Meet the New Breed of Online Buyer
Welcome back! I hope everyone had a safe and productive week.
Thanks for giving me the chance to introduce myself last week, and hearing my ideas for our blog. And make no mistake about it … it is OUR blog … not mine, not AWAI’s. I’m just the emcee (kind of like Ryan Seacrest … ), and AWAI is playing the part of our gracious host.
But in the grand scheme of things it will be up to you, web writer, to chart our course across the high seas of online copywriting. My job will be to keep our sails turned into the wind and making headway as we look for ways to better understand our prospects.
So without further ado, let’s start things off by talking about the many avenues available to us to make money as web writers.
Right off the top of my head, there’s …
Home pages … sales pages … subscription pages … information pages … landing pages … promotional e-mails … acknowledgement e-mails … follow up e-mails … e-newsletters … podcasts … online videos … audio/video scripts … forums … information pages … SEO … and of course, blogs.
But before we start getting into the nitty-gritty of each, however, I think we need to begin with the single most important element that’s common to them all—and that’s the prospect we’re talking to.
To begin understanding today’s prospective customer let’s first look at some current realities of e-commerce …
The U.S Department of Commerce predicts that online sales will hit $235.4 billion in 2009, and that number is projected to top $334 billion by 2012.
Consider that these numbers come at a time when we’re lumbering through one of the worst depressions our country has ever experienced.
But before we say Uncle Sam is fabricating false expectations, let’s take a closer look at why these numbers will quite likely be very realistic:
Primarily, society is becoming more and more connected each and every day, driving online sales to never-before-seen levels. Consider that:
- Internet access by broadband methods, including DSL, cable modem and satellite, has reached critical mass in residences across the United States, as well as in most businesses and offices.
- Tens of thousands of public Wi-Fi hotspots are now in operation, and Bluetooth technology has gained wide acceptance for wireless connection of networks through appliances such as PDAs, cell phones, and mobile digital devices such as Apple’s iPod-touch®.
- WiMAX® is poised to revolutionize the e-commerce industry and will likely be adopted as the “anytime, anywhere” broadband wireless Internet technology of choice.
- Most online checkouts now offer consumers around the world the ability to manage financial exchange rates so there is little delay in completing an order and submitting funds.
Bottom line: It means more people, in more locations, have the opportunity to purchase more goods and services online than ever before … and the numbers are increasing exponentially.
This phenomenon has created the “perfect conditions” for impulse buying, and it’s forcing many companies to rethink their online marketing efforts or establish a presence on the Internet simply to stay solvent and competitive.
Now here’s the thing about today’s prospect that we need to understand as online marketers (and indeed, that is what you’ll need to be in order to become a “wealthy web writer”) …
When the economy rebounds (and it’s only a matter of time … ), a new connected generation of shoppers will emerge from this crisis that are all but immune to traditional advertising.
This new consumer group—largely the children of Baby Boomer parents who were born roughly between 1980 and 2000—spend an astonishing $150 billion a year, and influence another $50 billion in family purchases.
Think about that for a moment …
$200 billion a year in sales that are directly attributable to a group that hasn’t hit 3o years old yet … with the majority being much younger than that!
There are three things that distinguish this new core-buying group:
- They embrace quality and value over quantity
- They’re connected to technology and their social networks around the clock
- They turn to their computers to validate anything that interests them
So what does this tell us about this powerful new group of consumers?
For one thing, it tells us that it’s no longer a matter of throwing some poorly written copy on a landing page and getting business.
To be successful, companies must know how to present the features and benefits of their product or service in the context of online marketing to a very discerning—and very smart—online population.
And I think that’s a good starting point for this week’s discussion.
Let’s talk about this new breed of online buyer.
Think about what drives you to shop online before heading out to the bricks-and-mortar stores, and how the same motivations may be affecting your prospects.
There are economic considerations of course, like not wanting to waste precious gas traveling from store to store. But let’s drill down a little deeper …
Could the desire to research the purchase yourself and not rely on the ramblings of a store salesperson factor into it?
Is it a time issue? Has the need to “touch and feel” the product been overtaken by the necessity of getting the purchase completed in a timely manner?
Or could it be that today’s prospect is more of a loner who prefers to operate outside the context of social settings? If that were true, how would that change the way you approached marketing to that prospect?
What are the primary and secondary emotions that may be motivating this new breed of prospect?
Remember … the trick is to “get inside” the ongoing conversation in your prospect’s head and see what makes him or her tick.
I’ll look forward to hearing your thoughts!
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Your article was very thought provoking, but I disagree with you on a couple of your conclusions.
Being part of the generation you're talking about about, I'm confident in saying that most young adults and kids don't care about quality over quantity. Rather, they are consumed with *image* over quality or quantity.
What their peers think has far greater influence on this generation's purchasing decisions than anything else. Although many of these people are isolated by their technology, they are certainly not "loners."
This allows us marketers to use one of the most powerful tools in our belt: social proof.
There are all kinds of ways you can use social proof to influence their purchasing decisions. Here are two:
- show that their peers want, need or even envy what you sell.
- give your product celebrity appeal (MTV does this masterfully).
Bernardo
Bernardo – May 13, 2009 at 11:36 am
Bernardo...
Thanks so much for your thoughtful reply! This is exactly the kind of back-and-forth we need to make the WWW blog the best it can be! Given your reply, I think we can all learn a lot from you. In fact, if I'm honored with the job of overseeing the blog, I'd like to extend an invitation to to act as a guest author in telling our readers what motivates your buyer's group! I think that would be a very interesting read. Thanks again....
John
John Torre – May 13, 2009 at 2:54 pm
John, Thanks for the invite and good luck!
Bernardo
Bernardo – May 19, 2009 at 6:28 pm
Hi John,
Thanks for the blog post. It is an easy read with one main thought woven through. I look forward to hearing more from you.
Karen
Karen Hilstad – May 19, 2009 at 6:55 pm
I agree with some of what Bernardo had to say, but applaud you John for picking a topic that is relevant and different. My vote would be for you because I felt the topics written by the other "competitors" were either too cluttered or I had seen/heard before.
I also like that you are bold enough to go after a topic that could spark a debate.
Cindy Cyr – May 20, 2009 at 11:38 am
John... I appreciate your point of view. I flatley haven't taken the opportunity be a blogger, but you are making me seriously think about how I can best use a blog to my advantage.
John Wiggill – May 21, 2009 at 9:02 am
I'd like to thank everyone for your kind words, and I'm glad you found this post interesting. There are many directions we'll explore as time goes on and it's through your thoughtful replies that we'll all learn from each other and ultimately become Wealthy Web Writers!
John Torre – May 24, 2009 at 5:40 pm