Understanding The Emotions That Guide Customer Buying Behaviour

Igwe is the head of business development at an events company in Lagos, Nigeria. His company organizes trade shows and conferences around the nation. His company is preparing for its flagship business conference, and he is tasked with the responsibility of acquiring sponsors for this event. With his experience in building profitable business relationships, Igwe knows that people make decisions based on emotions and justify with logic. Igwe knows that there are basically 6 emotions that guide our behaviour, especially when it comes to buying. Desire: Humans desire rewards, so when Igwe approaches a target, he crafts his message in a way that focuses on the rewards his target will enjoy by sponsoring his event. His conversation with a target, a security company, went like this – ‘’if you sponsor this event, you will have the opportunity to create business opportunities with several companies that need to upgrade their security, which means more revenue for your business’’. Fear: When Igwe approached a software company to sponsor his event, he created the emotion of fear when he told his target that their biggest competitor was ready to be the platinum sponsor for the event and hence enjoying more benefits. Igwe knows that the fear of loss or lack of choice is a powerful motivator. Rivalry: ‘’If you don’t make a decision now, your competitors will’’ Igwe said to another software company. The emotion of rivalry or envy goes along with the emotion of fear. We all want to be one step ahead of our competitors. Pride: After Igwe displayed the names of some big brands in the country that had already signed up as sponsors, the CEO of a furniture company thought to himself ‘’If I sign up as a sponsor, I will be perceived as a top brand like the other sponsors’’ Shame: The head of Branding and Communications at a telecommunications company was ashamed when he attended the business conference and saw that he lost a big business opportunity. Igwe had approached him, but he declined to sponsor the event. Altruism: ‘’By sponsoring this event, you will be helping young entrepreneurs succeed and making our country a better place.’’ We all want a sense of contribution and the fulfillment that comes from helping others. In order for Igwe to succeed in this approach, he first made research on his target to identify and understand their current states. Igwe knew the software company’s major competitors, he knew what the security company valued at the time of his approach and also researched the furniture company before he approached them. Practical tips on how you can use emotions in your sales approach.

1. Research your target
2. Identify the target’s emotional triggers
3. The emotions that guide decisions
   1. Desire
   2. Fear
   3. Envy
   4. Shame
   5. Pride
   6. Altruism

About the Author: Mason Frederick Chegwe shares useful information you can use to achieve your marketing goals. Connect with him on Twitter and LinkedIn    

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This article was first published on 12th January 2015

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