Step Three – Evaluation

After your customers have collected all information they feel is necessary, they begin to evaluate their options and narrow their choices until they finally pick one thing that they are comfortable with, and that they can afford. This is time to follow-up with your customers. Is there additional information they need in order to choose? Did they have problems with free sample that can be corrected? Your “presence” during evaluation stage is important, so do your best to retain customer contact information in order to “gently” offer any additional details buyer might need. (Nobody likes a hard sell, or to be pushed into buying.)

Step Four – Purchase

Once all information has been evaluated, a purchase is made, and your customer walks away happy… right? Well… not always.

Step Five - Cognitive Dissonance (Post Purchase Anxiety)

While customers may have thought they chose best solution when they purchased, many times customers later experience cognitive dissonance, a.k.a. buyers’ regret. They second guess their decision and begin to feel uncomfortable about their decision. This is where trial periods, guarantees, and/or warranties come into play.

Customers will have more confidence in their decision, even after it is made, if they know they aren’t “stuck” with their purchase. Having a guarantee to fall back on gives them comfort to know that – should something go wrong – they won’t be left stranded. Generally speaking, a guarantee is a psychological support rather than a literal one. Most customers never take advantage of guarantees… they don’t think they need to. However, if a guarantee wasn’t offered, anxiety of feeling “all alone” would overcome many buyers and persuade them into asking for a refund.

Understanding each step in buying process can help you structure your selling process and your marketing materials to cater to customer. Take time to consider what your customer goes through when making choice to buy, and alter your business accordingly. In doing so, you’ll increase your chances of making more sales, and landing more satisfied customers.

5. Are you using little modifiers excessively?

Nouns and verbs that are specific give good writing toughness and color. So use adverbs and adjectives sparingly. And remember what your Strunk&White says about modifiers like "rather," "very," "little," and "pretty" -- "...these are leeches that infest pond of prose, sucking blood of words."

6. Is your phrasing too fat?

Vigorous writing is lean writing. Put your sentences on a diet by cutting unnecessary words: reduce your paragraphs by eliminating unnecessary sentences. Get rid of expressions like "the fact that," especially when "since" or "though" will do. Look for places where you can express a thought in one sentence instead of two.

7. Does your beginning lead to an end?

All copy should have a clear beginning, middle and end. The shortest pieces as well as longest. Begin with a lead sentence that captures essence of piece, then jump right into action. Make sure middle section is tight and well organized. Keep like items together. If you're comparing cars and trucks, describe cars first, then trucks. The end of your piece should have a crisp closer or zinger and contain a call to action or quote. For instance, an apt ending here might be something like this from Dickens: "All writing is misery."

© Burek Group 2003

Thank you for your intrerest in this article. You may freely publish it in print or on Web as long as you include byline and credits. Also, please advise me of publication by mailto: walter@walterburek.com