Why do we buy what we buy? In some cases there is a direct motivation: we are hungry so we buy a loaf of bread. But when we buy a nice T-shirt from a certain brand, we may have completely different reasons, such as status or image.
We have different motives for every product we buy: we call these purchasing motives. In this blog we show you a number of examples of purchasing motives and explain how you, as an e-commerce company, can use purchasing motives smartly to increase your conversion.
What are purchasing motives?
There can be an infinite number of purchasing motives underlying someone's purchase. And often the choice is not determined by one motive, but by a combination of purchasing motives. But to give you a good idea, we have listed 7 common purchasing motives below.
- Money
The cheaper the product, the more likely the customer will buy the product… right? Not completely, that's a bit different. We will explain exactly how that works later in this blog. But the price of a product is nevertheless certainly a purchasing motive. - Need
Think of food and drink: we simply can't live without it, so we buy it. - Security
If you always brush your teeth with the same toothpaste and never have a cavity, the product gives you a form of security, so you keep buying it. - Safety
Safety is also a common purchasing motive. For example, consider the helmet when you ride a motorcycle or a screen protector for your smartphone. - Ease
Are you sitting on the couch on a lazy Sunday and you don't really feel like walking to the supermarket, but you are really hungry. Then the convenience of ordering food is definitely a purchasing motive. - Status
An expensive, fast car, a shiny watch or a branded shirt: do we really need it? No, we don't have that, but it does give us a nice feeling and a form of status. - Self-development
We want to grow as people on a personal and mental level. That's why we buy books or take a course, for example.
Emotional purchasing motives versus rational purchasing motives
Do we buy based on rational motives or on the basis of emotional motives? Many people believe that they mainly make choices based on reason and sometimes that is actually true - I am hungry so I buy a loaf of bread. But in most cases we really choose based on underlying emotions: for example feelings of safety, comfort, lust or status. Research even shows that more than 80% of our purchasing decisions are made based on emotional motives and that, for example, a rational purchasing motive such as money actually plays a subordinate role.
Use purchasing motives as a webshop
Okay, we now know what customers' top purchasing motives are and we've learned that most customer choices are based on emotion. But how do you find out which purchasing motives are decisive for your webshop customers? You do this by talking to your customers and, for example, using an online survey or a customer panel to find out why a customer buys your product. Once you have a good idea of the purchasing motives of your customers, you can respond intelligently to this in your communication, for example by addressing these motives in a product text or by responding to the right feelings of the customer in your marketing. If you master this trick and actively apply it, it will give your conversion and turnover a big boost!
Do you have any questions regarding this blog? Let us know! Wondering if Belco is something for you? Try our software for free for 2 weeks and experience what it's like to work in an all-in-one customer service environment. This trial is completely without obligation and stops automatically after 2 weeks .
