the shopping cart.
The data collected is invaluable for redefining your choice architecture, including your background image, value proposition or CTA. Moreover, learning the motivation of buyers enables the creation of highly personalized messages and nudges. All of the above practices are an intrinsic part of conversion rate optimization.
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