There are many stages in the buying process and each stage is distinctly different from the last. Whether you’re using emotional ‘trigger phrases’ at the end of the sales funnel to instigate action, or you’re appealing to the niche interests of your loyal customers, content analysis can help you identify the psychological signals you can use to help double a website’s conversion rate in just 40 days.
Here are 10 emotional trigger phrases to look out for to help you boost your website’s conversions.
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1. Headline Statements
The most important featured text on a page is the headline. Hence these statements must grab the attention of your readers and ones that include a service ‘benefit’ in the word count does this best.
Examples Of Headline Trigger Phrases:
- “Eliminate” – Eliminate your maintenance costs
- “Breakthrough” – This summer’s breakthrough music act
- “New” – New studies show people prefer X over Y
In many instances, a visitor will land on your page because they are looking to solve a specific problem. Therefore, you need to convince readers that you can present the solution the world has been looking for and waste no time doing it.
2. Use Scarcity To Increase Demand
Implying scarcity of a certain product is an old-hat trick used by retailers to increase consumer demand. You should also consider this trigger to boost e-commerce conversions in many instances because;
- It implies that a product is very popular (therefore well-liked and ‘good’) in the eyes of the customer.
- It convinces the reader to act without delay to avoid FOMO (the ‘fear of missing out’).
Examples Of Scarcity Trigger Phrases:
- “Hurry” – Hurry, tickets are selling out fast
- “Less Than” – Less than X left in stock
- “Only” – We’re the only service that gives you X
A Word Of Caution: Studies have shown that increased exposure to scarcity signals can decrease their effectiveness over time. Audiences, therefore, need to genuinely believe that supply is dwindling in order to be persuaded to act in a timely manner.
3. Make Life Easier
Marketers and business owners are acutely aware that if they cannot keep up with their customers’ needs for fast fulfillment they will go elsewhere. In most instances, text that denotes speed and ease-of-use will go a long way in reassuring customers that they will get what they need as fast as it took for them to find your website. That’s right, lightning fast.
Examples Of Convenience Trigger Phrases:
- “Ready To Go” – Your pre-charged X is ready to go
- “Streamlined” – We’ve streamlined our forms to make applying easy
- “Quick Tips” – Take a look at these quick tips for doing X
Bonus CRO Tip: Videos and images of your product in action help to add to the audience’s expectations that they will be instantly gratified when making a purchase, or performing a specific action on your site.
4. Show Them You’re A Contender
In order to be seen as unique, it will be crucial to set your brand apart from the competition. Aside from using case studies, original content and exclusive offers on your site, the language you use in your main sales pages will help readers believe in your credentials.
Examples Of Competition Trigger Phrases:
- “Master”- Become a master of X
- “Leading” – Leading service providers
- “A Cut Above” – Our services are a cut above the rest
Bonus CRO Tip: In your About page, go into lots of detail about how you identified your gap in the market, based in areas where the competition may be lacking. For example, if your company offers personalized advice, talk about your frustrations as a customer in trying to choose the right product to suit your needs.
5. Play To The Senses
Words that trigger a sensation reinforce the brain’s neural pathways, casting the reader back in their memories in an instant. Gerald Zaltman found that 95% of our purchase decision-making happens in the subconscious mind.
Copy that plays to the five senses can be effectively tied to the reader’s long-term memory to help them build positive associations with a brand.
Examples Of Sensory Trigger Phrases:
- “Tantalizing” – A tantalizing offer you can’t refuse
- “Spot” – Spot the difference to your business’ bottom line
- “Feel” – Feel the difference when you try X
Bonus CRO Tip: Your use of color throughout your pages also adds to your reader’s emotional response. Play around with contrasting accent colors and take a look at some articles on color theory to help you select the right shades for your desired website feel.
6. Use Thrill-Seeking Phrases
The internet is a sphere for entertainment and your website should offer the same appeal, even if your brand could be seen by some as being quite mundane. If you’re excited about your product and what you have to offer, your marketing copy should reflect that too.
Examples Of Exciting Trigger Phrases:
- “Provocative” – Try X in one of our new, provocative shades
- “Awesome” – Make your X awesome again by following this tip
- “Exhilarating” – Take an exhilarating test drive in the new X
Bonus CRO Tip: Add imagery that directs your viewers around the page. Add frames, borders, and button links to guide your audience to the calls to action. However, also remember to use imagery sparingly, as you want to ensure that your design doesn’t distract from the page’s main focus.
