What is this feeling when you browse to some websites' products pages. Among the ways to influence visitors to purchase something, like now, is to put a bit of urgency.
Putting some urgency to your website can do wonders. The reason for this is because the sense of urgency increases value. Without it, desire will fade.
Our brains tend to be respond unconsciously when told to act quickly. It's like nature's way to play with our reflexes. Urgency puts our conscious mind at a halt, somehow challenging our logic when it comes to decision-making. How urgency plays with our mind, is by eliminating the point where we think about something for too long.
With the many information we need to process in our mind at any given moment, thinking about something for too long usually makes us forget about that thing. We can be overwhelmed by our own thoughts that we choose to move on to other things.
Putting urgency to your website, is to eliminate that delay, and lead potential buyers straight into purchase.
Below is a list of the ways you can add some level of urgency into your contents in order to increase your website's conversion.
Time And Countdown
For us to manage our days efficiently, we need to include time management into our habits. And there is nothing that triggers urgency like a persistent reminder that you're out of time.
Putting a timer or a countdown to your product page, is to show a ticker that signify something that is coming to an end. You may use it to tell people that your product quantity is low, for example. This countdown timer heightens the feel of urgency. This can influence them to purchase the product faster, because you're playing with their fear.
This is a psychological reaction called FOMO, fear of missing out.
A ticking timer is a simple announcement that limits the chance for people to overthink their purchase.
Prompts To Act
Sometimes, the best way to make someone purchase something right now, is to tell them to do so.
People tend to respond to words that represent urgency. This is natural as humans don't really like being told. Using words like "quick", "now", or "fast", can instill the feeling of urgency to your potential buyers. Again, these words create the sense of FOMO. This is the reason why we are bombarded with marketing phrases like "act now", "approaching" or “hurry".
If you choose the right word, you can influence people to act quickly - sometimes without even thinking rationally. This is in line with what marketers want buyers to do: act now, think later.
People that like to delay things, tend to think more than usual. These people have a higher change of not purchasing, or do anything, immediately. But if they are pressured, the chances for them to do what they're told, increase.
Something To Lose
Nobody wants to lose something. This makes us motivated when feared of losing something, more than when we want to acquire something.
This is called loss aversion, and this tendency is the core of why urgency messages prompts immediate actions.
If your products page can give the impression that people are about to lose something valuable if they don't respond, you're clearly explaining the negative things that would happen to them. This provides the feel of urgency to the minds of your potential buyers.
Giving something to lose to people, is like giving the insecure feeling of losing something important (although your the product you're selling isn't important for that person at that time). It's just a mind game that implies the feeling of losing to people.
Use Scarcity
Urgency goes well with scarcity. It play with the feeling, making us wanting something although we don't want them, just because we don't want to lose a good deal.
This is because scarcity means value. When people feel that something is limited in numbers, it is scarce. And something that is scarce, will have its value increased. This will make people think that the product you're selling is at a high demand.
And because there is a limited availability of something, people will want it even more.
As an added strategy, you can also put some social validation onto it. The combination of the two can be an incredible combination because most of the time, humans look to others' decision on what we should do. This is hardwired into our brains, forcing us to do something in order to fit in. As a side effect, people often look to others on how to behave, without consciously thinking logically.
And if you're selling that product at a bargain, the urge escalates further up.