One of the most standout qualities of human beings is that they act in herds. They feel the need to flock together as a group, and base their life decisions as a group. If you happen to be doing copywriting services, then for sure you are encountering this attitude regularly when studying your target audience.
It is also known as the “bandwagon effect.”
How does the bandwagon effect or mentality impact the way you write a sales copy, anyway? Well, a lot. Almost every copywriter on earth would tell you that deciding as a group is a core of buyer behaviour, and you need to understand this to win paying and loyal customers.
As someone offering copywriting services, you need to realise that the bandwagon effect resonates in the following circumstances:
- People want to share the pain.
When writing a sales copy, you need to sell the pain to your audience, as this is how they become impulsive and open to trying your offer. When selling the pain, you may also want to keep in mind that “misery loves company,” so it is a must that your reader feels like they’re not enduring the pain alone.
People go where their group is. Hence, when their fellow tribe members feel the pain, they tend to share the pain too (even if in reality, they don’t). As a group, they follow only one direction to overcome the ordeal. You then have to make them see that your offer is their only way out of that pain.
- People go for the most number of votes.
How many of their tribesmen have voted for option A, option B, and option C? You may not notice it, but your audience weighs their decisions based on what the numbers say. They compare notes, and try to see which among the available choices has gotten the most approvals by their fellow group members.
It is therefore important that you project your sales pitch in a way that your offer becomes the most preferred choice by your audience. You may do this by either showing actual stats, or by promoting your product’s attributes that have gotten the most raves by your target market.
- Testimonials speak the “truth.”
One thing you should not dismiss about the bandwagon effect is that people want to hear voices behind the votes. You can further amplify your sales agenda by toying with your audience’s bandwagon mentality, and this is often done via testimonials.
Hearing your previous clients speak about your product or service gives your audience an idea that there’s an existing community of satisfied customers, people who were previously in the same state as them, but have overcome their issues by using your product or service. By seeing them happy and raving about your product, the more inclined they are in giving it a try as well.
By maximising the features of the bandwagon mentality, the more customers you can get, and the more sales you can make.