7. Give A Little To Get A Little
Reciprocal phrases close-in on our natural, human urge to be generous to others. The idea that if you get something for free you need to give something in return is deeply ingrained and marketers take advantage of this with their copy. Offering a free PDF guide in exchange for an email is a subtle and clever way to make use of this technique for lead generation.
Examples Of Reciprocal Trigger Phrases:
- “Match” – We match people with great X services
- “Introduce” – Introduce a friend and we’ll give you X
- “Free” – Free shipping on orders over X
Bonus CRO Tip: Every consumer loves a free offer. To facilitate offers to boost e-commerce conversions, make sure you are using them effectively. You don’t want to have to lay out lots of working capital on freebies for visitors who may prefer to just walk away. In all instances, think of giving away freebies as a method for building brand loyalty. For example, give discounts to customers who introduce a friend, or offer discounts to first-time shoppers. Brands can easily set up automated loyalty and referral plugins from their online storefront.
8. Be A Thought Leader
As far as the internet empowers consumers to research a product from anywhere at any time, sometimes the wealth of customer reviews, advice columns and alternatives can start to overwhelm many customers. For those that are ‘on the fence’ in their decision to buy or not to buy, an authoritative source of information may be needed in these indecisive moments. This is where positioning your brand as the expert starts to become very useful.
Example Of Authoritative Trigger Words:
- “Knowledgeable” – Our knowledgeable team can get back to you in minutes
- “Expert” – Expert X technologies enable you to do more
- “Guide” – We guide you every step of the way
A Word Of Caution: It is not enough to position yourself as an expert. You may have the best team of professionals behind you, but if you’re not sharing your expertise on a larger scale, you will struggle to convince a wider audience that you really are a credible source of information. Therefore, aim to build a content marketing campaign with real industry clout. Build-up your backlinks and get noticed by thought leaders to truly work towards becoming an authoritative voice.
9. Be Friendly And Approachable
Moving on from the reciprocal trigger phrases, friendless is a powerful rapport-building tool. If your product is complicated, some lighter tones of copy can help readers feel less intimidated by the high-level information you have to share. Friendly trigger terms have been utilized by instruction manuals for decades, take the ‘Dummies’ series of books, for example. The colloquial term ‘dummy’ creates a relationship between the author and the reader. The authors know where you’re at on a subject and they’re able to empathize and help.
Example Of Friendly Trigger Phrases:
- “Help” – We’re here to help you
- “Understand” – We understand how you want to X
- “Don’t worry” – Don’t worry, you can get started in minutes
Bonus CRO Tip: In building a friendly rapport with people in real life, businesses should do their best to also think long-term. When you meet a new buddy, you don’t bombard them with requests for favors. You take your time to get to know them before you feel comfortable asking them for anything. In terms of conversion copy, use ‘smaller’ calls to action to encourage further engagement. Ask people to follow you on social media, or watch a video. Try to avoid jumping to the ‘hard sell’ in an instant.
10. Give The Power Back
Get your readers involved in your copy by handing the power onto them. With the rise of social media, user-generated content is becoming a powerful marketing tool for bringing in traffic and boosting sales. Brands can utilize their audience’s input to build brand loyalty and convince others to become product advocates with things like hashtag campaigns.
Examples Of Transferring Trigger Phrases:
- “You” – We want to hear from you
- “Search #” – Search #dreamholidayteam for more
- “Create” – Create your own X
Bonus CRO Tip: Placing an emphasis on content that encourages user contribution hinges on your ability to seed these statements in the right places, i.e where your audience spends most of their time online. Make the most of the sites like Pinterest to help you spread your message and prime your customers to buy by creating shoppable pins for your products. You can also make shoppable galleries for Instagram, advertise on Twitter and Facebook and ensure that you are making the most of your audience’s input.
Now it’s your turn!
Examining your content as a whole and inserting these emotional trigger phrases where they would most persuade is a completely free way of boosting your conversion rates. Be careful about making over-promises with your copy and make sure you use these psychological ‘hooks’ sparingly, as your audience may be turned off. In all of your efforts, come across as an authoritative source that’s also approachable. Finally, test and make alterations until you find a voice and set of phrases that work.
Victoria Greene is a content strategist and freelance writer, blogging at Victoriaecommerce. Here, she shares quick and easy tips for brands looking to boost conversion rates with compelling copy.
Hi Victoria,
I strongly believe that emotional triggers help to boost conversion. It is good to know what are the emotional triggers that you have shared here. I was not aware of many of them.
thanks for sharing.
Gaurav