To get customers to buy your stuff, you need to understand how they make purchasing decisions.
People research products and compare competitors. Many studies show that people read reviews and decide what to buy based on them. Around 87% of buying decisions start with online research, mostly on Amazon or Google.
While product quality and seller reputation count, what then influences a purchase decision once these basic factors are ticked off?
While there is no straightforward answer, there is evidence to show that people make emotional decisions, backed by rational processes. This goes against the common notion for the last 50 or 60 years, where market research believed that people used rational, conscious thought processes when buying something.
As it turns out, most decisions happen on a subconscious level. We are driven by emotion more than we realise, which means that most purchases aren’t rational buying decisions. And yet, many businesses heavily focus on the features and specifications of their offerings.
So what’s going on here? Enter dual process theory.
What is dual process theory?
As the name suggests, dual process theory is the two different systems of our brain that work together when we make decisions. Once is automatic and instinctive and the other is controlled and conscious. They can be divided into two systems of thought: System 1 and System 2. The theory was popularised in 2003 in Daniel Kahneman’s book, Thinking, Fast and Slow.
With System 1, our minds process information in an emotional, unconscious and instinctive way. This automatic mode of thinking helps us read facial cues of our angry boss, react instantly to a speeding car as we step off the curb, and detects that one object is further away than another. Thoughts and reactions come to the mind automatically and effortlessly, without needing to assess or anticipate much at all.
System 2, however, is slow, logical and orderly. It helps us focus on the voice of a particular person in a crowded and noisy room, search memory to identify a surprising sound, and determine if a parking space is too narrow. Because it deals with effortful mental activities, we are often conscious of the fact that we are thinking and concentrating.
Because System 2 requires an active effort, we often think that we make purchasing decisions in a purely logical manner. This is, however, an illusion -- the two systems are constantly working together, as the dual process theory states. Impressions get turned into beliefs when the two agree. If System 1 runs into trouble, it asks for processing help from System 2, who usually has the last say.
How can we apply dual theory theory to our marketing efforts? By influencing both System 1 and System 2 in the consumer decision-making process.
How to appeal to System 1:
Use lots of visuals
There are various stats like “visuals are processed 60,000 times faster than text” and “65% of people are visual learners”. This is System 1 at work. It is visually oriented, which is also what makes our reactions so automatic and instinctive. Use this to your advantage by adding clear and simple visuals to your site while articulating the benefit.
This works because System 1 is engaged with the visual, and System 2 reads and understands the benefits. This interconnection is a good way to convince customers on both messaging and branding.
Keep things simple
If your site is a visual tangle of calls to action, messages and features all screaming for attention, it will be too confusing to navigate for customers. Reduce friction by keeping things short and sweet - you want each step in the user journey to be smooth and effortless for your customers.
Calendly has a simple, clear homepage with only one call to action - to sign up and use their services.
The headline, visuals and call to action all work together by giving just enough information for System 2 to digest, and making the next step almost automatic for System 1.
Tire out System 2
We know that System 2 has a small capacity, so it gets tired easily. That’s what leads to a feeling of overwhelm, or analysis paralysis, when there are too many choices to choose from, or decisions to make.
With this in mind, offering lots of simple choices may seem like a questionable move. But you just told me to keep things simple and clear! You may protest. I don’t want to annoy my customers and have them leave and never come back. Yes, but hear us out - adding friction can be a good thing. It can help increase the quality of leads on a lead generation form, for instance.
Making people work a little harder, or think things through a little more can help you weed out customers or users that you may not want.
Play on familiarity
The mere-exposure effect is a cognitive bias that shows, as the name suggests, merely being exposed to something can create a certain type of fondness for it. This is applicable not just to marketing and advertising, but also to friendships and relationships too. It explains why some friendships are more easily maintained by regularly meeting in-person, and grow more distant if that frequency is reduced.
This is applicable online as well, as Internet users develop certain preferences for designs and prototypes purely because we see it all the time. We are all more familiar with the hamburger menu now, and for ecommerce, visitors are used to seeing the product image on the left and product details on the right.
Beauty brand Drunk Elephant does this by sticking to a simple and familiar ecommerce design:
It’s predictable and intuitive, which lets System 1 take charge and lead the way without disturbing System 2.
This works for branding too. A good tactic is to retain distinctive brand assets with familiar and recognisable elements, but done with a refreshing twist. A good example are the M&M’s characters that have become a highly profitable asset. It is such an integral part of the brand, that people asked where they went when the company temporarily pulled them from adverts and communications.
How to appeal to System 2:
Throw a surprise in the mix
Sometimes we don’t want the user journey to be a smooth and predictable ride. Throwing System 1 out of the loop can work, such as an exit intent popup when visiting Zendesk’s site.
Gently shaking System 2 awake as users are about to leave the site can make them rethink about their intentions. It is unexpected, and requires a decision: do I leave or do I want to schedule a demo?
This surprise is the opposite of familiarity. Aside from popups, anything unexpected like an on-site survey, an eye-catching image or a short, clever quote can slow down the mechanical System 1 and wake up System 2.
Just as we don’t want to strain System 2 too much by giving too many choices, we don’t want the surprise method to make it too taxing either. So choose wisely and try to retain a good balance between tactics.
Stick to the facts
System 2 is logical and rational, so it makes sense to highlight product features and benefits if you want to appeal to it.
This approach works well for purchases such as smartphones and laptops, where sites will often include side-by-side product comparisons to let customers evaluate different models and specifications to find the right one for them.
Amazon’s site layout is attractive to System 2 because all the information - from the price, customer reviews, delivery costs and specs - are listed out clearly for customers to make decisions.
Everything is laid out in an organised and simple way, providing just enough information for customers simply scanning and evaluating on the fly, with links provided for more in-depth research.
When providing facts and figures, make sure the layout, design and information aren’t overwhelming for System 2.
Use intuitive design
System 1 like clear visuals, and in the same vein, we want the site navigation to be a smooth, uncomplicated journey so that System 2 doesn’t get depleted. It’s important that when customers land on a homepage, they know exactly where they are, what options are available to them, and where each decision will lead to next.
Airbnb does this by maintaining a good balance between visual cues and contrast to direct attention, and using prototypes that users would be familiar with, such as “location”, “check in date” and “guests”. This eliminates any anxiety or uncertainty when navigating their site, so that System 2 can go into cruise mode.
Notice the visual cues in the image used, and the contrast in colours to demand attention of certain elements over others. All this is keeping System 1 happy and in control, as the experience is intuitive and clear.
Does the dual process theory apply to all marketing tactics?
The points above are just some of the ways you can use dual process theory to your advantage. However, bear in mind that these systems are broad generalisations of how the mind works, and should serve as marketing and design guideposts. It isn’t as simple as segmenting customers into ‘emotional’ and ‘rational’ categories, as the two actually go hand in hand as we have explored.
In short, remember that System 1 is driven by emotions and instincts, and System 2 is logical and easily depleted. Use large images and testimonials to appeal to System 1, and more facts and figures to convince System 2 into a purchasing decision.