Are you ready for a rather amusing tactic that can allow you to look into the minds of the members of your target market? This strategy can be applied for a variety of purposes, all of which would be beneficial for your online enterprise.
But first, let's talk about a more general matter.
If you already know about the difficulties businessmen encounter when it comes to fickle-natured consumer behavioral patterns, then you can skip this portion and proceed to the next segment.
But if you're like most of us online marketers, novices and veterans alike, who, even after years of experience in this industry, have yet to fully find a determinable pattern in consumer behavior, then read on.
Consumer behavior, you see, is a field of study that is of utmost importance for businessmen. Whether they're operating in the real world or in the virtual realm, consumer behavior holds the key to succeeding in whatever venture they've decided to undertake.
Consumer behavior involves the following aspects:
·
What your prospects need.
·
What your prospects want.
·
What your prospects expect.
·
What your prospects will need next.
·
What your prospects will want next.
·
What your prospects will expect next.
If you know the answers to these questions, you'll be able to provide for them some products or services that will surely satisfy them. Having them part with their hard-earned money will be an easier job for you, as you'll have something that is very valuable for them, thanks to your appraisal of consumer behavior.
Determining consumer behavioral patterns is at the heart of all market research. In a way, we could say that a great part of your success depends on how well you're able to read the prevailing trends in a specific market.
The Problem With Consumer Behavior
Sadly, consumer behavioral patterns are not set in stone. Much like the weather, they can change in an instant. There is no particular model that is followed. Consumer behavioral patterns are almost as seemingly random as the next draw in a deck of cards. What they may desire today, they may get to despise tomorrow, for example. Or what they may expect this hour, disappoints them come evening.
If only we could read the minds of the members of our target audience, then things would be so much easier. We'd get to know
- with certainty - what would make our prospects happy. And with this knowledge, we'd be able to offer them some products or services that are certain to be highly sellable.
Sadly, we're not mind readers. No one is, for that matter. Telepaths are constructs of myths; they are the creation of fiction. In the real world, we have to settle for educated guesses and careful speculation and we have to bear the risks in the event that these approaches fail.
How Can You Accurately Predict Consumer Behavioral Patterns?
Online marketers in particular have tested a number of techniques hoping to crack the consumer behavior code. Most of the time, their efforts go to waste as consumer behavior proves to be more inconsistent than the roll of a dice.
Does this mean that consumer behavioral patterns will forever remain a mystery?
Of course not!
All that is needed is a little imagination and the right tools.
So what if you cannot possibly read your prospects' minds? You could always invite them to share their thoughts with you, and with these thoughts, you'd be able to predict
- with a certain degree of accuracy - what your target market really needs and what your target market really wants.
You might be wondering what I'm talking about.
Well, wonder no more. I'm going to show you a truly innovative way of picking the brains of the members of your selected market.
It has something to do with polls.
Yes!
Polls!
What Are Polls?
You may have encountered polls during your online experience. These are often employed in forums where thread starters can initiate a new discussion where the respondents are allowed to vote on a particular issue by selecting some prepared answers.
An example of an online poll would be as follows:
Who is the
best pop superstar?
a.
Christina Aguilera
b.
Britney Spears
c.
Jessica Simpson
d.
Carrie Underwood
As you can see, the question is already given as well as the choices. All your targets would have to do is to select the choice that best corresponds to their preference and submit it. This would be very convenient for them and could be fun as well.
Polls have become popular because of the following reasons:
- They offer a degree of interaction that is uncommon on the Internet today.
- Everyone wants to be heard, and by answering polls, users feel that indeed, they are being heard.
- Polls are a venue for people to share a piece of their minds online.
- Answering polls can prove enjoyable for many respondents.
- Viewing poll results can likewise be just as enjoyable.
People will naturally be curious about the results that the poll promises to produce.
So How Are You Supposed To Use Polls To Your Advantage?
Remember what we said about the unpredictable nature of consumer behavior?
With polls, you'll be able to employ a method to the madness. You'll be able to put some order into the chaos.
That's right!
Polls can be used to read your prospects' minds. You'll be able to know what they need and what they want as well as what they expect by simply asking the right questions and providing for the scientifically determinable choices.
Let's test this theory.
Suppose you have an online business that sells eBooks… and sales have been rather slow. You're probably wondering if it's because of the quality of your eBooks or the decline in the medium's popularity. How would you know for certain?
By creating a poll for your website's visitors of course!
Try asking the following question and providing the following choices:
What do you think about eBooks in general?
a.
They're okay, but they're too expensive.
b.
They're okay and properly priced.
c.
They're amateurish and full of wrong information.
d.
They're highly informative, but the medium has become stale.
With the responses you're sure to get, you'll be able to know what's wrong with your online business. Are you offering the right kind of products? Is it time to shift to other forms of digital goods? Or are your offerings merely not at par with the expectations of your audience?
From the answers you derive, you could make the corresponding adjustment and significantly improve the operations of your enterprise.
Indeed, polls are great feedback tools that will help you determine the inner workings of your prospects' minds. You'll be able to give them what they need and what they want, and best of all, they won't even realize how you managed to learn about them!
Great! But How Do I Include Polls On My Website?
If you have some web programming skills, you can easily integrate web polls into your pages.
Sadly, not everyone is blessed with such technical know-how.
But here's an amazingly simple solution.
Presenting...
